KENNESAW STATE AT GEORGIA STATE
GAME 48 | MAY 8 | 5 P.M. ET
ATLANTA, Ga. | GSU BASEBALL COMPLEX (1,092)
GAME NOTES |
LIVE STATS |
LIVE AUDIO
THE GAME:
The Kennesaw State baseball team makes the trip into downtown Atlanta for the last time in 2013, as the Owls take to Georgia State for the final regular season non-conference contest of the year this Wednesday, May 8, at 5 p.m. ET.
KSU had its first weekend away from the diamond in nearly three months and now heads to GSU at 22-25 on the year, looking for its first win of the three-game season series with the Panthers, who hold a 32-17 record.
THE COVERAGE
AUDIO: Play-by-play will be available from KSUOwls.com with Brandon Scardigli narrating the action from the GSU Baseball Complex.
LIVE STATS: Statistical updates will be available from GeorgiaStateSports.com at the start of the game.
THE OPPONENT
Georgia State has proven tough to beat at the GSU Baseball Complex this season, holding a 22-5 record when playing on its home turf.
The Panthers are currently in the Top Five in the NCAA in every major offensive category with Chad Prain third in the country with his 80 hits.
While GSU has flexed its offensive muscle this season, the Panthers have struggled from the mound, holding just a 5.26 team ERA.
THE SERIES
KSU still leads the all-time series, 10-7, over GSU, but the Panthers have proved strong this season, taking the two previous meetings.
LAST OUTING
The Kennesaw State baseball team made its long-awaited return home to Stillwell Stadium but couldn’t hold off the surging Catamounts, falling to Western Carolina 9-3 in the final game of the two game-series between the two schools.
Kal Simmons (Nashville, Ga./Berrien HS) enjoyed a 3-for-4 afternoon with the one RBI while
Jacob Bruce (Woodstock, Ga./Woodstock HS) and
Bo Way (Brunswick, Ga./Glynn Academy) each went 2-for-4 with Bruce scoring a run and Way driving one in. Seniors
Andy Almonte (Moca, Puerto Rico/Gordon College) and
Peyton Hart (Sandy Cross, Ga./Franklin County HS) each had doubles during the game as well.
Nathan Harsh (Brunswick, Ga./Brunswick HS) took the loss on the hill, giving up five runs in three innings on four hits while striking out six.
Andrew Austin (Peachtree City, Ga./Air Force),
Jordan Hillyer (Dacula, Ga./Hebron Christian HS) and
Kevin McCoy (Gainsville, Fla./Andrew College) went the final three innings allowing just two hits while sitting down a pair of Catamount batters.
NEXT UP
The Owls return to Atlantic Sun Conference play this weekend, hosting USC Upstate in the home-finale for KSU. The three-game series kicks off on Friday, May 10 at 6 p.m. ET in Stillwell Stadium.
NEWS AND NOTES
Janas on the Mound
Junior right-handed pitcher
Stephen Janas (Marietta, Ga./Lassiter HS) continues his reign atop the A-Sun in terms of ERA with a 0.75 mark. The average also puts the junior at No. 3 nationally after making it back-to-back complete game wins, putting Janas at 7-0 on the year and 6-0 in his last six outings.
Offense Ramping Up
KSU now has five batters hitting over .300 on the year in
Jacob Bruce (.317),
Bo Way (.316),
Dylan Ivey (.314),
Max Pentecost (.309) and
Kal Simmons (.309). As a team, the Owls are belting .277, putting them in the top half in the conference in that category.
Peyton Hart Laying Down Bunts
Senior third baseman
Peyton Hart now ranks in the Top 25 nationally in sacrifice bunts with his team-best 12. As a team, the Owls have dropped 46 total sac bunts.
Top Freshmen
Alex Liquori has taken 10 of the 46 stolen bases for head coach
Mike Sansing, the best on the team, while fellow freshman
Kal Simmons continues to lead the squad in RBI with 26.
McGowan’s Good Eye
Chris McGowan has one of the best eyes in the A-Sun, drawing 29 walks in 151 at bats, giving him an on-base percentage of .388.
Bruce Getting on Base
Jacob Bruce has now made it 15-consecutive games having reached base safely. The longest streak for any Owl this year belongs to
Bo Way who had a streak of 30 games earlier in the year.
To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State Baseball news follow the team on Twitter
@KSUOwlNation and
@KSUOwlsBaseball or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook.
Kennesaw State University is celebrating 30 years of intercollegiate athletics during the 2012-13 academic year.
