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WILMINGTON, N.C. – Despite tying the game twice in the seventh and eighth innings against George Washington, Kennesaw State softball dropped both contests of its opening day doubleheader against App State and the Revs.
 
Leah Jannakos pitched 8.0 innings in the extra innings defeat while Ava Guzowski tallied a career high three hits.
 
Ana Gore hit the game-tying homer in the bottom of the seventh, totaling three RBI on the afternoon. Freshman Savannah Frachiseur knocked in two base runners across the two games.
 
Game 1: App State 5, KSU 3
The Owls jumped out on the Mountaineers, scoring two in the first inning. Macie Howes put runners on the corners with a two-out single. Gore brought Guzowski home with a single up the middle. In her first collegiate at-bat, Frachiseur recorded an RBI double.
 
Olivia Tyson faced pressure in the first and second innings as two runners reached base safely, but the senior got out unscathed.
 
The game ballooned in the bottom of the third inning as App State hung five runs. The inning started with three straight walks to load the bases. Grace Barrett singled to score two. After a sacrifice fly put the Mountaineers up, a singled followed by a double from Julia Girk extended the lead to 5-2. Tyson's day was done and Taylor Daniel came in relief.
 
The Owls got one back in the top of the fifth but that was all they could muster. With two runners on, Alora Bevily scored off a Guzowski single. Ava Brooke Strickland got too aggressive on the base path as she got caught trying to steal home.
 
In the top of the seventh, Bevily and Harvey both reached base safely to set Strickland as the go-ahead runner. With two outs, she struck out to end game one.
 
Game 2: GW 7, KSU 6 (9)
The Revs attacked first in game two, scoring twice in the top of the second. With bases loaded, Emma Fales doubled to make it a 2-0 game. Jannakos limited the damage by recording three-straight outs.
 
After four relatively quiet innings, the game exploded in the bottom of the seventh. Howes led off the inning with a walk before Gore tied the game with a two-run bomb. Strickland and Johnson continued the momentum with a single each. Sophia Torreso was pulled and Cece Smith came in. Needing just one out, she induced a grounder to keep the game knotted at two going into extras.
 
Small ball pushed two runners into scoring position the following frame. GW ripped a double to extend the lead to two once again.
 
The Black and Gold responded with two runs of their own. Back-to-back singles loaded the bases for Howes who scored Hannah Harvey. Frachiseur stepped up in the big moment to tie the game. KSU strained the bases loaded.
 
In the top of the ninth, Daniel replaced Jannakos, who had a career afternoon in the circle. The Revs took advantage, adding three runs in the top of the ninth. KSU kept fighting, starting with Johnson who knocked in a runner. She then hustled off a Harvey single to score all the way from first. Smith settled in, striking out three of the next four batters to win the game for GW.
 
Notes from the Diamond

• Ava Guzowski has now started in 102 straight games she's appeared in.
• Savannah Frachiseur is the first KSU freshman to record an RBI in her first collegiate at-bat since Hannah Harvey in 2024.
• Macie Howes is tied with Angie Dacsoli (2010-14) for third in program history with 24 runners caught stealing.
• Leah Jannakos pitched a career high 8.0 innings against GW.
• Guzowski tallied a new personal best three hits versus the Revs.
• Danielle Bailey and Kimberly Tobar made their KSU debuts.
• The Owls' 12 hits in the second game tied their season high from last year.

 
On Deck
The Owls continue the UNCW Tournament tomorrow with a rematch against App State at 12:30 PM before playing the Seahawks at 5:30.
 
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