DeLeon Helps Jayhawks Topple Jackson State, 10-6

Feb. 23, 2013

Final Stats

Kansas 10, Jackson State 6
Bear Stadium//Conway, Ark.
022313aac_447_8614489.jpeg
Sophomore Robert Kahana earned his second victory of the season Saturday against Jackson State.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R
KU 5 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 1 10
JSU 1 0 0 4 1 0 0 0 0 6
Box Score (.pdf) Get Acrobat Reader
Leaders – Batting
Kansas AB R H RBI BB HR
A. DeLeon 3 3 3 1 2 0
T. Tharp 4 3 1 0 1 0
Jackson State AB R H RBI BB HR
B. Taylor 4 1 2 1 0 0
J. Cruz 4 1 1 1 0 0
Pitching
Kansas IP H R ER BB SO
T. Taylor 4.2 9 6 3 1 8
R. Kahana (W) 2.1 0 0 0 1 3
J. Piche (SV) 2.1 0 0 0 1 3
Jackson State IP H R ER BB SO
J. Castillo 0.1 1 4 4 3 0
A. Juday (L) 5.2 9 4 3 2 1
S. Parra 3.0 0 2 0 4 4

CONWAY, Ark. – Senior Alex DeLeon went 3-for-3 and scored three times, while the Jayhawk bullpen pitched 4 1/3 scoreless innings to record their third victory as Kansas downed Jackson State, 10-6 in a non-conference baseball game at Bear Stadium.

After falling in their first game of the day to host Central Arkansas, the Jayhawks bounced back to improve to 4-3 on the season, while the Tigers fell to 2-4.

Kansas scored five runs in the first inning, but needed a late rally to avoid defeat. Jackson State rallied from a five-run deficit with four runs in the fourth inning, but KU regained the lead in the seventh.

Junior Tucker Tharp and DeLeon started the seventh with back-to-back singles and moved into scoring position on a double steal. Freshman Jacob Boylan plated the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly, while DeLeon scored on a wild pitch to give the Jayhawks an 8-6 lead.

Sophomore Robert Kahana and junior Jordan Piché did the rest, slamming the door on the Tiger offense. After Kahana entered the game in the fifth inning, the Jayhawk relievers retired 13 of the 15 men they faced and held JSU hitless over the final 4 1/3 innings. Kahana picked up his second victory of the season, while Piché recorded his first save.

Kansas stormed out to an early 5-0 lead on the strength of three walks and run-producing hits by by Dakota Smith, Tommy Mirabelli and Justin Protacio.

Trailing 6-1, JSU came back with four runs in the fourth following a throwing error and used Bryce Taylor’s RBI single up the middle to tie the game in the fifth inning.

KU starting pitcher Thomas Taylor recorded eight strikeouts, but departed after 4 2/3 innings after allowing three earned runs on nine hits.

DeLeon was the only Jayhawk with multiple hits in the game, while six different players collected RBIs. Boylan extended his hitting streak to seven games with a single in the first inning, while Tharp swiped three bases.

The Jayhawks are scheduled to play their home-opener on Tuesday afternoon against Missouri State at Hoglund Ballpark. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.

KUAthletics.com: The official online source for Kansas Athletics, Williams Education Fund contributions, tickets, merchandise, multimedia, photos and much, much more.