By: KSU Sports Information
Box Score
KENNESAW, Ga. – Josh Carr pitched seven innings of four-hit ball and Ronnie Freeman extended his hitting streak to 38 games as Kennesaw State defeated Campbell, 10-2, on Friday night at Stillwell Stadium.
The Owls (7-2, 1-0 A-Sun) pounded out 11 hits in the game as eight starters had at least one hit. Aaron Dobbs led the Owls with three hits while Bucky Smith had two hits. Andy Chriscaden, the Owls leading hitter, singled and drove in two runs as he pushed his hitting streak to nine games.
Trailing 2-1, the Owls broke the game open with a five-run third inning. Smith led off with an opposite field single, his first of the season, and Jordan Craft reached on an error by second baseman Ellis Lowe. Sean McClurken singled to load the bases before Dobbs helped the Owls reclaim the lead with a two-run single to center field.
After a double steal moved McClurken to third and Dobbs to second, an intentional walk to Chriscaden loaded the bases. A wild pitch scored McClurken and a groundout by Drew Fowlkes scored Dobbs before Peyton Hart’s RBI-single capped the five-run frame.
“I was pleased with how we hit the ball tonight,” said head coach Mike Sansing. “Dobbs had three hits, Bucky [Smith] had a couple of hits and the bottom of the order came through.”
Carr (1-1) came out of the gates strong retiring he first four batters of the game and was in complete control with the exception of a brief hiccup in the third inning when he allowed a pair of runs. In seven innings, Carr struck out seven batters and allowed just one hit over the final four innings.
“Josh pitched a very good game for us tonight,” added Sansing. “He worked the count well and pitched deep into the game, which was something we have been looking for in the early part of the season.”
Catlan Kendrick came in to pitch in the eighth inning and threw two innings of scoreless relief, allowing one hit and striking out a batter.
Kennesaw State added two runs in the fourth inning on a Chriscaden single to right field and in the seventh inning they scored twice on doubles from Will Howard, Smith and Craft as the Owls have had an extra-base hit in their 26th straight game.
Freeman extended his hitting streak with a single, but had to make the fans wait a little bit longer than usual. After grounding out to second base in the first inning and walking in the fourth inning, the sophomore catcher singled to center field with two outs in the sixth inning.
During the streak, Freeman is hitting at a .401 clip and has average has not dipped below the .400 mark since May 11 of last season when he was hitting .398 after going 1-for-4 against Troy.
The series will conclude on Saturday afternoon with a 1 p.m. doubleheader at Stillwell Stadium.
