Pirates Drop Series Finale To Host Shockers

Sunday, May 4

Wichita, Kan.

2:00 p.m.

East Carolina University

27-21, 0

Wichita State

15-31, 0

East Carolina

Wichita State

May 04, 2025 | Baseball

Box Score

WICHITA, Kan. – Jaden Gustafson hit a walkoff single in the bottom of the ninth Sunday afternoon to lift Wichita State past East Carolina 8-7 in the rubber game of an American Athletic Conference series inside Eck Stadium.

The Shockers (15-31, 7-14 AAC) claimed their second series victory of the season despite the Pirates' (27-21, 11-10 AAC) rallying to tie the contest with four in the seventh frame.

A quartet of ECU batters produced multi-hit efforts with Alex Bouche finishing 2-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI. Gustafson ended up registering three hits, a run scored and an RBI.

Bradley Zayac (1-2) was tagged with the tough-luck loss after surrendering just one unearned run on two hits with no walks and three strikeouts in 3.0 innings of work. Nick Potter (2-1) was the winning pitcher as he covered the last 2.1 frames without allowing a run.

Braden Burress laced a leadoff single to right center on the first pitch of the contest, advanced to second on a wild pitch and moved to third on a grounder before scoring via a Dixon Williams sac fly to give the Pirates an early advantage. The Shockers attempted a quick answer as Camden Johnson stroked a leadoff double to right field and Kam Durnin drew a walk. A grounder moved the runners into scoring position, but an interference call in foul territory accounted for the second out and Sean Jenkins induced a fly to right to end the frame.

Wichita State broke onto the board in the bottom of the third. Kaleb Duncan reached on a leadoff bunt single before coming around to score with a Josh Livingston double that found the right center gap. Jackson DiLorenzo entered the contest after a walk and kept things tied by retiring Mauricio Millan who flied out to left center.

After a Walker Barron RBI single put East Carolina back in front 2-1 in the top of the fourth, the Shockers plated five runs on three hits in the home half of the inning. Bouche cut the deficit right back to three with a leadoff home run in the fifth, but Dillon laced an RBI single through the right side to score Millan who reached on a leadoff bunt single and moved into scoring position on a sac bunt.

The Pirates would rally to tie the game in the top of the seventh with a four spot. Drew Downs was hit by a pitch to begin the inning before Bouche and Burress singled consecutively to load the bases with no outs. A fielder's choice brought in the first run and a Wichita State error on the play scored another to make it 7-5. A Colby Wallace RBI groundout and two out run-scoring single off the bat of Austin Irby then put the sides back even at seven heading into the stretch.

An error in the outfield put the winning run on second for the Shockers to lead off the bottom of the ninth. Following a walk, Gustafson split the infield on the left side to score Rogers for the game winner.

Up Next: With no midweek game on tap, East Carolina turns its attention to a home American Athletic Conference series with league leader UTSA May 9-11 inside Lewis Field at Clark-LeClair Stadium.