Kansas opened the NCAA Lawrence Regional with a 6-3 win over Northeastern on Thursday night, handing the Huskies their first loss of the tournament and securing the host team's spot in the winners bracket.
A strong start for the Jayhawks
The Jayhawks, seeded No. 15 nationally, built an early lead in the second inning when Augusto Murngarrieta and Daniel Osoria each launched home runs to put Kansas up 2-0.
Dominic Voegele anchored the rotation, delivering seven innings that yielded just three runs on seven hits while walking one batter and striking out nine, a new personal best for the season.
Reliever Boede Rahe entered in the eighth with the game tied at 4-3, shut down the Huskies' rally, recorded three strikeouts and earned his tenth save of the year.
What lies ahead for the regional teams
Kansas will next face the winner of the Arkansas–Missouri State matchup on Saturday at 5 p.m., while Northeastern is slated to meet the loser of Friday's late‑night game at noon.
Key moments dotted the contest: Will Fosberg’s solo homer in the third gave Northeastern its first run, Tyson LeBlanc answered with a two‑run single in the bottom of the third, and Ryan Gerety’s attempt to steal home in the fourth was thwarted. The Huskies trimmed the deficit with single scores in the fifth and sixth, but a bloop single by Cade Baldridge in the eighth drove in two more runs to seal the 6-3 final.