Kent State University
Ball State University
Baseball Slated to Continue #MACtion at Ball State
3/28/2019 4:44:00 PM | Baseball
Game 1 (Friday, March 29): ESPN+ | Kent State Radio | Live Stats
Game 2 (Saturday, March 30): ESPN+ | Kent State Radio | Live Stats
Game 3 (Sunday, March 31): ESPN+ | Kent State Radio | Live Stats
MUNCIE, Ind. – The Kent State University baseball team (10-13, 1-2 MAC) will wrap up its five-game road trip with a Mid-American Conference showdown against Ball State (16-9, 3-0 MAC) in Muncie, Ind. Friday through Sunday, March 29-31 at First Merchants Ballpark. The games are scheduled for 3:00, 1:00, and 1:00 p.m. EST, respectively and will be streamed on ESPN+.
The Flashes were selected as the preseason favorites, while the Cardinals were predicted to finish second in the MAC according to the preseason coaches' poll. Kent State will enter the season 1-2 in conference play with its lone win over Miami last weekend, while Ball State swept Western Michigan in its first MAC series and will begin the weekend 3-0 in the MAC.
The Golden Flashes are coming off a thrilling 9-8, 12-inning victory over Big Ten opponent Indiana in Bloomington, Ind. Wednesday night, bouncing back after falling at Dayton the day before. The Flashes snapped Indiana's eight-game winning streak and moved to 4-0 against Big Ten opponents this season.
Senior Pavin Parks was instrumental in Kent State's victory in Bloomington, starting the game at second base and in the cleanup position in the lineup and finishing the game on the mound, shutting down the Hoosiers and sending the game into extra innings before collecting the win. Parks tossed 4.2 innings to close the game and pick up his first win of the season, striking out eight while allowing just one walk. At the plate, the Uniontown, Ohio native scored three runs and notched an RBI on the night.
The Kent State offense has continued to heat up as the season progresses as the team has collected at least seven hits in each of the last eleven games and has averaged more than nine hits per game this season. The pitching staff has held opponents to just a .230 average while totaling 200 punch outs this season.
Ball State
Ball State is one of three MAC teams that swept their opponents in the first weekend of conference games, taking all three wins from Western Michigan in Muncie, Ind. The Cardinals will enter the weekend on a seven-game winning streak dating back to March 16.
The Cardinals are 4-5 against Power Five opponents, opening the 2019 slate against No. 3 Stanford. Ball State held the Cardinal to just two hits in a 2-1 loss.
Ball State has only been shut out of one game this season, falling to Alabama 6-0 in Tuscasloosa, Ala. The Cardinals have averaged nearly seven runs and just over ten hits a game with a .291 team batting average. Of Ball State's 254 total hits this season, 81 have been for extra bases - 52 doubles, 16 triples and 13 home runs.
The Ball State pitching staff has combined for a 4.90 ERA, allowing six runs a game on average so far this season. The Cardinals have allowed 21 long balls and 141 walks, but have fanned 262 batters to date.
Friday will mark the 123rdtime the two programs will meet, with the Flashes leading the all-time series 67-55. The teams last met a year ago in Kent, Ohio to kick off the conference slate. Ball State won the series 1-2.
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.
