Wichita State beats New Mexico 6-5 for third straight win

The only surprising aspect of Sam Hilliard’s uptick in productivity for Wichita State’s baseball team is the day it began.

Hilliard had four hits at Southern Illinois on March 21, the start of a 22-game stretch in which Hilliard has batted .384.

Hilliard also pitched that day, belying a season-long trend that has seen the WSU junior’s offense mostly disappear on days he’s taken the mound. But Hilliard bucked the trend again Sunday with three hits and three RBIs in the Shockers’ 6-5 win over New Mexico at Eck Stadium.

WSU (17-26) finished off a three-game sweep of the Lobos, its first sweep at home this season. Hilliard pitched four innings and did not earn a decision.

“I’ve kind of felt that I don’t hit as well on days that I pitch because I have to focus on what I’m doing on the mound,” Hilliard said. “I have to put all my focus on that and try to focus on hitting whenever that time comes. Today, I felt good hitting.”

Before Sunday, Hilliard was batting .214 on days he pitched, starting the season 0 for 14 in such games and managing two hits in 15 at-bats the last three times.

In games he doesn’t pitch, Hilliard has a .358 average, giving credence to his theory about the difficulty of frequently changing his focus. While he’s still searching for a day when he does both well – Hilliard hasn’t earned a win this season – providing value in either aspect can help the Shockers.

“We recruited him as a pitcher No. 1 and a hitter second,” WSU coach Todd Butler said. “But when we recruited him I liked his bat just as much as his pitching, so I didn’t know which one he was really better at. He hasn’t thrown as well as he’d like, but he’s really swinging the bat well for the last month.”

Hilliard singled and scored in the second inning, when WSU tied it 2-2, and took an even more active role in the offense in his next at-bats.

With a runner on second and two outs in the third inning, Hilliard lined a full-count pitch to right-center field, where his hit rolled to the wall, allowing Daniel Kihle to score as Hilliard cruised into third base.

After New Mexico took a 5-3 lead with three runs in the top of the fifth, Hilliard came through again, lining a pitch to center field. New Mexico’s Aaron Siple made a sliding attempt, but it rolled past him to the wall, and Hilliard had another triple and two more RBIs.

He scored on a throwing error on the same play, putting WSU ahead for good.

“I was seeing the ball well today,” Hilliard said. “Two triples – I don’t think I’ve had one, so whenever I got on third I was pretty tired. But it felt really good.”

WSU got a runner into scoring position in three of the first five innings and scored in all of them, an efficiency which New Mexico couldn’t match.

The Lobos were retired in order in the first inning but had baserunners in every other inning. During the first five, they left seven on base but had a 5-3 lead after the top of the fifth and weren’t damaged by the lack of an extra clutch hit or two.

But after WSU took the lead in the fifth, New Mexico kept getting on base but stopped scoring. The Lobos left the bases loaded for the second time in the sixth and stranded four runners over the last three innings and 15 for the game.

John Hayes was most effective in keeping New Mexico’s scoring chances to a minimum. He earned the save with two scoreless innings and didn’t allow a runner past first base.

“That’s kind of been my role lately is to come in and calm things down if it gets out of hand or something like that,” Hayes said. “I’ve done it a few times and that’s getting to be my thing, I guess.

“I always try to see what (previous pitchers) did to get in those situations in the first place, like if they walked them or something like that. Most of the time they just get behind (in the count). I try to learn from their mistakes and not come in and repeat it.”

This story was originally published April 26, 2015 at 5:46 PM with the headline "Wichita State beats New Mexico 6-5 for third straight win."