Kent State University
Michigan
Flashes Head North for Wednesday Match-Up with Wolverines
5/2/2023 12:09:00 PM | Baseball
KENT-The Golden Flashes wrap up the true non-conference portion of the schedule with a trip up to Ann Arbor to face the Michigan Wolverines on Wednesday afternoon.
Wednesday's game is a rescheduling of the game originally scheduled for Tuesday afternoon but was postponed due to weather. First pitch from Ray Fisher Stadium is set for 4 p.m.
The Flashes are riding a five-game winning streak, capped by a 4-0 week that included a win over Ohio State and a sweep of the Ohio Bobcats. The victories moved Kent State into sole possession of first place in the Mid-American Conference with nine conference games left to play.
Kent State has found success in multiple ways this season. They lead the MAC in doubles with 102, a mark that is top-15 in the NCAA and the most in a season since 2019, five different players have at least 11 tw0-baggers so far this year. Eight different players have 20+ RBI and five have at least 30, leading the way is Aidan Longwell with 61, a mark that is top-15 in the NCAA. The Flashes have also stolen 97 bases, the most since 2013. The last time the Flashes stole at least 100 bags in a season was way back in 2001 when the Flashes stole 106 bases
The Flashes staff has tossed to a 4.16 team ERA, a top-25 mark in the NCAA. The bullpen has been particularly strong. Four arms in the bullpen hold batters to a batting average under .200. Mitchell Scott earned three saves last weekend and now is tied for the NCAA lead with 12 saves on the season.
Michigan comes into the Wednesday contest at 21-20 on the season and is tied for third in the Big-10. The Wolverines were on their Big-10 bye week last weekend and dropped a pair of games to Oklahoma State. The Wolverines are 3-3 in home mid-week contests and 2-2 overall against the MAC with wins over Central and Western Michigan and losses to Akron and Toledo.
The Wolverines hit .254 as a team with Jonathan Kim leading the offense with a .364 average in 33 games. Ted Burton has provided the pop in the lineup, owning a .307 average with a team best nine homers and 34 driven in. The pitching staff has tossed to a 5.96 ERA. The staff has opponents hitting .273 off of them, walking just under five batters a game while striking out eight a contest.
Wednesday's game will stream on Big Ten Network Plus, a subscription-based service. For those that don't have access to BTN+, a free radio stream will be available through the GoFlashes App as well as Kent State Sports dot com. Michigan will also provide live stats and all links are on the baseball schedule page.
Kent State returns home this weekend for a pivotal three-game series with Western Michigan. It is also the final home stand of the season. The team will hold an on-field graduation on Friday and senior day on Sunday in pre-game ceremonies. First pitch in the series opener is set for 6 p.m. on Friday night.
