FINAL STATS

JACKSONVILLE – Aaron Dobbs had five hits, while Peyton Hart and Will Howard each finished with four as Kennesaw State claimed a 13-3 win over Jacksonville State in the first game of a three-game series at Rudy Abbot Field on Friday.
 
Josh Carr (2-1) scattered eight hits and had seven strikeouts to earn the win for the Owls, while Aaron Elias (0-3) gave up nine hits and six runs in 3 1/3 innings to suffer the loss for Jax State.
 
The Owls (4-5) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a RBI double by Hart, but the Gamecocks answered in the second inning.
 
Kyle Bluestein and Adam Miller led off with back-to-back singles, before Coty Blanchard drove in Bluestein to tie the game at 1-1. Kyle Stone followed with a single up the middle and Blanchard scored on a Kennesaw throwing error as the Gamecocks took a 2-1 lead.
 
Kennesaw State then scored five runs in the fourth inning on four hits to take a 6-2 lead. The Owls struck for two more runs in the sixth inning as Andy Almonte and Andy Chriscaden each drove in a run to extend the lead to 8-2.
 
Jax State (1-6) scored a run in the sixth after Bluestein led off with a double and Blanchard had a RBI single to score Bluestein to cut the lead to 8-3, but Kennesaw State tacked on five more runs in the eighth inning as Chriscaden hit a grand slam home run and Dobbs added a solo homer for the final margin. Chriscaden finished the day with five RBI to lead the Owls.
 
Sam Eberle led the Gamecocks with three hits and Bluestein finished with two hits, while Blanchard led the team with a pair of RBI.
 
The two teams will play the second game of the series on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Rudy Abbott Field, as Bradley Raulston is set to start for the Gamecocks. Any schedule changes due to weather will be posted on JSUGamecockSports.com throughout the day.