THE BASICS
Records: Kennesaw State (29-26) vs. Stetson (26-29)
Final Score: KSU 7, Stetson 13
Starting Pitching Matchup: RHP Mitchell Jordan vs. RHP
Gabe Friese
Key Players: Alex Liquori (2-for-5, 3 RBI);
Grant Williams (3-for-5, RBI);
Corey Greeson (2-for-4);
Austin Upshaw (2-for-4, RBI);
David Chabut (3-for-3)
Box Score (PDF) |
Box Score (XML) |
Gallery (ASUN)
THE STORYLINE:
· Kennesaw State dropped its 2016 ASUN Conference Championship opener to Stetson, 13-7, at Ken Dugan Field on Wednesday afternoon.
· The two teams combined for 20 runs on 34 hits in an offensive slugfest as the two teams totaled seven crooked scoring innings combined.
· With the loss, the Owls dropped to 29-26 overall on the season and will face elimination Thursday morning, while Stetson improved to 26-29 on the season and will advance in the winners bracket.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
· RBI sacrifice fly balls off the bats of senior
Brennan Morgan and sophomore
Austin Upshaw, and an RBI single from
Grant Williams gave the Owls a 3-2 advantage after three complete.
· The Hatters, however, scored seven unanswered runs by plating two in the fifth and sixth innings and a three-run seventh to take a 9-3 advantage into the bottom of the seventh.
· Down six, the Owls put together their best offensive inning in home half of the seventh, scoring four runs on four hits to pull within 9-7.
· An RBI sacrifice fly ball from junior
Jeremy Howell was followed by a three-run home run off the bat of senior
Alex Liquori to pull Kennesaw State within two runs as part of the four-run outburst.
· The Hatters' bats could not be silenced, plating two more in the eighth and two more in the ninth to take a 13-7 lead into the final three outs.
· Offensively, Kennesaw State had five players with multi-hit games, as Williams' 3-for-5 performance and Liquori's 2-for-5 with three RBI led the way for Kennesaw State.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
·
Grant Williams extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a single in the first third. The sophomore was batting .404 over his last 12 games entering Wednesday's conference tournament opener.
·
Corey Greeson extended his hitting streak to eight games with a single in the third inning.
·
David Chabut and Grant William has now reach base safely over their 12
th and 20
th consecutive games, respectively.
·
Richard Lovelady made his 36
th appearance of the season, which ranks inside the top three in the NCAA.
UP NEXT
The Owls will now face elimination Thursday morning at 11 a.m. CT, taking on the loser of game two between North Florida and FGCU on ESPN3.
