Carlos Vasquez’s two home runs and career-high seven RBI fueled Kansas State baseball to a historic victory Tuesday night, as the Wildcats rolled to a 13-3 seven-inning victory over Baylor Tuesday night at Magnolia Field at Baylor Ballpark.

With its fifth run-rule victory of the 2026 campaign, K-State (16-5, 2-1 Big 12) set a program record for run-rule wins in a single season, while it also marked the first time in school history the Wildcats have run-ruled the Bears. It is the 16th run-rule victory under eighth-year head coach Pete Hughes, the most by any K-State head coach in recorded history.

“I was proud of our team for a lot of reasons,” Hughes said in a statement. “We went on a road trip and won three out of four against Big 12 teams, and that’s one of our goals this year – to be better on the road. I was proud of their resiliency and bouncing back after a disappointing loss on Sunday. I was also proud of the fact that we got back to Kansas State baseball, which was error-free, no free 90s, and two out hits.

“We did a phenomenal job with two outs there and beat a really good team convincingly. This coming weekend is going to be big for our program. You always want to play well midweek heading into a big weekend series. We stayed here in Texas to play a tougher schedule, and we accomplished what we set out to do. Our team has some good momentum and is hungry to play well and be back in front of our hometown crowd,” Hughes added.

In addition to Vasquez, who went 3-for-3 with a career-high seven RBI, Kyan Lodice and Cadyn Karl each recorded their first home runs of the season. The Wildcats led 6-3 entering the seventh, before erupting for seven unanswered runs to put the game away. 

In his second start, Matt Flores was awarded his first victory of the season, after holding the Bears (11-9, 1-2 Big 12) to three runs (two earned) across five complete innings. Flores (1-0) carried a two-hitter into the fifth inning, allowing just one runner to reach scoring position before allowing two runs in the fifth. The right-hander finished the night allowing six hits and issued just one walk with a strikeout.

Vasquez opened scoring for the second straight game with a home run, as the senior belted his fifth homer of the season 391 feet over the left field wall. Lodice walked in the next at bat to lead to Karl’s first collegiate homer. The redshirt junior blasted a 428-foot shot – the furthest home run of the night – to centerfield to give the Wildcats a 3-0 lead.

Baylor answered in the bottom of the second with a groundout to cut the deficit to 3-1.

The Wildcats responded with their second consecutive three-run frame, highlighted Vasquez’s second blast of the night. After Dee Kennedy and Ty Smolinski drew walks, Vasquez cleared the bases with a two-out blast, becoming the fifth Wildcat this season to record a multi-home run game.

In the fifth, back-to-back hits by Cade Dodson and Brytton Clements positioned runners on first and second until Flores issued a walk to load the bases with two outs. Brady Janusek doubled down the left field line to add a pair of runs to the board, but K-State executed a perfect relay from left field and gunned down the runner at the plate to preserve a 6-3 lead.

Leading 6-3, K-State broke the game open with seven runs – all with two outs – in the seventh inning. The surge was highlighted by a bases-clearing double from Vasquez and a two-run home run from Lodice, his first of the season.

Arnold, who relieved Flores in the sixth, used 21 pitches to set down the Bears in order, as he retired six consecutive batters to secure his first save of the season.