The Kent State Baseball team won two out of three games at the LeClair Classic in Greenville, S.C., which took place from Friday to Sunday. The Flashes are now 3-6 on the season.
The Flashes were on the cusp of a full-fledged slump heading into play in Greenville, as the team had lost five straight ball games.
Friday vs. East Carolina
The Flashes would begin competition on the road against the host team in East Carolina. Heading into play, the Pirates were 3-5 on the young season, coming off a win against Old Dominion.
The starting pitcher for Kent State would be redshirt sophomore and rotation ace Gavin Jones. Jones posted a line of four earned runs on five hits in four-and-two-thirds of an inning, striking out two and walking four.
Junior catcher Brody Williams got the scoring started with a double out to left to bring home senior Jake Casey, who’s been having a strong start to 2025 with eight runs and seven RBI in the Flashes’ first nine games.
In the fifth, the Pirates pounced on the Flashes for the lead on a sacrifice fly sent out to right field. A wild pitch off the arm of Jones put ECU up 3-1.
As it often happens in the great game of baseball, one swing pushed all the momentum behind one team in the top of the seventh when sophomore outfielder Alejandro Covas sent a ball out to left field to tie the game at four. In the same inning, Casey took a pitch of his own out to left to put the Flashes up 7-4.
The Pirates would tack on two runs in the bottom of the seventh to make it a one-run game, but the Flashes held on and snapped their five-game skid with a 7-6 victory.
Senior Caden Leonard was handed the win for the Flashes with Brad Pruett being handed the loss for ECU.
Saturday vs. Virginia Tech
Heading into a match against the Flashes, the Virginia Tech Hokies were 7-2 on the season. The Hokies have been red hot as of late, scoring as much as 27 runs in one game alone against Bucknell.
Pitching for the Flashes was left-handed junior Nick Guidas for his first start of the season. Guidas posted a line of two earned runs on four hits in four innings of work while walking one and striking out three.
The Hokies jumped out early on a Henry Cooke home run that put the Hokies up 2-0 after an RBI groundout.
In the top of the sixth, senior Hunter Klotz tied the game at two on a single up the left field side. This was Klotz’s second RBI of the campaign.
In the same sixth inning, the Hokies turned the tides on the Flashes and embarked on a run of their own. V-Tech hit a single to center field that turned into a double that snowballed into a solo home run and all of a sudden, the Hokies were up 5-2 by the eighth inning.
The Hokies would add two more runs on a balk and sacrifice fly. The Flashes would lose by a score of 7-2.
Jacob Exum was given the win with Benny Roebuck being handed the loss.
Sunday vs. Indiana State
Sunday’s match against the Indiana State Sycamores served as the proverbial rubber match for the Flashes, as a win would put the time spent at the LeClair Classic in a better light.
Right-handed sophomore Jacob Bean was given the nod to toe the slab for the Flashes on Sunday, and he did not disappoint. Bean posted his best start of the young season against the Sycamores, giving up just one earned run on six hits, walking one and striking out four in a strong six innings of work.
The Flashes opened this game with hot bats, as Williams would single in the bottom of the first to make it a two-to-nothing lead for the Flashes.
After Indiana State scored its first run in the top of the second, the Flashes would cruise to victory off the back of a dominant bottom of the third. Hayden Jatczak would double and score to propel the Flashes to the lead.
The Sycamores would embark on a rally in the bottom of the seventh, scoring three runs to make it a one-run game. However, the Flashes would hold on and claim a 6-5 win.
Bean was given the winning decision for Kent State with starter Ty Brooks claiming the loss.
Moving forward
The Flashes will welcome the Mercyhurst Lakers into the friendly confines of Schoonover Stadium for the Flashes’ home opener Tuesday. The team is 3-6 on the season and is yet to compete against any conference opponents.
Gage Wellman is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected] or @GageWellmanKSTV on X.
