FORT MYERS, Fla. – Despite recording a season-high 13 strikeouts and holding the Owls to six hits through the first seven innings of play, the FGCU baseball team (24-29, 9-11 A-Sun) lost game two to Kennesaw State (28-25, 16-4 A-Sun), 7-1, Friday night at Swanson Stadium.
 
After having to adjust as lightning in the surrounding area pushed the start time back just over an hour, FGCU starter Kenton Hering (2-2, 5.58) suffered the tough-luck loss after turning in a quality start as he allowed three runs on four hits with one walk and a career-high 10 strikeouts in 6.0 innings of work. Opposite Hering, Mason Ward (3-2, 4.02) made a spot start following the delay and earned the win.
 
As a team, FGCU's 13 punch outs were the most since also striking out 13 versus Jacksonville on April 10 of last season. Individually, Hering's (Melbourne, Fla./Eastern Florida State College) 10 strikeouts were the most since Brady Anderson (Arcadia, Fla./DeSoto County HS) struck out 10 versus Bethune-Cookman on March 21, 2015.
 
"I thought our pitching was there for the most part," said FGCU head coach Dave Tollett. "Our bats just weren't. We made a couple mistakes, and they made us pay. On the other hand, we couldn't make them pay for theirs."
 
After retiring 10 of the first 11 batters faced to start the game, Hering allowed a one-out single to Griffin Helms and issued a walk to Taylor Allum before Jeremy Howell hit a three-run home run to left field to give the Owls a 3-0 lead in the top of the fourth.
 
The Green and Blue responded in the next frame as Jake Noll (Punta Gorda, Fla./Charlotte HS) led off the inning with a single to left center and later scored his conference-leading 57th run of the season on Corey Fehribach's (Douglasville, Ga./West Georgia CC) double to right center.
 
Both teams went scoreless in their next three trips to the plate before Kennesaw State scored four in the eighth to push the score to the eventual final of 7-1. With runners on the corners and one out, Howell drove in his fourth and fifth runs of the game on a double to right center to run relief pitcher Sterling Koerner (Fort Pierce, Fla./John Carroll HS) from the game. Garrett Anderson (Arcadia, Fla./DeSoto County HS) then allowed a pair of RBI singles to Jake Franklin and Justin Motley to cap off the scoring for the night.
 
FGCU threatened to make things interesting in the bottom of the ninth as they loaded the bases off closer Erich Stahl, but Zach Spivey (Ormond Beach, Fla./Spruce Creek HS) hit a sharp ground back to Stahl, who stabbed it and tossed to first to secure the win.
 
Offensively, Spivey, Tyler Selesky (Estero, Fla./Estero HS) and Colton Bottomley (Parkland, Fla./Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS) each turned in two-hit games to lead the Green and Blue.
 
With today's results, Lipscomb secured the No. 4 seed while Jacksonville can claim the No. 2 seed with a doubleheader sweep of USC Upstate tomorrow. FGCU would guarantee itself the No. 5 seed with a win in tomorrow's finale vs. Kennesaw State or a Stetson loss vs. Lipscomb tomorrow.
 
Both teams will wrap up their regular seasons with tomorrow's finale at noon at Swanson Stadium. Prior to first pitch, the FGCU senior members of the Green and Blue – Brady Anderson, Bottomley, Clint Knoblauch (Wellington, Fla./Wellington HS), Noll and Seleky – will be recognized for their contributions to the programs over the last few seasons.

DAVE TOLLETT
In 14 seasons of work, FGCU head coach Dave Tollett has compiled a 487-293-3 record (.624) as the only head coach in the program's history. He is a four-time Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year and has guided the Green and Blue to four A-Sun Regular Season Championships. His team has been ranked nationally on several occasions by multiple media outlets and has coached 39 All-Conference selections, 25 draft picks, 16 current minor leaguers, four A-Sun Pitchers of the Year, four All-Americans, one National Freshman Player of the Year, one National Player of the Year and one MLB All-Star.

FOLLOW ALONG
For constant, news, photos, videos and updates you can follow the baseball team on Twitter @FGCU_Baseball, Instagram @FGCU_Baseball or on Facebook: Facebook.com/FGCUBaseball. You can also find FGCU athletics on YouTube by visiting YouTube.com/FGCUEagles.

#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visitwww.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.