April 3, 2009
Box Score
KENNESAW, Ga. - In a battle of two of the best pitchers in the Atlantic Sun Conference, Kennesaw State's Kyle Heckathorn went 8.2 innings to lift the Owls to a thrilling 2-1 win over Lipscomb in baseball action at Stillwell Stadium.
Heckathorn (3-1) came within a strike of going the distance for KSU. The junior allowed eight hits and one run with three walks and nine strikeouts in 119 pitches thrown. On the other side, Rex Brothers (4-2) of Lipscomb didn't allow an earned run, but was saddled with the loss after allowing two unearned runs on eight hits with a dozen strikeouts in an eight-inning complete-game effort.
"Lipscomb is a rival, and I knew I had to be at my best tonight," said Heckathorn. "[Brothers] is a really good pitcher and I knew I was going to have to be sharp."
"I thought it was a great game on both sides," said KSU head coach Mike Sansing. "Both pitchers had really great stuff. We were fortunate to get our runs, but I knew it was going to be the type of game where we would have to scratch runs out."
The Owls loaded the bases in the second inning off of Brothers but the southpaw worked his way out of it with a pair of strikeouts and a catch of a scorching line drive hit right at his torso by Jacob Robbins. In the fourth, KSU would use a pair of miscues to get on the board. With one out, Clint Roques singled, then stole second. After a ground out by Josh Whitaker put Roques on third, Jon White stepped to the plate. White swung at the 0-2 offering from Brothers, but the ball got away from catcher Logan Hostetler. White sprinted for first, and Hostetler's throw went down the line in right, allowing Roques to score the first run of the game.
The score stayed the same until the seventh, when KSU (12-12, 6-3) tacked on a second run. With Curtis Van Wyck on second with two outs, Andrew Martin swung and missed at strike three, but the ball popped out of Hostetler's glove, allowing Martin to reach first and Van Wyck to move up 90 feet. With Tyler Stubblefield at the plate, Coach Sansing took no chances and sent Martin running from first on a delayed double steal. The play worked, as Van Wyck scored before Martin was tagged out, giving the Owls a 2-0 cushion.
M.L. Williams connected for a leadoff homer in the eighth to draw the Bisons within a run. In the ninth, the Bisons (13-15, 8-2) had one man on with two men out, but an 0-2 offering from Heckathorn was sent back up the middle for a base hit by pinch hitter James Tunnell. After a walk to Antonio Butler, Coach Sansing was forced to go to Kenny Faulk out of the bullpen.
With the pressure on, Faulk came up big. After a first-pitch ball, Faulk threw three straight strikes to end the contest, giving the Owls a 2-1 victory and Faulk his first save of the year.
"I was hesitant to go to Kenny in the ninth because I thought Kyle was in a really good groove starting the inning," said Coach Sansing. "Kenny did a really great job for us in that spot."
The two teams will be back in action tomorrow for a doubleheader. First pitch at Stillwell Stadium is set for 1:00 p.m.
