Photo GallerySUGAR LAND, Texas – HBU senior righthander
Ross Kennell hurled his first career shutout, the seventh-seeded Huskies' third-straight complete game, as they edged sixth-seeded Central Arkansas, 1-0, Friday afternoon to advance to the Championship Game of the Southland Conference Tournament at Constellation Field.
"It feels great (to throw a complete game), but the best thing working for me today was my defense," Kennell said. "It was a great day, everyone did their jobs, and it takes a bunch of parts to make a whole. I was excited when I found out I was going to start, it's been a while since I've got a start. We've been in this position before, so I just had confidence, tried not to be nervous and keep these guys calm."
Kennell (2-0), scattered four singles, struck out three and walked one on 108 pitches for the Huskies (27-25). Senior righthander
Taylor Wright went the distance Thursday against UCA, and junior lefthander
Matthew McCollough threw a complete game in a win over second-seeded Northwestern State Wednesday.
"You can't ask for anything better than that," HBU head coach
Jared Moon said. "X (pitching coach
Xavier Hernandez) and I talked last night about Ross's (Kennell) offspeed stuff, throwing the breaking ball and the changeup for a strike, their plate discipline, it just matched up well for Ross and he did a great job of getting ahead of guys."
Senior rightfielder
Thomas Clay went 2-for-3 with a double and scored the game's lone run, while senior third baseman
Curtis Jones was 1-for-4 and drove in the run.
Tyler Gray (1-1) also went the distance for the Bears (29-24), allowing one run on six hits with three strikeouts and a walk.
Charles Deckard went 2-for-3, while Tyler Langley and Ty Tice had UCA's other hits.
Kennell held the Bears hitless through four innings, then Tice led off the fifth with a bunt single up the first base line, but was forced out at second when Matt Anderson reached on a fielder's choice. Deckard followed with a two-out single to right and the runners moved up on a passed ball, but Langley flied out to right to end the threat.
Clay led off the top of the sixth with a double to leftcenter, then went to third on a groundout by junior shortstop
Louie Payetta for the second out. Jones ripped a single to right to give the Huskies a 1-0 lead.
Kennell set the Bears down 1-2-3 in the sixth and seventh, but Deckard singled up the middle with one out in the eighth. Langley followed with a single to center, but Wesley Hoover struck out for the second out. Senior catcher
Samm Wiggins then picked off Deckard at second, his conference-leading eighth of the season, to end the inning.
In the bottom of the ninth, Chris Townsend grounded out to second and Travis Hull grounded out to first. Brad Dillenberger smashed a ground ball to first and reached on an error, but Tice grounded to second and Dillenberger was forced out to end the game.
HBU will play in the Championship Game at 6 p.m. Saturday and will face the winner of fifth-seeded Sam Houston State and eighth-seeded Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
