Kennesaw State’s baseball team won two out of three games on the road against 25th ranked Kentucky this weekend.
Kennesaw State won game one and game two with scores of 13-1 and 10-2 respectively, with Kentucky avoiding the sweep on Sunday with a 5-2 win.
Offensive explosion
The Owls scored 25 runs during the three-game-series, with catchers Nick Hassan and Aaron Posey combining for nine runs batted in.
Kentucky’s pitching staff is the strength of their team, arguably being a top 10 pitching team in the nation. However, Kennesaw’s offense was the first this year to score 10 runs in a game against Kentucky, and they did it twice. They were also the first team to win a three game series against Kentucky this season.
Outfielder Spencer Hanson said that the pitching staff’s dominance in the first two games played a major role in the team’s success at the plate.
“It helps me a lot, it boosts my confidence and and comfort at the plate with timing and just for the feel of the game,” Hanson said.
Aaron Posey agreed, evidenced by his three hits and five RBI’s in game two.
“It’s an amazing confidence boost,” Posey said. “When our Friday night starter shuts down a team for multiple innings weekend after weekend, it gives the hitters the confidence that the staff will provide the offense a chance to win. It’s a great feeling having confidence in the pitching staff. It gives us the chance to not have to stress or press at the plate.”
Playing the villain
Going into Lexington can be daunting when a team like Kentucky was undefeated at home before this series. However, Kennesaw State appears to enjoy going into hostile territory.
“The biggest difference in playing a ranked team on the road is the environment paired with the excitement of beating a great team at their place,” Kennesaw catcher Aaron Posey said. “Most ranked teams have good facilities and fan turnout that make it really fun to take over their own place.”
Braden Osbolt and Blake Aita started the first two games of the series, pitching a combined 13 innings with only one run allowed.
“Finding comfort in playing the villain role can be really really fun,” Braden Osbolt said. “A lot of people don’t give us a chance playing in big series like this so we use that as motivation. It’s very different than playing them at home. We seem to get comfortable pretty easy on the road, which can be very rewarding throughout the course of the season.”
Kennesaw State has played better on the road this year, something that can pay great dividends later in the year once the ASUN Tournament starts in Florida, with a chance to make the school’s third trip to a College Baseball World Series regional.
A momentum boost
A series win against a team like Kentucky also provides much needed momentum for Kennesaw State, as they start conference play on March 15th against North Alabama.
Blake Aita said that a series like this can give the Owls a boost going into their next few weeks.
“I’d say it provides us with more momentum going into the next week,” he said. “These are the teams we know we can not just compete with, but beat. We are just at the surface of what we are capable with as a team.”
Osbolt, ranked in the top 100 of D1 Baseball’s 2025 class, said that while the win is big for the program, that it is something they need to put in the back of their mind going forward.
“We know what we can do and we keep proving it to ourselves,” he said. “However, at the same time we know that each weekend is a grind in college baseball. We know we need to put it behind us and focus in on the next week. We know what we need to get better at and focus on to be better the next week.”
Osbolt and the Owls will attempt to keep this momentum flowing going into their next game against Georgia Southern on Tuesday, attempting to improve on their 9-7 record.
