No. 8 TCU shuts down Wichita State’s bats in 3-0 victory

Second baseman Luke Ritter jumped and stretched, ready to grab the line drive out of the air and get Wichita State off the field down one run.

“It just barely got over my glove,” Ritter said. “Inches.”

That is how it so often goes for a struggling team and the Shockers lost all the close battles in Friday’s 3-0 defeat to No. 8 TCU.

The line drive by Josh Watson that eluded Ritter zipped into right field for a two-run triple and a 3-0 lead. With Horned Frogs reliever Jared Janczak overwhelming the Shockers in the late innings, that lead seemed insurmountable. Janczak struck out nine in five innings and retired 10 of the final 11 batters to team with starter Luken Baker to hold WSU to three singles.

WSU (9-17) had its chances in the middle innings, wasting them on a series of bad at-bats and coming up on the wrong end of an interference call with the bases loaded in the fifth. The meager offensive outing ruined Willie Schwanke’s first career complete game and things won’t get easier against the Horned Frogs (20-5).

“We have a chance to play with anyone with Schwanke on the mound on Friday,” WSU coach Todd Butler said. “We have to take advantage of his starts. They have a very good pitching staff and it will get better as the weekend goes.”

TCU helped WSU’s hitters with wildness in the middle innings. The Shockers, however, failed to do any of the work themselves.

In the fifth, WSU loaded the bases with no outs, without a hit. After a force play at home, the rally died when umpire Connan Strobel called WSU’s Josh DeBacker out at second for interfering with shortstop Ryan Merrill. The double play took away a run, ended the inning and brought Butler out of the dugout to protest.

DeBacker slid into second and raised his arm near Merrill, who didn’t throw and looked at third to see if he could get an out there.

Butler said the umpires told him that DeBacker didn’t slide into the bag.

“I’ll watch it on TV and see what the situation was,” Butler said. “Big situation with the bases loaded. If you deliver a hit right there, you don’t have to worry about getting a call.”

After TCU ended WSU’s biggest threat, it added two momentum-turning runs. Cam Warner started the sixth with a single. Schwanke’s sinker produced another groundball and an out at second, but Ritter’s throw to first sailed wide and Evan Skoug motored to second base. After a flyball out and a walk, Watson stroked a 2-1 pitch for his fourth triple.

Schwanke stranded him at third, but the inning took the life out of the Shockers. Janczak struck out Ritter with two on in the sixth to start a stretch of seven straight outs, five by strikeout.

“Very good slider,” Ritter said. “He had a tight slider.”

WSU also put its leadoff hitter on in the third and fourth innings.

Zach Reding, who walked, ventured too far off second on a chopper to the mound in the third and third baseman Elliott Barzilli tagged him to take the steam out of that inning. Baker ended the threat with two runners in scoring position with a flyball out.

In the fourth, WSU’s Greyson Jenista walked to start the inning. He was doubled off first after Merrill snagged Gunnar Troutwine’s line drive.

Worth noting — WSU sophomore Cody Tyler will make his first start since 2014 on Saturday. He started one game as a freshman before an elbow injury ended his season. He redshirted in 2015.… Dane Steinhagen’s fifth-inning home run ended a streak of 20 2/3 scoreless innings by Schwanke. Schwanke’s previous long outing was eight innings last week in a 6-0 win over Cal Poly. … TCU won for the first time in five games at Eck Stadium. It tied the series 8-all and has won seven straight over the Shockers. … TCU’s Cam Warner went 2 for 4 to extend his hitting streak to 14 game. … WSU was shut out for the third time.

This story was originally published April 1, 2016 at 10:17 PM with the headline "No. 8 TCU shuts down Wichita State’s bats in 3-0 victory."