Nine games into conference play and WSU is barely clinging to a 5-4 winning record. After a three-game series at home against Nevada, the Cougs dropped two of the matchups giving up 23 runs, nine walks and 35 hits to the Wolfpack.
While the Nevada bats did terrorize the Cougs, WSU did have some bright spots. They averaged seven runs per game, had back-to-back quality starts from Nick Lewis and Griffin Smith and had freshman Matt Priest take home his second straight Freshman of the Week award.
With a balance of standout and cringe worthy moments, what exactly can Coug fans take away from the weekend?
Let’s take a look…
Matt Priest and Gavin Roy… that’s it… that’s the takeaway
Lump the two hitters together and you get 14 hits, five RBIs and eight runs scored this weekend. The freshman and senior duo made up a bulk of the Cougs’ offense and made the top of the order lethal all weekend.
The Cougs managed to score in the first inning of all three games, mainly due to Priest and Roy. They created a “nail and hammer” top half of the order, with Roy getting on base and Priest driving him in.
Roy reached base ten times on the weekend, and Priest managed to drive him in specifically three times. With Roy in the leadoff spot and Priest batting cleanup, the Coug offense can go toe-to-toe with anyone in the MWC.
Game one was a fluke
After punching Nevada in the mouth with 12 runs in game one, WSU never got back to that level. While they did rattle off 13 hits in game two, they also stranded 10 runners, leaving premium meat on the cutting room floor.
Game one was mainly a success due to WSU’s small ball approach. An infield single, sacrifice fly and a pair of sacrifice bunts made up the four-run first inning to start the weekend. Nevada was put on their heels early in the weekend, but it did not take long for them to adapt.
After that first inning, Nevada went on to smoke nine doubles, four home runs and 35 total hits on the weekend. WSU managed only six doubles, no home runs and 30 hits.
Essentially, after tipping their hand, WSU had no real response to the Nevada bats and pitching staff. Consistency has been at a premium for WSU, and if they want to move out of the fluke-zone, they will need to find it.
The bottom of the order is basically non-existent
Through three games, the bottom third of the order contributed three hits and three RBIs. What stands out more is the 12 strikeouts that the trio added to the mix.
While the top of the order (spearheaded by Roy and Priest) set a pretty high bar, the bottom of the order did not even get off the ground. Yes, the bottom half of the lineup is not meant to be your best bats, but only one hit and one RBI per game is not going to cut it.
Priest and Roy can play their hearts out, but it means nothing if their fellow Cougs can’t back them up. Again, consistency has been the Coug killer.
If WSU can get consistent production from the back half of the roster, then they turn from a spoiler team, to a true contender in the MWC.
