Hilo, Hawaii – Brock Simpson”s two-run triple in the seventh inning snapped a 1-1 tie and lifted Kansas to a 4-1 triumph over Hawaii-Hilo in the Jayhawks” season baseball opener late Thursday night.
Second baseman Ryne Price doubled and homered — a solo shot in the second inning — and Zach Ashwood, a transfer from TCU, pitched one-hit ball over six innings as KU won its opener for the third straight year.
After Price, a Free State High product, led off the seventh with a two-base hit and Kyle Murphy was safe of a fielder”s choice, Simpson drove UH-Hilo starter Lars Knepper’s’ 3-1 pitch down the right field line, scoring pinch runner Nick Faunce and Murphy.
Minutes later, Simpson, a junior outfielder from Topeka, crossed home plate on a wild pitch.
Ashwood, a 6-foot-4 left-hander, allowed only one unearned run while striking out seven and walking three in his KU debut. Ryotaro Hayakawa worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings, and Paul Smyth survived a leadoff walk in the ninth to record the save.
KU begins a double-dip with UH-Hilo today at 7 p.m.
