Rylan Howe

Ritchie Price, junior infielder, takes a rare swing at a pitch during the first game of Friday’s doubleheader against South Dakota State. Price was 1-2 with a single and four walks during the 15-2 victory at Hoglund Ballpark.

Kansas continued to post big offensive numbers Friday, sweeping a doubleheader with South Dakota State.

The Jayhawks (10-3) won game one 15-2 behind junior right fielder A.J. Van Slyke’s 3-4, three RBI performance. His three-run double in the first inning opened the scoring, and Kansas never looked back. Senior first baseman Andy Scholl buried the Jackrabbits (0-4) with his first home run of the season, a solo blast in the fourth inning that started a six-run streak.

That outburst gave senior pitcher Clint Schambach more than enough support. He took the victory, improving his record to 2-1.

Coach Ritch Price seemed to be trying out a new strategy during the series. Although Van Slyke started the bats going for the Jayhawks in Friday’s game, he struggled at the plate before Thursday’s game and coach Price elected not to start him. The same strategy worked for Scholl earlier in the series. He didn’t start on Wednesday’s game, but had a big game on Thursday.

“It’s a strategy to let a player clear his mind and re-focus,” Van Slyke said. “It seems to work.”

Coach Price was glad to see Van Slyke get out of his slump.

“I was pleased to see his clutch hit in the first inning,” coach Price said. “We need both he and Scholl to be successful.”

Van Slyke did not arrive at Hoglund Ballpark until game time. He had to attend a geography class and missed pre-game batting practice.

“I came out, put my cleats on and ran out to right field,” Van Slyke said.

The Price brothers, junior shortstop Ritchie and freshman second baseman Ryne, walked in their first eight combined at-bats. The two certainly took notice of the strange start.

“We were kind of laughing about it,” Ryne Price said. “It’s pretty funny.”

In game two, Kansas got solid pitching from senior starter Mike Zagurski on the way to a 14-1 rout. Zagurski (2-0, 2.89 ERA) went seven innings and allowed one run on four hits while striking out a career-high 11 batters.

“I was efficient early,” Zagurski said. “I threw a lot of first-pitch strikes and kept their batters off balance.”

The bullpen also played well, with freshman Logan Murphy and junior Don Czyz closing out the game with two shutout innings. As a team, Kansas struck out 16 and walked only two.

A seven-run eighth inning was Kansas’ biggest of the season and put the game out of reach. Ryne Price had a breakout game, going 3-4 with four RBI. His contribution, along with the other freshmen, will be vital to the team’s success this season.

Coach Price was happy with the progress that the freshmen made over the weekend.

“It’s good to get a chance to get their feet wet and get them off to a successful start,” coach Price said. “When we get into Big 12 play, those guys need to play well.”

The Jayhawks return to action Friday against Northern Colorado. The first pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.