LOUISVILLE, KY: Kent State took on the Louisville Cardinals Friday in the first game of the NCAA Regional Championships.  The Flashes fell to the Cards 5-0 thanks mostly to Cardinals sophomore starting pitcher Kyle Funkhouser who pitched 8 strong innings while striking out 10 Kent State batters and allowing only 4 hits.

The other starter was Kent State’s Brian Clark who went 5 innings allowing 5 runs, 3 unearned, while also only allowing 4 hits and walking just 3. Clark seemed to bounce back after the 3rd not allowing another hit in the final 2, as did the rest of the pitching staff who did not allow another Cardinal to cross home plate in their 4 innings of relief.

The big surprise to most Kent State fans was the lack of hitting in the middle of the line-up.  The normal big sluggers, Cody Koch, Zarley Zalewski, and T.J. Sutton combined for just 1 hit in 10 at bats.  Sophomore slugger Zarley Zalewski might have been the most disappointing of the three going 1 for 4 while striking out 3 times.

The Flashes will look to bounce back Saturday, as they will take on the Kentucky Wildcats who dropped their game to Kansas 10 to 6 on Friday. 

First pitch is scheduled for 1pm EST.

For live updates during the game, follow @tv2ksusports and @kentwired.

Contact Zach Harley at [email protected].