Manhattan ? With the tying runner at second, Erik Morrison could only think of two words after connecting on the soft liner to centerfield: extra innings.

Kansas State centerfielder Tyler Link thought two words of his own.

“Game over,” Link said. “I knew I was going to be able to get there.”

Easy for the freshman to say now. Especially after K-State’s 5-4 victory Sunday, and after his headlong diving catch saved the game and the series for the Wildcats.

Meanwhile, Morrison stood, hands on knees, at first base, his head buried in his helmet while still wondering just how his sinking liner had not found the outfield grass.

“It was just kind of disbelief,” Morrison said, “that the ball didn’t fall.”

The Kansas sophomore couldn’t have done much more to save the Jayhawks in their final at-bat.

With Matt Baty on second and two outs in a 5-4 game, Morrison came out of his shoes on the first two pitches, taking massive cuts to put himself down 0-2.

“It probably wasn’t the greatest of approaches,” Morrison said. “I went up there trying to do a little too much and chased a couple first-pitch balls. I wasn’t going down without a fight.”

Morrison didn’t. He laid off two pitches just out of the strike zone, then spoiled two more by fouling them off. After getting the count to 3-2, he shortened his swing against closer Daniel Edwards and poked the low curveball towards the vacancy in left-center.

A vacancy that didn’t stay open long enough.

“I can’t really fault myself,” Morrison said. “I’ve got to give the guy credit for the effort. That was a great play.”

With the victory, Kansas State avoided a series sweep and picked up its fourth conference win.

Still, the rebuilding Wildcats were left unsatisfied with their series performance against their in-state rivals.

“It’s a very good win, but we’re not happy with it by any means,” K-State senior Joe Roundy said. “We definitely feel we’re a much better ballclub, all the way through, than KU.”

For the first time all series, Kansas State was the beneficiary of some good fortune, with the Jayhawks unable to make the tough plays in the field to save runs.

With the game tied at 2, Barrett Rice started the sixth inning with a grounder to Morrison. The Kansas third baseman’s throw sailed high, and Preston Land couldn’t put the tag down in time. Roundy followed with a walk, and Byron Wiley sacrificed the two runners over.

Matt Morasco popped out to short for an unproductive out, but eight-hole hitter Eli Rumler came through with a single that was better placed than it was hit.

The junior slammed a high hopper to second baseman Jared Schweitzer, who came in quickly but had the ball take a hard hop off the heel of his glove. To make matters worse, the ball rolled helplessly to the empty spot in the middle of the infield, allowing both Rice and Roundy to score for a 4-2 KSU lead.

Kansas was haunted by a similar play in the seventh. With a runner on second and two outs, Morrison charged a slow roller at third only to have it bound off of his forearm for an error.

“I always try to be aggressive on those balls on the infield – trying to make those plays that no one thinks you can make,” Morrison said. “That happens on a ball do-or-die like that. It’s not called a do-or-die play for no reason.”

Roundy capitalized on the miscue, roping a shot to left to make it 5-2.

The insurance run would make all the difference.

Gus Milner blooped a single to right in the eighth, and with two outs coach Ritch Price gambled by bringing out pinch hitter Justin Ellrich for catcher Buck Afenir.

Though it brought an undesired lefty versus lefty matchup, Ellrich made Price into a genius by launching a no-doubt homer – the first of his career – into the pine trees in right.

Matt Baty shot a one-out double down the left-field line to give the Jayhawks hope in the ninth. He was left stranded after Schweitzer’s pop-out and Morrison’s liner to center.

Baty led Kansas with three hits, while John Allman and Gus Milner both contributed a pair of singles.

Schweitzer added a home run for the Jayhawks, inching a fifth-inning breaking ball just over the wall inside the left-field foul pole.

The defeat drops Kansas to .500 in Big 12 play.

“That’s a devastating loss for us,” Price said. “It’s not very often that you get a chance to sweep someone in this conference.”