GAME DAY INFORMATION
Opponent: Towson 
Date:  Feb. 22 / 23 / 24
Time: 4 p.m. / 2 p.m. / 12 p.m.
Location: Stillwell Stadium

KSU Notes
Towson Notes

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Leadoff

•  KSU is coming off a weekend which featured the Owls winning two games. On Friday, Kennesaw State beat West Virginia 5-3 in its season-opener. KSU played a double-header on Saturday, and beat UIC 9-2, but lost to Richmond, 9-8.

•  The starting pitching was exceptional for the Owls over the first weekend. Buckler pitched well against West Virginia, completing 5.0 innings with six strikeouts and allowing just one run. On Saturday, Kennedy pitched 5.0 innings with six strikeouts and allowed just two hits. In his KSU debut, Coburn struck out seven Spiders in just 3.1 innings of work.

•  The pitching staff only allowed just two extra base hits in the first three games. After a triple from West Virginia, Richmond doubled for the only other two-plus bagger of the weekend.

•  The Owls bats were hot during opening weekend. The offense yielded 10 extra base hits, including a pair of home runs from Alex Carballo and Terence Norman. Kennesaw State finished the weekend with a team slash of .308/.442/.405.

•  After returning from an injury suffered last season, Jaylen Smith led the Owls at the plate this weekend. The senior batted .462 with six hits, a pair of RBIs and two doubles. He also stole two bases.

•  Newcomer Alex Carballo has a dazzling debut for the Owls last weekend. He batted .417 with a home run, two RBIs and logged a team-high .667 slugging percentage.

•  The Owls are coming off a 25-30 2018 campaign in which Kennesaw State finished third in the ASUN conference. 

• Tyler Simon and Terence Norman were selections for the 2019 ASUN Preseason All-Conference team. Last season, Norman was tabbed a First Team All-Conference player while Simon was named to the Second Team.

•  KSU started the 2018 strong, and found itself sitting at 24-18 on April 27. Vying for another conference championship, the Owls  dropped their final 12 out of 13 games, with the sole win coming against NJIT (7-2).

• Despite the late-season struggles, the Owls finished in third place and made it into the ASUN tournament, but fell to North Florida (7-1) and Stetson (2-1).

• The pitching staff for the Owls is the most experienced group for the 2019 Kennesaw State squad. 15 out of the 19 pitchers off the 2019 roster were on the team last season. Three freshman arms are featured on this year's staff and one transfer junior, Josh Coburn.

Starting Pitcher
• RHP Jake Rothwell is getting his first start of the season. In 2018, the senior held a 4.22 ERA while going 3-3 on the season. He was the Sunday starter throughout 2018.

Series History
• This will be the 25th meeting between the two programs and the first of two meetings in 2019. UGA holds a 15-9 advantage and won each of the meetings last season.

Pitching Matchup

Friday
KSU- RHP Brooks Buckler (0-0)
TOW- RHP Josh Seils (0-1)

Saturday
KSU- RHP Ryan Kennedy (1-0)
TOW- RHP Gavin Weyman (0-1)

Sunday
KSU- LHP Josh Coburn (0-0)
TOW- RHP Kody Reeser (0-1)

2019 Roster Breakdown
Kennesaw State baseball features 35 student-athletes, including 18 pitchers and 17 position players. The pitching staff is the most familiar group, with 15 players returning from last season, with two freshmen and one transfer joining the staff.

Out of the 10 infielders on the roster, the Owls return six and welcome four new faces. David Chabut is the most experienced on the dirt, having already made 140 starts in an Owls uniform over the last three seasons. Simon is also is featured in the infield, who was named a Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American.

The outfield has more new faces than returning ones, with four first-timers and three players that have donned the Black and Gold before. Just Terence Norman,  Jake Franklin and Garrett Hodges are familiar with the grass at Stillwell Stadium. 

Diaper Dandy
Tyler Simon was phenomenal in 2018 and became a staple in the Owl's infield after making 40 starts in the Black and Gold. For his efforts, he was named as a Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American. The freshman third baseman was second on the team batting .311. He scored 36 runs and had a slash of .311/.435/.371.

Senior SZN
Jaylen Smith returns to a starting role in 2019 after playing 31 games, with 30 being starts. He was limited last season and missed a large part of the season with an injury. During his time on the field, he batted .271 with a slugging percentage of .424 and an on-base percentage of .320. Despite missing over 20 contests, he finished fifth on the team with 22 RBIs.

Up Next
The Owls will travel to Athens, Ga., for a bout with No. 9 Georgia on Feb. 27. First pitch is slated for 5 p.m.

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