Kent State University
Winthrop
A Series for the Birds
3/1/2018 11:00:00 AM | Baseball
Flashes and Eagles to play three at Winthrop Ballpark this weekend
A Series for the Birds
Flashes and Eagles to play three at Winthrop Ballpark this weekend
There is an old adage in sports which states 'defense travels'. But KSU is hoping to pack along its red-hot offense as it embarks on a three-game road series against Winthrop to begin March.
After rolling up 34 runs on 42 hits in a three-game sweep of Belmont, Lipscomb and Middle Tennessee last weekend, the Golden Flashes (4-2) take aim at their fourth straight win Friday at 4 p.m. at Winthrop Ballpark. The opening game pitching pairing features KSU left-hander Eli Kraus (1-0) and Winthrop's sophomore righty Zach Peek. The Golden Flashes then turn to Joey Murray (0-1) on Saturday (3 p.m.) and Jared Skolnicki (1-0) on Sunday (1 p.m.).
Through four games, the KSU bats are hitting a collective .313. They boast an on-base percentage of .402 and have stolen 11 bases in 17 tries. The Golden Flashes have seven home runs – four by Brad Hamilton – and 10 doubles. Perhaps even more impressively, the Kent State defense has committed only five errors in the first two weekends. The opposition has combined for nine.
This week, Kent State's senior outfielders Nick Kanavas and Mason Mamarella were both honored for their offensive exploits from the Southern Athletic Fields Dirt Classic. Kanavas went 8-16 with four runs batted in to be named the College Sports Madness MAC Player of the Week while Mamarella drove in eight and finished 5-10 to earn MAC Player of the Week honors. The two seniors are hitting .400 and .318, respectively.
DIAMOND DIALOGUE
- Kent State aims for its fourth straight win Friday in the series opener.
- KSU has outscored the opposition 25-8 from the seventh inning on in 2018. They have outscored teams 20-6 from the eighth inning on and 19-0 in the ninth. 40 percent of the Flashes' runs in 2018 have been scored in the ninth inning.
- The Golden Flashes have won either the Mid-American Conference regular season or tournament championship in 10 of the last 11 seasons.
- KSU has been tabbed the pre-season league favorite in both the regular and post-season.
- The Golden Flashes will take aim at their 20th consecutive season with at least 30 victories. KSU has had one sub-.500 season since 1981.
- Kent State has played Winthrop 34 times through the years. The Golden Flashes lead the all-time series, 20-14. The Eagles took two of the four scheduled games in 2015, 9-1 and 2-1. Kent State won game three, 9-5, before the Sunday finale was cancelled.
WHAT'S NEXT
Kent State will continue the non-conference schedule next weekend March 9-11 at Arkansas.
