KENNESAW, Ga. – An early flurry of extra base hits doomed Jacksonville University baseball to an 8-2 loss at Kennesaw State on Friday night.
 
The Dolphins (25-15, 10-9) had the bases loaded down five in the fifth, but were unable to get any closer throughout the evening.
 
"We didn't do a good enough job of competing at the plate against their starter," said Head Coach Chris Hayes. "We didn't make him uncomfortable at all until midway through the game, and really nothing after that either."
 
Both pitchers started well, but a leadoff single in the second got the ball rolling for KSU against Evan Chrest. After a groundout advanced the runner and a strikeout, Chrest was all set to get out of the frame unscathed. The Owl batter clubbed a 2-2 pitch over the leftfield wall to make it 2-0. A single and walk followed to set up another scoring opportunity, and this time, the Owls lifted a flare to right field that dropped in between three Dolphin players and ended up as a two-RBI double, making it 4-0 KSU after two.
 
The Owls came right back in the third and started things with a solo homer to center. A single preceded the third home run of the evening for the home team, a long shot to left that made it 7-0, before Chrest buckled down and got the next three out.
 
"Evan wasn't as sharp as he's been, and he's been so good for us all year," said Hayes. "We've got to do a better job of picking him up in that scenario."
 
JU's first hit came in the fifth, a single the opposite way to right by Blake DeLamielleure. That seemed to shake the KSU starter, who immediately walked Colin Wetterau on four pitches and fell behind Elias Flowers 3-0 before giving up another single to right, which loaded the bases for the top of the order. Chase Malloy got the Dolphins on the board with a sacrifice fly to center and Justin Nadeau looped an opposite field double to left to plate another. Kris Armstrong walked to load the bases for the second time in the inning, but with two outs, and JU left them loaded, missing its best chance to make things close.
 
"We had opportunities to really make the game interesting, and we did not deliver in a critical spot," Hayes said. "We've got to be better, if we're going make a comeback when we get down that much that early, we've got to do something in the lineup."
 
Both teams pitched and defended well over the next several innings, with Chrest working into the sixth without allowing another run, before giving way to Jack Carver with a runner at third. Carver got out of the inning on one pitch, then retired the first two batters he faced in the seventh, with Layton Perry relieving him and picking up a strikeout to post a fourth straight scoreless inning.
 
JU's next best chance to score came in the eighth, with Armstrong ripping a leadoff double to right field. He advanced to third on a wild pitch, but was left there, and in the bottom half, KSU hit a leadoff single and used a double to left three batters later to build the final margin.
 
ON DECK
 
Jacksonville looks to even the series at Kennesaw State on Saturday, with first pitch at Stillwell Stadium set for 4 p.m.
 
THREE STRIKES
 

• Kris Armstrong hit his 11th double of the season in the eighth, and has 31 extra base hits this year
• Evan Chrest had not allowed more than two runs in game in his career prior to tonight
• Layton Perry matched his longest relief outing of his career