FIRST PITCH
Score: Kennesaw State 9 | Queens 5
Records: Austin Peay (18-18 overall, 8-8 ASUN) | Queens (6-30 overall, 2-14 ASUN)
Location: Charlotte, N.C. (The Stick)
 
The Short Story: A timely ninth-inning double from Riley Cheek sent the weekend series opener into extra innings, but the Royals would fall late to drop game one.

HOW IT HAPPENED

-The visiting Owls jumped on the board first with a pair of runs on two hits. Brayden Eidson hit a two-out single off the pitcher and advanced to third on an errant throw. Spencer Hanson would follow it up with a two-run blast to left field for the early lead.

-Queens would respond in the bottom of the second inning with a clutch two-out single from JJ Sousa. Connor Manco opened the frame with a single before advancing up on a one-out single from Christian Maggio. A fielder's choice would put runners on the corners before JJ Sousa delivered a two-out RBI single into left field bringing across the first Royals run.

-Kennesaw State would respond in the top of the third with a run on two hits. Spencer Hanson laced a one-out double for his second extra-base hit of the day before Nick Hassan brought him in with an RBI single up the middle.

-Queens countered in the bottom half of the third inning as Riley Cheek blasted a solo home run to left center cutting the deficit to 3-2.

-Kennesaw State answered in the top of the fourth with a solo home run to left field. The blast was their second of the day.

-After a pair of scoreless frames, the Owls would get on the board again with a run in the seventh. Spencer Hanson would lead off the inning with a single before Nick Hassan drove him in with a one-out RBI single up the middle.

-Queens snapped a four-inning scoreless streak in the bottom of the eighth inning. JD Coleman worked a one-out walk before Christian Maggio blasted a two-run home run off the scoreboard in right field cutting the deficit to 5-4.

-The Royals would tie it up in the bottom of the ninth inning with a run on a key swing from Riley Cheek. Dillon Lewis opened the inning with a pinch-hit walk before Riley Cheek smoked a one-out double down the left field line bringing pinch-runner Sam Hunter in to score.

-Kennesaw State would explode in the top of the 10^th inning with four runs, two hits, and one Royals error. The inning was capped off by a Brayden Eidson three-run triple with two outs.

BY THE NUMBERS
-Riley Cheek extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a 3-for-4 performance. The senior blasted his team-best seventh home run of the season as he sits second all-time in program history.

-Senior Christian Maggio turned in a 2-for-4 evening, including his third home run of the season. Maggio has put together seven multi-hit performances this season.

-Connor Manco, JD Coleman, and JJ Sousa added a base hit on the night.

-Kei Yamagishi picked up his fifth start of the season and tossed 4.2 innings while surrendering four runs and striking out three Owls.

-Rookie Joey Ruller tossed 2.1 relief innings picking up four strikeouts.

-The Royals fall to 1-3 this season in extra-inning affairs.

-The Queens offense struggled with runners on base as they hit .235 in those situations, including a .091 mark with runners in scoring position.

-Three Owls turned in three-hit performances as Brayden Eidson led the way with three runs batted in.

NEXT UP
The Royals and Owls will continue their weekend series on Saturday, April 22^nd at The Stick. The first pitch has been pushed back to 6:00 p.m. to accommodate the early afternoon weather. Fans can follow the live stats or tune into the audio broadcast by visiting the Queens Athletics website.

 
SOCIAL MEDIA
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