Kent State University
North Carolina State University
Flashes Look to Bounce Back in South Carolina
2/21/2019 4:16:00 PM | Baseball
*For consistency throughout the season, team rankings are based on the D1Baseball.com Top 25 Poll.
KENT, Ohio – The Kent State University baseball team (0-3) look to pick up its first win of 2019, starting an eight game, eleven-day trip to the Carolinas with three single games at the Brittain Resorts Baseball at the Beach tournament in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Highlighted by a pair of games against nationally ranked opponents, the Flashes are slated to face NC State (4-0) at 3 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 22 at TicketReturn.com Field, home of the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, a minor league affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The Pack is ranked No. 21 by Perfect Game.
Kent State will also face No. 21 Coastal Carolina on Saturday, Feb. 23, at 3 p.m. at the Chanticleers' home field, Springs Brooks Stadium in Conway, S.C. and Michigan State on Sunday, Feb. 23, at 11 a.m.
The Golden Flashes are coming off a three-loss weekend at Dallas Baptist, Kent State's first opening series sweep since 2016. Sophomore Michael Turner led the Flashes offensively, scoring three of Kent State's five runs and notching three hits with two doubles, a single and a walk over three games. The Northeast Ohio native went 2-for-3 on Sunday, Feb. 17, leading off the top of the third inning with a double and the fifth with a single. Senior Josh Hollander added three hits in the series, and freshman Collin Mathews knocked in three runs on two hits, including a two-run home run for his first collegiate hit Saturday afternoon.
Senior Connor Wollersheim is expected to start on the hill against NC State on Friday. In his last appearance, starting in the season opener against Dallas Baptist Feb. 15, the lefty tossed 5.0 innings without allowing an earned run. The Neenah, Wis. native fanned six batters, and allowed just three hits to a strong offense that averaged 10.3 hits per game in 2018.
Saturday's probable starter, junior John Matthews will look to tally his first pitching win in a matchup against No. 21 Coastal Carolina. In his last appearance at Dallas Baptist, Matthews recorded eight strikeouts in 4.2 innings of work, walking two. Senior John Schreiber is expected to get the ball on Sunday against Michigan State. In the third game of the series in Dallas last weekend, Schreiber recorded 3.0 innings and two strikeouts in the loss.
NC State
NC State is coming into the weekend 4-0 after sweeping Bucknell in a three-game series Feb. 15-17 and defeating Elon in its first road test Tuesday. In 2018, the Pack finished 42-18, hosting an NCAA Regional.
The Wolfpack have produced 39 runs in the first four games, which is the 15thmost in the NCAA. The team has notched 38 hits with a .529 slugging percentage.
Through the first week of play, the Pack remains as one of just five programs nationally that have not committed an error, and the only team from the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Flashes last met NC State in 2016 at Myrtle Beach, falling 7-5. The Wolfpack leads the all-time series, 9-4.
No. 21 Coastal Carolina
No. 21 Coastal Carolina also enters the weekend undefeated through the first four games. In 2018, the No. 13 Chants hosted an NCAA Regional and finished the season 43-19.
In the first four games, the Chanticleers have scored in double digits three times, totaling 38 runs. Four players have knocked home runs, including Zach Biermann who has notched seven hits and six RBIs in 17 at bats.
Redshirt junior Kyle Skeels was also named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week on Tuesday, after batting .500 in the first three games, going 5-for-10 with four walks and one hit-by-pitch. He recorded two doubles, drove in four RBIs and scored three runs in the opening series.
Kent State and No. 21 Coastal Carolina are facing off for the 24th time on Saturday. The Flashes lead the all-time series, 17-7, and last defeated the Chants 9-1 in 2015, the year before Coastal Carolina won the CWS Championship.
Michigan State
The Spartans have opened the 2019 campaign 1-2, losing the last two games to New Orleans after winning the season opener. Michigan State finished last season 20-32, 11-12 in the Big Ten.
Offensively, the Spartans have scored 13 runs through the first three games. Justin Antoncic leads the team with a .462 average, six hits, including a triple, and three RBIs.
This will be the first time in history the Flashes and Spartans will meet.
The 2019 Kent State Baseball Season is brought to you by Hometown Bank. Hometown Bank and Kent State Baseball – A Winning Team. There's no place like home.
