THE BASICS
Records: Kennesaw State (9-12), Canisius (12-8)
Score: Kennesaw State 8, Canisius 4
Starting Pitching Matchup: LHP Zach Sloan vs. RHP Tony Dibrell
Key Players: Grant Williams (1-for-1, 2RBI); Corey Greeson (3-for-4, 3RBI); Griffin Helms (2-for-5, 3RBI); Tony Dibrell (7.0ip, 6K, win); Gabe Friese
 
Box Score (PDF) Box Score (XML)

THE STORYLINE: 
· Six of the eight runs driven in were with two outs, backing strong pitching performances from Tony Dibrell and Gabe Friese Friday afternoon, taking down visiting Canisius in the series opener at Stillwell Stadium, 8-4.
· Corey Greeson (3-for-4, three RBI), Griffin Helms (2-for-5, three RBI) and Grant Williams (1-for-1, two RBI) totaled six of the Owls' 10 hits and drove in all eight RBI to back the right-handed arms of Dibrell and Friese.
· With the win, Kennesaw State improved to 9-12 on the season while the Golden Griffins dropped to 12-8.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
· Kennesaw State scored six runs with two outs in the ballgame and never trailed to earn the series-opener over Canisius.
· Helms' RBI single with two outs in the bottom of the first set the tone Friday night, giving the Owls a lead they never surrendered.
· KSU continued to plate runs with two outs, coming with two-out singles from Williams and Greeson in the fourth, a two-out RBI single from Greeson in the fifth, and the Owls scored two more in the sixth, building a six-run advantage through six frames at 7-1.
· Meanwhile, RHP Dibrell (2-2), an Alpharetta, Ga., native, was impressive once again, tossing 7.0 innings in which the junior allowed four runs (one earned), punched out six Golden Griffins and issued just three to earn his second victory of the season.
· Senior RHP Friese, a Kennesaw native, came out of the bullpen and worked 2.0 scoreless innings to secure the Owls' victory Friday evening.
 
QUOTEABLE
"We did a great job today at the plate with two outs, and that was huge. From an offensive standpoint, it was encouraging to see guys battling at the plate and not giving up that third out," head coach Mike Sansing said. "It's a long weekend innings-wise, and it was good to get only two guys (Tony Dibrell and Gabe Friese) on the mound today."
 
SANSING ON FRIESE'S RECORD
"It's a tremendous mark for Gabe (Friese) to have that many innings thrown. It's a credit to him and his endurance, and the fact that he's been consistent since his freshman year. He's thrown a lot of innings, a lot of appearances, and this is one that we are all proud of."
 
#NESTNOTES: 
· With Friese's 2.0 frames recorded Friday, March 24, the RHP sits at Kennesaw State's D-I all-time leader in career innings pitched, breaking Josh Carr's record of 234.0 (2010-12). Friese now sits at 234.2 career innings thrown.
· Grant Williams' single in the fourth extended his hitting streak to seven games, and now has seven multi-hit ballgames.
· Taylor Allum reached base with a walk, extending his streak to 16 games. He sits just six games shy of Chris Erwin's 22 straight in 2015.
· Austin Upshaw also extended his hitting streak to six games, going 1-for-5 at the plate Friday night.
 
UP NEXT
Kennesaw State continues its four-game weekend series with Canisius Saturday, taking on the Golden Griffins in a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. The twinbill is scheduled to air on ASUN.TV.