By: Zac Pike
KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State baseball welcomes ASUN Conference foe Jacksonville for a three-game series starting Friday. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Stillwell Stadium. Both squads are fighting for position in the conference standings, with both teams sitting in sixth and eighth place. KSU is just four games back out of first place with twelve games remaining in conference play.
The Rundown
Matchup: Kennesaw State Owls (19-20, 9-9) vs. Jacksonville Dolphins (25-15, 10-8)
Date: April 28 – April 30
Site: Stillwell Stadium, Kennesaw, Ga.
TV: Owl Network
Game Notes: KSU
2023 Schedule: Click Here
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
GAME ONE - Friday
First Pitch: 6:00 p.m. (ET)
KSU: RHP
Blake Wehunt
Jacksonville: RHP Evan Chrest
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GAMEDAY INFORMATION
GAME TWO - Saturday
First Pitch: 4:00 p.m. (ET)
KSU: RHP
Nick Zegna
Jacksonville: LHP Dakota Stone
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GAMEDAY INFORMATION
GAME THREE - Sunday
First Pitch: 1:00 p.m. (ET)
KSU: RHP
Braden Osbolt
Jacksonville: RHP Richard Long
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THE SERIES
The Owls and Dolphins have met 46 times on the diamond. KSU holds a 26-20 advantage in the all-time series. In the last eight meetings dating back to 2019, Kennesaw State is 7-1 against JU.
LAST MEETING
KSU
took down Jacksonville 12-7 back on April 24 last season. The Owls took five of six games from the Dolphins a season ago.
SEVEN OWLS NEAR THE TOP OF THE ASUN
Several Owls are leading the charge at the top of the ASUN Conference in multiple categories. Senior
Nick Colina leads the ASUN in three categories. The Dallas, Ga. native leads the ASUN in triples (5), OBP (.537) and walks (41). Freshman
Jackson Chirello's 13 doubles are tied for seventh.
Donovan Cash is 11th with 40 RBIs.
Blake Wehunt is 14th in the league with 55 strikeouts and
Nick Zegna is 16th with 52 punchouts.
EIDSON DOES IT ALL
Junior
Brayden Eidson has shown that he can do it all through the first part of the new season. The Owls' utility player leads the team in batting average (.344) and has also pitched quality innings on the mound. In the midweek versus Clemson (Mar. 22), Eidson tossed a season-high six innings and set a new career-high with six strikeouts. To top it all off, he homered at the plate and was only a triple shy of the cycle.
THE BABY OWLS
During Opening Weekend, Kennesaw State baseball played 14 student-athletes who were either freshmen or sophomores. The underclassmen consisted of eight position play.
CASH MONEY
Donovan Cash put together an incredible weekend against LIU (Feb. 24-26). The KSU first baseman homered in all three games and finished the series 8-for-14 with 10 RBI to earn ASUN Conference Player of the Week honors.
FRESHMAN PHENOMS
Coach Coe and his staff focused on recruiting high school talent during their first, full, recruiting cycle at Kennesaw State. The class features 13 true freshmen and were ranked as the No. 57 class out of 302 Division I programs by Perfect Game USA. Two of these players,
Jackson Chirello and
Tanner Franklin, were also named to the Perfect Game Top 100 Freshmen List prior to the season.
PRESEASON ACCOLADES
Second baseman
Zac Corbin was the lone Owl selected to the 2023 ASUN Preseason All-Conference Team. The Jefferson, Ga. native started 59 games in 2022 and compiled a .304 batting average with six home runs, 10 doubles, one triple and 37 RBI.
DIAMOND DEBUTS
The Owls feature many new faces on the diamond in the 2023 campaign. 21 out of the 37 players on this year's squad are in their first season with KSU baseball. This accounts for 57% of the team's roster.
WEHUNT'S HOT START
Blake Wehunt has dominated all season and was moved to the Friday night starter against Michigan. In his outing, the 6'7 right hander set a then career high in both innings pitched (6.1) and strikeouts (9) to earn his second win of the year. Wehunt was selected as the ASUN Conference Pitcher of the Week for his performance.
LOTS OF OFFENSE
The Owls' offense compiled 46 runs and 46 hits in their three-game series against LIU (Feb. 24-26). KSU connected for seven home runs on the weekend, with two triples and eight doubles. In game two, KSU scored 19 runs to post the second most in a single game in the last five seasons behind the 23 it scored last year versus Stetson (May 13, 2022).
OPENING WEEKEND SUCCESS
Over the last decade, KSU baseball has posted success on Opening Weekend. Since 2012, the Owls have collected a record of 25-14 in their first series of a new season. This season, KSU took two-of-three from New Orleans.
ON DECK
After KSU's three-game series against Jacksonville wraps up Sunday, the Owls travel to Athens, Ga. for a midweek tilt at Georgia Tuesday at 6 p.m. (ET).
To keep up with the latest on the Kennesaw State baseball team, follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsBaseball or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook and Instagram.
