By: by Scott Lipsky
Box Score
WOODSTOCK, Ga. – Jessica Cross tossed her second consecutive complete game and was one of four Owls to have multiple hits on Saturday, as Kennesaw State defeated Seton Hall, 6-1, on the second day of the Buzz Classic at Twin Creeks Softball Complex in Woodstock.
It first looked like it was going to be a pitcher’s dual between the Owls (10-5) and the Pirates (1-7), as the game was still scoreless entering the fourth inning. Kennesaw State, playing as the road team, had only been able to garner two hits off of Seton Hall pitcher Katie Stilwell, before Cross led off the frame with a single to left field and then advanced to second on a wild pitch by Stilwell. She was replaced on the base paths by Erica Joseph, who scored two batters later when senior Kelsey Kulk stroked the first pitch she saw from Stilwell into center field to break the scoreless tie.
Head coach Scott Whitlock’s club tacked on an insurance run in the fifth, when freshman Ashley Burkett scored from second following a Seton Hall error.
The game remained 2-0 heading into the seventh inning. Seton Hall had their chances to get back in the game, their leadoff hitters reaching base with singles in the bottom of the fifth and sixth. Cross was able to maneuver her way around the base runners, however, retiring the next three batters in the fifth and erasing Jeanette Ragucci’s single in the sixth with the help of a 5-4-3 double play.
Overall, Cross allowed just one run, unearned, and just six hits, striking out six, on her way to earning the win and moving to 6-1 on the season and lowering her earned run average to just 1.14. It’s the second consecutive game for the Owls in which Cross has gone the distance, as she also did so on Friday evening against Tennessee-Martin in KSU’s 5-3 victory.
“I managed to work the corners, try to change the placement of my pitches, and it worked pretty well today,” said Cross, who also went 2-for-4 with an RBI on Saturday. “As it got deeper into the game, things became a little more difficult, but I have a great defense behind me and that gives me a lot of confidence, especially in the later innings.”
The Owls put the game away in the top of seventh. Still leading just 2-0, junior Lyndsay McCurry laced a double on left field, and was driven in courtesy of a Burkett single. Burkett, who was 2-for-3 in the game, has now had four consecutive games in which she has recorded multiple hits.
Kulk and fellow senior Jenna Closner joined Cross and Burkett as Owls with multiple hits on Saturday, each going 2-for-4
Cross doubled to right center field two batters later to drive in Burkett to make it 4-0, and Kulk and freshman Jensen Hackett added RBIs to make the game 6-0 and essentially put the game out of reach for their Big East foes, who scored one run in the bottom half of the seventh to spoil the shutout.
“Seton Hall is a stubborn team, they wouldn’t go away all the way until the end,” said Whitlock. “Jessica pitched another excellent game for us, and Ashley Burkett has really helped us hitting the way she has in the last several games.”
The Owls are now 2-1 in the Buzz Classic, which is hosted by Georgia Tech at the same venue that KSU hosted the Phyliss Rafter Memorial just three weekends ago. The event concludes on Sunday, when the Owls take on the Akron Zips at 11 a.m., followed by the Western Carolina Catamounts at 1 p.m.
