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Kennesaw, Ga. –  The Kennesaw State baseball team used timely hitting and a strong pitching performance from Travis Bergen to even the series at a game apiece, taking game two of the Atlantic Sun Conference showdown at Stillwell Stadium against Jacksonville University, 9-7. KSU's four seniors –Benjamin Bancroft, Colin Bennett, Nathan Harsh and Chris McGowan—were honored prior to the game for Senior Day, celebrating their storied careers at Kennesaw State.

The Owls (26-23, 9-7) and the Dolphins (22-28, 8-9) combined for 16 runs on 29 hits in the game. Kennesaw State knocked 16 hits on the day, as Jeremy Howell (4-for-4, three RBI), Grant Williams (3-for-5, one RBI), Alex Liquori (3-for-4, one RBI) and Chris Erwin (2-for-5, two RBI) combined for 12 of the Owls' 16 hits and seven of the nine RBI in the winning effort.

"Jeremy Howell had some big hits for us today. He had a great day," Sansing said. "He set the pace for our lineup and our guys came through."

In what appeared to be a low-scoring affair throughout the early stages of the game, the two teams combined for 12 runs over the last three innings of play, as the Owls scored seven of the final 12 to earn a 9-7 victory.

"It was good to come back today and get an important victory," head coach Mike Sansing said. "We earned the win today and we battled throughout the day."

With the score deadlocked at 2-2 entering the bottom of the sixth inning, Kennesaw State placed a game-high four runs on the right field scoreboard to give its largest lead of the game. The Owls got the inning started with the first four batters reaching base safely, including an RBI single off the bat of Liquori. Taylor Allum, who finished the game 1-for-4, knocked home his 19th RBI of the season with a ground out to shortstop before Howell followed with a one-out two-run double into the right field gap, giving KSU a 6-2 edge.

The inning came at the expense of four Jacksonville pitchers, as starter Spencer Stockton (3-4) was charged with the loss. The righthander allowed four runs on nine hits while striking out one batter over 5.0 innings.

Meanwhile, on the mound, Bergen (6-3) put together a gutsy performance. The lefthander allowed five runs on 11 hits over 7.1 innings of work. Bergen struck out eight batters and issued just three walks while throwing 69 percent of his pitches for strikes to earn the win.

"Travis [Bergen] was strong today. He threw well and gave us an opportunity to win," Sansing said.

In a back-and-forth contest in the final outings, the Owls once again placed an important three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. After the Dolphins climbed back to within 6-5 with one run in the seventh and two in the eighth, KSU plated an important three insurance runs to put the game out of reach.

Logan Hutchinson and Will Lowman came out of the bullpen to assure the win, tossing the final 1.2 innings and allowed two runs. Hutchinson tossed a clean 0.2 innings of work, not allowing a hit in the game, while Lowman pitched a hard-fought ninth to shut the door on the Dolphins.

With the win, the Owls secured a spot in the A-Sun Tournament as Florida Golf Coast University also won, clinching one of the six slots for the postseason. The tournament will be held in Fort Myers, Florida on May 20-24.

"We will take that in stride and win series and get ready for the postseason," Sansing said. "We want to improve and hold some leads and it's an everyday challenge."

Kennesaw State and Jacksonville will conclude its series Sunday (May 10) afternoon at Stillwell Stadium. Gabe Friese and Nathan Disch will toe the rubber in game three on the mound, with first pitch set for 1 p.m.

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.