JACKSONVILLE, Fla.- Jacksonville Baseball's comeback bid fell short on Sunday afternoon in the final home matchup of the 2024 season, with the Dolphins falling against the Kennesaw State Owls, 7-6.

Jacksonville charged back in the seventh to move their deficit from 7-2 to 7-6, but their rally fell just short after a pair of scoreless runs in the eighth and ninth.

Kennesaw State jumped out to an early lead with a two-RBI single and a sacrifice fly to make it 3-0 after the first half-inning. The Owls offense kept their foot on the gas pedal, adding two more runs in the third and a solo homer to give KSU a 6-0 lead through the top of the fifth.

The Dolphins offense looked to get things going in the home half of the fifth and Conner Spelman lined a single to left, just after he ended the past half-inning catching an Owls runner stealing. After a Will Gale groundout that advanced Spelman to second, Jaden Bastian drove a base hit through the middle to get the 'Phins on the board. Bastian later came to score off a passed ball to make it 6-2 through five. 

After a scoreless sixth inning by both teams, Logan Jones came out of the bullpen to relieve starter Blake Barquin, who finished out his start with two punchouts in the sixth. The Owls added a run after a 5-3 groundout with the bases loaded to make it 7-2 KSU. Jones finished the inning avoiding any further traffic, striking out two Owl batters to end the inning. 

After the final seventh-inning stretch of the season at John Sessions Stadium, Jackson Westmoreland and Gale both drew walks to get a pair of runners on for the 'Phins. Chandler Howard forced a walk on a 3-1 count to cut the JU deficit to four, now 7-3. Senior Tyrell Brewer stepped into the box next and lined a single to score Gale and Bastian to add two more for Jacksonville as the score moved to 7-5. The following Dolphins batter, Josh Steidl came up to bat and got a piece of one, sending a flyball deep that originally looked like it was going to exit the park, but lost momentum right before the wall. Regardless, it was enough to score Howard and make it a one-run ballgame, 7-6. 

Tommy Allman pitched in the eighth and Issac Williams came into pitch in the ninth, both handling business, giving JU a chance to tie things up in the eighth and the ninth, but the Dolphin offense couldn't plate a run and the Owls closed it out in the home half on the ninth. Blake Barquin (2-4) was given the loss.

Three Strikes

1. Senior Tyrell Brewer picked up two RBIs on Senior Day; Jaden Bastian, Chandler Howard, and Josh Steidl registered an RBI as well.
2. Logan Jones, Tommy Allman, and Isaac Williams combined to give up only one hit.
3. The Dolphins remained patient at the plate with seven different Dolphins drawing walks.

Up Next:

The Dolphins head to Statesboro on Tuesday night to take on Georgia Southern in a midweek matchup. First pitch is scheduled for 6:00 PM.