TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

Strong starting pitching, timely hitting and solid defense.

The CSU Bakersfield baseball team exhibited all three in its season opener Saturday afternoon.

However, a couple of untimely miscues proved to be the Roadrunners' undoing as they lost 7-5 in 11 innings to Kansas State at Hardt Field.

CSUB rallied from a 5-1 deficit with three runs in the eighth inning and one in the ninth only to come up just short -- both literally and figuratively.

The Wildcats' margin of victory came in the 11th when CSUB right fielder Jordie Hein dove, but narrowly missed catching a sinking liner off the bat of Ross Kivett.

Kivett's two-run triple made a winner out of reliever Shane Conlon, who pitched 11⁄3 scoreless innings in which he didn't allow any base runners and struck out three.

"We made some mistakes that cost us, but I was really proud of the way they battled back," CSUB coach Bill Kernen said. "We never gave up ... We always are disappointed when we lose, but I felt good about the effort."

Oscar Sanay had three hits and an RBI for the 'Runners, who led 1-0 through six innings. The game's lone run up to that point was the result of a DC Legg fifth-inning home run off Wildcats' starter Matt Applegate.

CSUB starting pitcher Jeff McKenzie allowed just two hits, both singles, during the first six innings.

The left-hander's complete mastery of Kansas State ended though in the seventh when Mike Kindel drilled a three-run home run over the right field fence one batter after Matt Giller reached base on catcher's interference.

An inning later and with McKenzie no longer on the mound, Wade Hinkle extended the Wildcats' lead to 5-1 with two-run blast off the right-field foul pole.

The 'Runners fought back to get within striking distance in the eighth as Cael Brockmeyer followed a Hein walk, and singles by Kevin Younger and Sanay, with a double into the left field corner that scored a pair of runs.

Still down 5-4, CSUB scratched another run in the ninth on Hein's two-out grounder between first and second base that Kivett failed to field cleanly.

The game-tying rally was initiated by Tyler Shryock, who got thing started with a leadoff walk and then was bunted to second be Andrew Letourneau.

The 'Runners managed just one hit, a Sanay single, during the two extra innings and finished with nine for the game.

"We battled hard to the end," Brockmeyer said. "We die down when we were down (5-1) in the middle of the game. We came back and we were always in it in the dugout. We never felt out of the game at all."

Kansas State had 10 hits off five CSUB pitchers.

McKenzie lasted 6 2/3 innings allowing two earned runs on four hits and two walks. He also struck out three.

"I was really happy with McKenzie's performance," Kernen said. He came out and threw strikes and went through six innings with only 68 pitches. He really really did a nice job. It's early in the year and it's a little difficult to expect somebody to pitch a complete game in that situation."

Freshman Hayden Carter, making his collegiate debut, also pitched well for the 'Runners. He gave up one hit and fanned two while holding the Wildcats scoreless during the eighth and ninth innings.

"I think we played pretty good today," McKenzie said. "We hit the ball well. We pitched well today. Just a couple of mistakes, that's what killed us. The bomb, the three-run home run, that's what cost us the game I think. But it happens. It's part of baseball. You make mistakes. You learn from them and move on."