What You Need to Know:
* Matt Rose hit his 15th homer of the season. He is tied for second in the nation.
* Trae Sweeting drove in a career-high four runs.
* Georgia State swept season series from Kennesaw State, 13-3 and 7-4.
Kennesaw, Ga. -- Matt Rose hit his 15th home run and Trae Sweeting drove in a career-high four runs to lead Georgia State to a 7-4 win at Kennesaw State Wednesday night, giving the Panthers a sweep of the annual series.
Sweeting, the sophomore center fielder playing for injured starter Ryan Blanton, hit in the leadoff spot for the first time this season and delivered a two-run, opposite field single in the fourth inning that gave the Panthers the lead for good. Then in the eighth inning, he provided insurance by dropping a single into left field to score two more runs and extend GSU's lead to 6-4.
With Georgia State (28-20) leading 3-1, Rose led off the fourth inning and greeted reliever Tony Dibrell with a mammoth home run to left field. His 15th blast of the season tied him for second in the NCAA. That was also his 30th career homer; only three active players in the nation, all seniors, have more career homers than the GSU junior infielder.
The Panthers used six pitchers on a staff night, with junior left-hander Garrett Ford (1-1) earning the victory with 3.1 scoreless innings in relief of starter Jerry Stuckey. Alex Hegner, Wayne Wages, Cole Uvila and Kevin Burgee also pitched, and all six were helped by a GSU defense that turned a season-high four double plays.
"The plays the defense made were just outstanding," Ford said. "They fired up the dugout, which gave us momentum to swing the bats really well, too. It was just a fun game.
After Kennesaw State (25-22) took the early lead with a run in the second inning, Joey Roach started the Panthers' rally in the fourth by drawing a one-out walk, one of his three walks on the night. Jack Thompson singled to right field, and with two outs, James Clements bounced a ball past the third baseman for a double to score Roach with Georgia State's first run. David Levy drew a walk to load the bases for Sweeting's first two-run single.
Caden Bailey closed the Panthers' scoring with a sacrifice fly in the eighth. The senior third baseman also made several sparkling defensive plays, highlighted in the fifth inning when he stabbed a hot shot and not only robbed a double but started the 5-4-3 double play.
"That was a hard-hit ball, but Caden really stuck his nose on it, and David Levy really turned it," head coach Greg Frady said. "That really set the tempo."
Georgia State now heads to Troy for a three-game Sun Belt Conference series, beginning Friday at 7 p.m. ET. The Panthers' final home series is May 14-16 against Georgia Southern. Tickets are on sale now by calling 404-413-4020 or visiting GeorgiaStateSports.com.
"We turned four double plays, we had double digit hits, we pitched outstanding," Frady said. "All in all, it was a great final non-conference game. This is a really good win for us, and it sets the tone as we go into these final two conference weekends."
