KENNESAW, Ga. - Senior
Brayden Eidson delivered a clutch RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning to lift Kennesaw State (15-11, 6-3 Atlantic Sun Conference) to a 12-11 series-clinching win over Austin Peay (16-11, 5-4 ASUN) Saturday inside Stillwell Stadium.
Down two in the bottom of the ninth,
Nick Hassan homered and
Spencer Hanson had an RBI single to even the game at 11, then reliever
Tanner Franklin (1-1) earned his first win of the season pitching a scoreless top of the 10th to set the Owl offense for the win.
Hanson had three hits of his own Saturday afternoon with two RBI and one run scored.
Shamaar McDuffie also had pivotal at-bats for the Owls in the extra-inning contest, reaching base in all five of his trips to the plate.
With the victory, Kennesaw State has won each of its first three ASUN series this season and is 16-0 all-time when tallying 15-or-more hits under head coach
Ryan Coe.
After Hassan reached third on a fielding error, Hanson sent one through the right side to send him home and score the first run of the contest, 1-0, in favor of KSU. APSU evened the score at one apiece in the second inning.
A double from McDuffie broke the tie in the bottom of the second, scoring Mimbs and
Jackson Chirello and put the Owls back in front, 3-1. During Hanson's second-inning AB, a passed ball allowed McDuffie to come home and increase the lead to 4-1. Two runs for the Governors in the third cut into the KSU advantage, 4-3.
With two outs in the third, an RBI single by McDuffie plated Anderson put Kennesaw State back up by two, 5-3. The Govs got within one again in the fourth and took the lead in the fifth, 6-5.
Hanson reached on an error in the bottom of the sixth that cleared the bases, scoring Eidson and McDuffie to give the Black and Gold a 7-6 lead. APSU retook the lead in the seventh, 9-7.
A sacrifice fly from Eidson scored Mimbs from third and cut into the deficit, 9-8. Two runs from the Governors in the eighth gave them a three-run lead, 11-8.
Back-to-back doubles from
Nate Anderson and
Donovan Cash added a run for the Owls, 11-9.
In the bottom of the ninth, a solo shot from Hassan pushed the scoreboard to 11-10. An RBI single from Hanson scored
Makenzie Stills and tied the game at 11-all to send the game to extras.
After Mimbs and
Chris Cole reached in the 10th, Eidson singled up the middle to score Mimbs and secure the win for Kennesaw State.
The Owls are now 11-5 this month.
GAME NOTES
- Saturday's game had six lead changes.
- Hanson improved his reached-base streak to a season-high six games and posted his eighth mulit-hit game in 2024.
- McDuffie posted his sixth multi-hit game of 2024 Saturday.
- Hassan's ninth-inning jack was his ninth of the season.
- Eidson tallied his team-leading 11th multi-hit game this season.
- The Owls extend their streak of not being shutout at home since Feb. 27, 2018 (167 games).
- Kennesaw State has now scored in either the first or second inning in each of the last six home games.
UP NEXT
The Black and Gold return to the diamond Tuesday, April 2 for a 6:00 p.m. first pitch on the road against Mercer.
KSU's next game at The Shake begins a three-game series against Central Arkansas starting Friday, April 12. The game will be broadcast on the KSU Owl Network and fans can purchase tickets
here.
