Mike Foster, Sports Editor
Louisville, Ky. — For the second game in a row, upset-minded Kennesaw State gave Louisville a scare with an early lead, but an offensive outburst in the fifth and sixth innings helped the Cardinals to a 7-4 victory Saturday night at Patterson Stadium, ending the Owls banner year in the NCAA Super Regionals. Louisville advances to Omaha for the College World Series.
Louisville’s starting pitcher Anthony Kidston improved to 9-0 on the year and 15-0 for his career, though KSU gave him trouble with four runs scored (all earned) and nine hits to his name. Kidston relied on his off-speed pitches to keep Owls hitters guessing.
“I knew he threw more changeups than anything else,” KSU catcher Max Pentecost said. “We went with the mindset he’d throw something besides that, but he didn’t. It was just a tough night.”
The Owls took a 4-2 lead with three runs in the bottom of the third inning when Jacob Bruce beat out his own sacrifice bunt attempt, filling the bases for Pentecost, who capitalized with a double that scored two runs. Bruce scored two batters later when Chris McGowan brought him home with a ground out.
The game’s first six runs were products of bunts, which had been a staple of Louisville’s offense during the series.
“One through nine, they could bunt and hit in the gap,” Pentecost said. “You never knew what was going to come next.”
KSU’s starting pitcher Travis Bergen surrendered the lead back to the Cardinals (50-15) in the fifth when an RBI single was followed by a two-run home run from freshman Nick Solak to make the score 5-4. Solak had six RBIs in the series. Louisville scored the final runs of the game in the following frame when Cole Sturgeon brought home runners from second and third with two outs to put the game in the hands of Louisville’s shutdown bullpen.
James Connell and Will Solomon held off Louisville’s offense for the rest of the way, but KSU couldn’t muster up a final comeback.
This was KSU’s first time in the NCAA tournament since becoming a post-season eligible DI program in 2009. Despite it’s magical run coming to a close, a 7-3 postseason record for the year and national exposure should give the Owls (40-24) plenty of reasons to hold their chins high.
“(The season) really put us on the map,” Pentecost, who was selected in the first round of the MLB draft Thursday night, said. “We’ve had some good years in the past, but this year has really exceeded all of that. We’re up here with the top 16 teams in the nation, we were able to play on national television and people at our school were supporting us. It’s going to be great for our program’s future.”
Head coach Mike Sansing led KSU to the highest ranking any athletic team has received at the DI level when his Owls were tabbed No. 12 by Collegiate Baseball before the Super Regionals. Sansing lead KSU to national championships in 1994 (NAIA) and 1996 (DII).
“This has united our campus and gave us some things to build on for the future,” Sansing said. “There’s a huge amount of excitement on campus. I’m proud of our guys and what they’ve been able to accomplish this year.”
