By: by Scott Lipsky
Box Scores: Game One Game Two
KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State Owls infielder Ashlee Burkett hit a two-out, walk-off double to lead the Owls to victory in their second of a doubleheader against the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, 6-5, on Sunday afternoon in Bailey Park. The win came on the heels of a hard-fought, 2-0 defeat in 10 innings despite a masterful performance in the pitcher’s circle from Abbey Meixel.
For much of the second game, the Owls (20-14, 4-4 Atlantic Sun Conference) were mirroring their performance at the plate in Sunday’s opener, not being able to consistently generate scoring opportunities. After jumping out to a, 4-1, lead, after three innings on the strength of an RBI triple by Ashlee Burkett and a pair of home runs by Sharon Swanson, the Black and Gold would go cold offensively and would let Florida Gulf Coast (21-21, 4-2 A-Sun) creep back into the game. The Eagles would score two runs apiece in the fourth and fifth innings, the Owls committing three errors during that span with Jessica Cross and Cat Tarvin in the pitcher’s circle, all of them directly leading to runs for the opposition.
Trailing, 5-4, heading into the seventh inning and facing their eighth consecutive loss to FGCU since the head-to-head series began in 2008, the Black and Gold dug down in their last chance at the plate. Senior Lyndsay McCurry, who was pinch hitting, willed her way with a bunt single with one out in the inning, setting the table for Jensen Hackett, who legged out an infield single of her own. Sara Sikes would pop out and Bianca Durant would be hit by a pitch, loading up the bases for Burkett. The Owls third baseman, who had three hits on the afternoon after an 0-for-7 showing on Saturday, scorched an 0-1 pitch from Stephanie Sullivan down the left field line, easily scoring McCurry and Hackett to win the game.
“I was hitting the ball well all weekend, I just wasn’t putting it in the right places,” said Burkett. “I’m glad that I was able to come through for our team in a big moment when we needed to secure a win.”
Cross went four-plus innings for the Owls in the second game, allowing two runs on four hits before giving way to Cat Tarvin, who pitched the balance of the fifth inning. Amanda Henderson would go the final two innings in the pitcher’s circle to pick up the win, moving her to 4-4 in her freshman campaign.
Meixel would give the Black and Gold every chance to take the opener, striking out 12 batters over nine and two thirds innings of work, while allowing just two unearned runs on four hits. She took a 0-0 tie into the 10th inning, when, according to A-Sun rules, a runner is placed on second base per the International Tie Breaker rule. Meixel would retire the first two batters she faced before allowing a single through the right side by the Eagles’ Regan Knapik, scoring the first run of the game. The Eagles would add one more in the 10th inning on a Burkett error, closing out the scoring for the game.
The Owls had several opportunities to get on the board during different stages in the game, starting when they stranded the bases loaded in the first inning right after FGCU had done the same. Sara Sikes, who made a great catch in the left field gap in the seventh inning before doubling off the Eagles’ base runner to save a run, doubled with one out in the eighth inning and then advanced to third with two outs, but was unable to score.
Florida Gulf Coast’s Catherine McDaniel would go the distance in the first game, tossing 10 innings of shutout ball while allowing just three hits and striking out eight.
The performance for Meixel gave her 25 strikeouts over her last two starts, as she fanned 13 in the Owls, 4-3, win over Stetson on Saturday.
“We got caught in a wonderfully-pitched game on both sides in the opener today, and we just ended up on the short end of it,” Owls head coach Scott Whitlock said. “I’m disappointed that we lost our lead in the second game, but to their credit the players came back and won the ball game for us. We’re still young and still learning, but we’re fighting day in and day out.”
Sikes had hits in both ball games, extending her hitting streak to 10 games, which ties for with Jensen Hackett for the team lead in 2011. Swanson went hitless in the first game, snapping her hitting streak at nine games.
The Black and Gold travel to the southern part of the state on Tuesday, when they visit Georgia Southern for a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. They will be back in the Kennesaw area on Wednesday when they travel just down I-75 to face Georgia Tech, where they will try to sweep the season series against the Yellow Jackets. First pitch for that game is scheduled for 6 p.m.
