The outfield of Bailey Park, KSU’s softball field. Photo by Zaire Breedlove
Owls softball dropped all three games of a Conference USA series to Florida International over the weekend at Felsberg Field at Baptist Health Stadium in Miami.
The Panthers completed the sweep behind timely hitting and strong pitching, while KSU showed flashes of resilience, particularly in the series opener.
On Thursday, the Owls struck early, taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning behind an RBI double from Ana Gore. However, FIU answered with a four-run fourth inning, focusing on defensive mistakes and timely extra-base hits to take control. The Panthers added another run and held KSU scoreless the rest of the way, sealing a 7-2 win.
Friday’s matchup was the most competitive of the series, as the Owls battled back late to force extra innings.
KSU erased a late deficit with a run in the seventh inning to tie the game at 4-4, highlighted by clutch situational hitting and aggressive baserunning. Gore delivered a key RBI single in the seventh to even the score and give the Owls momentum heading into extras.
Despite the comeback, FIU responded in the bottom of the eighth inning when Kennedy Byrd delivered a walk-off RBI double to secure a 5-4 victory and the series win for the Panthers.
KSU struggled to generate consistent offense in the middle innings, stranding runners and failing to respond after FIU’s big frame.
In the series finale Saturday, the Owls again grabbed an early lead, but were unable to sustain momentum. The Panthers plated five unanswered runs across the third and fourth innings to pull away, eventually securing a 5-1 victory to complete the sweep.
For KSU, the series highlighted both promise and inconsistency. The Owls demonstrated the ability to compete in close games, particularly in Friday’s extra-inning battle, but struggled to string together offense against FIU’s pitching staff over the course of the weekend.
With the losses, KSU fell to 7-28 overall and 3-12 in C-USA play, while the Panthers improved to 26-12 and 8-7 in conference action.
The Owls will look to regroup and build on their flashes of offense as they continue conference play, beginning a home series against Jacksonville State on April 10.
