GEORGIA STATE AT KENNESAW STATE April 11 | 6 p.m. | Bailey Park Watch | Live Stats Twitter: @KSUOwlsSB

KENNESAW, Ga. – The Kennesaw State softball returns to Bailey Park this week to host Georgia State in a non-conference game Tuesday at 6 p.m. (ET).

The contest will mark the second meeting between the programs this season after the Panthers posted a 6-4 win March 22 in Atlanta.
 
The Owls (28-12) are coming off a series loss at North Florida last weekend. After losing a doubleheader on Saturday, Kennesaw State rebounded with a 6-3 win Sunday. Georgia State begins the week 26-13 after taking two of three from UT Arlington this past weekend.
 
GEORGIA STATE
The Panthers are 26-13 overall and 11-4 in Sun Belt Conference play. Georgia State, which is batting .297 as a team, has four players batting .300 or better and are led by junior catcher Ivie Drake, who is hitting .357 with a team-high 30 runs scored. Junior right-hander Kinsley Jennings has been Georgia State's top pitcher in the circle, posting a 12-5 record and 2.10 earned-run average. 
 
THE SERIES
Tuesday's game between Kennesaw State and Georgia State will mark the 25th meeting between the two programs, with the Panthers leading the all-time series, 18-16. Georgia State has won six in a row dating back to the second meeting in 2014. The Owls' last win was a 7-6 victory on Feb. 22, 2014.

2017 KENNESAW STATE HONORS
 
ASUN Pitcher of the Week
Alley Cutting (March 6)
Alley Cutting (March 27)
Logan Viers (April 3)
 
ASUN Player of the Week
Courtney Sutter (Feb. 27)
Courtney Sutter (March 13)
Taylor Denton (April 3)
 
Fastpitch News NCAA Division I Top Performer of the Week
Olivia Tamewitz (March 7)
 
BATTED BALLS

• Kennesaw State continues to lead the ASUN Conference in several offensive categories, including batting average (.315), slugging percentage (.471), hits (352), triples (13), home runs (29) and total bases (527). The Owls rank among the top 30 nationally in batting average (30th), doubles per game (16th), stolen bases per game (20th) and triples per game (16th).
• With 29 home runs on the season, KSU has already surpassed its entire home run total from a year ago when the Owls hit 18 in 58 games. With three more round trippers, the Owls will tie the 2000 team for 10th place on KSU's single-season home run list.
• KSU has four players – Courtney Sutter (407, 2nd), Olivia Tamewitz (.378, 5th), Noelle Winkles (.371, 8th) and Hannah Thomason (.357, 9th) – ranked among the ASUN's top 10 in hitting.
• Sutter (.788) leads the ASUN Conference in slugging percentage, home runs (11) and RBIs (39). The Owls' senior has already established single-season career highs in home runs, RBIs and runs scored (29).
• Sophomore Hannah Thomason has had a breakout season in 2017. Her .357 average is a career best, and she has established single-season career highs in runs (36), hits (46), and stolen bases (25). Her stolen base total ranks fifth on Kennesaw State's single-season list. She also is tied for second in the ASUN Conference in runs scored and third in stolen bases.
• Thomason's 46 career stolen bases rank fifth on KSU's all-time list. Taylor Denton is currently the Owls' all-time leader with 76.
• Sutter and Noelle Winkles are tied for the team lead with 16 multiple hit games and nine multiple RBI games.
• Five different Owls have hitting streaks of at least 10 games this season. Sutter and Tamewitz each have had streaks of 11 games, while Beth McCulley, Taylor Denton and Hannah Thomason have produced 10-game hitting streaks. Sutter currently has the team's longest active streak, hitting safely in six straight.
• Sutter and Katey Lynch have been KSU's best hitters in ASUN Conference play, each posting a .364 mark that tie for seventh among the league's top hitters. Sutter is 12-for-33 while Lynch is 8-for-22. The duo is tied for seventh in the conference.
• With 32 home runs, Sutter is one away from tying Keri McKee (2004-2007) for sixth place on Kennesaw State's all-time career home run list. McKee totaled 33.

QUICK PITCHES

• Kennesaw State is third in the ASUN Conference with a 2.37 earned-run average and its 1.40 ERA in conference play leads the league.
• Freshman Alley Cutting ranks third in the ASUN in ERA (2.03), strikeouts (136), fourth in wins (14), opponents' average (.208) and innings pitched (131.1).
• Senior Logan Viers ranks fifth in ERA (2.17), sixth in opponents' batting average (.241), tied for seventh in wins (10) and ninth in strikeouts (63). During ASUN Conference play, the Owls' right-hander is second in ERA (1.08), sixth in innings pitched (26.0) and eighth in opponents' batting average (.250). 

ON DECK

• Following Wednesday's game, Kennesaw State will welcome Jacksonville to Bailey Park for a three-game series beginning Friday. The two teams will play a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. on Friday before closing out the series with a 1 p.m. contest on Saturday.

To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State softball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsSB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook. 
   
 

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