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Canisius University Athletics

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Andrew Fron
Dean Bogart
2
Kent State KENTST 13-17
13
Winner Canisius CAN 14-17
Kent State KENTST
13-17
2
Final
13
Canisius CAN
14-17
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Kent State KENTST 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 4 1
Canisius CAN 2 0 0 4 4 3 0 0 X 13 14 0

W: Fron, Andrew (3-1) L: SCHULTZ, Zach (1-3)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Fron, Hollins Guide Baseball to Win Over Kent State

RECAP
Home runs from senior Mark McKenna and redshirt-freshman Cole Hollins to lead off the bottom of the first inning gave the Canisius baseball team an early lead, and the Golden Griffins never looked back as they cruised to a 13-2 victory over Kent State Tuesday afternoon at the Demske Sports Complex in Buffalo, N.Y.
 
The win moved the Griffs to 14-17 overall, while the Golden Flashes dropped to 13-17 in 2019.
 
Another great performance on the mound earned freshman right-hander Andrew Fron his third win of the season, tossing five innings of one-run ball, while Hollins broke out with a 3-for-5 game that saw the outfielder also launch a double and drive in six RBI. Freshman Dylan Vincent also recorded three base knocks, coming around to score on all three.
 
After Fron worked a clean top of the first, McKenna knocked the first pitch he saw over the left field fence to give Canisius the early lead. Hollins followed suit two pitches later, launching a ball into the center field bullpen for his first collegiate homer.
 
Kent State cut the lead in half during the fourth inning, when Michael Turner plated Ben Carew with a single.
 
The Griffs did not wait long to answer back, as junior Noah Thompson ripped a two-run single in the home half of the inning. Redshirt-freshman Mike Steffan later scored Thompson with another single to right field, and McKenna scored the fourth run of the frame off a passed ball.
 
The fifth inning was more of the same for the Blue and Gold, as sophomore Jacob Martins and Vincent both scored on a Kent State throwing error. Hollins then drove in two more runs with a single to extend the advantage to 10-1.
 
Hollins did more damage in the sixth, dropping a double down the left-field line with the bases loaded, clearing the bases to put the game at 13-1.
 
The Golden Flashes did tack on one more run in the seventh off a solo shot from Kian O'Brien, but the Canisius bullpen would close it down the rest of the way to secure the win.
 
Fron finished his start with two hits and one walk allowed, fanning five Golden Flashes, while senior Jared Kennedy followed Fron by giving up a hit and recording a strikeout in his one inning of work. Junior Carson Perkins, despite the O'Brien homer, did get one strikeout in his 0.2 innings. Freshmen Alec Ritzenthaler and Brett Kochanski and sophomore Zach Chivers all kept Kent State hitless in relief, with Chivers punching out two hitters and Kochanski striking out his final batter faced.
 
Starter Zach Schultz lasted two innings for Kent State, getting the loss after allowing two runs on three hits. Jack Zimmerman then allowed four runs (three earned) in 1.2 innings, while Tyler Drabick allowed four unearned runs to score in his one frame. Max Rippl followed with three runs over 1.1 innings, before Chris Martin and Jarrett Smetana threw 1.2 and 0.1 hitless innings, respectively.
 
McKenna and freshmen Trevor Henneman and Kyle Kush all recorded two hits for the Griffs. Besides O'Brien's solo homer, the other Kent State extra-base hit was a Carew double.
 
HEAD COACH MATT MAZUREK'S POSTGAME COMMENTS
"We got off to a hot start, and most games when you come out to a hot start there's no stopping us because it's contagious. It's contagious on the mound, it's contagious on defense, it's contagious in the box, and that gives us great energy and has been a catalyst all year.
 
"it was really good to get the hitters going. If you look at that lineup, there was not many opportunities had by those guys before today. We said today's the day to get them opportunities and they all took it and ran with it. We've been with them all year, saying 'stay with it, you guys have talent, it's going to come', and today they just played baseball, had fun and let all their talent show.
 
"Fron's development to this point has been awesome, and it's been development. He has made adjustments and he's stuck with them. Since Kansas State, that kid has done some good things on the mound and now it's showing. It's the third time he's gone out there and done it, and that's because he's working at it, and understands now what it takes. He's gotten the confidence and now he knows if he goes up there and does what he's done each week, he's going to get it back".
 
GAME NOTES
• Tuesday was the seventh all-time meeting between the two schools, as Canisius cut the Golden Flashes lead to 5-2.
• The Griffs' 6-1 start at home is the best start at the Demske since the 2014 team's 8-0 home start.
• Canisius sits at 3-2 in mid-week action this season.
• Redshirt-freshman Michael Ssemanda made his collegiate debut, entering as a defensive replacement to start the ninth inning.
• Hollins' six RBI is the team's season high, surpassing redshirt-junior William Krull's five RBI at Kansas State on March 19.
• Hollins' three hits and six RBI set career highs.
• Vincent's three hits are also a career high.
• The home run was the second of McKenna's career, with his first coming March 25, 2017, at Kennesaw State.
• Tuesday marked the first multi-hit game of Kush's career.
• Kochanski has not allowed a run in any of his five relief appearances.
 
UP NEXT
Canisius resumes MAAC play with a three-game set at Marist April 13-14. Saturday's doubleheader is scheduled to begin at noon, while Sunday's series finale is also set for a noon first pitch.
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