After falling to North Carolina at Greensboro in the opening game of the series, the Kent State baseball team turned around to take the final two games and the series.

In yesterday’s 11-5 victory, junior left fielder Kurt Eichorn went 3-for-3 with two home runs, five RBIs and four runs scored. His first home run came early in the first inning and brought in two runs. Eichorn was later hit by a pitch in the sixth inning and scored the first of three runs for the Flashes that inning.

Catcher Todd Balduf hit a double in the sixth, scoring two, and went on to hit a home run in the seventh alongside Eichorn to give the Flashes (7-5) a 10-3 lead. The two players went on to hit singles in the ninth inning.

“Kurt’s home run was probably the longest one ever in that stadium,” Kent State coach Scott Stricklin said in a press release. “He hit it to straight away center and over the batter’s eye. Kurt’s only the second person ever to do that, and his first home run was almost as far.”

Junior J.J. Pacella registered his first win of the season, allowing only one run on two hits over five innings and striking out four batters.

In Friday’s 6-1 loss, the Flashes were held to five hits. Senior center fielder Joe Tucker and Eichorn went 1-for-3 with a walk and single, respectively.

Junior catcher Will Vasquez was 3-for-3 and hit his first home run of the season in the top of the fifth tying the game 1-1. North Carolina (4-12) pressed for three runs in the bottom of the sixth, breaking the tie.

Senior Chad Wagler gave up one run in the first five innings, but allowed four runs over seven innings.

Despite the low hit count Friday night, the Flashes gained momentum to record 14 hits in their 9-6 victory over the Spartans Saturday.

North Carolina jumped to a 3-0 lead and led 6-3 after the sixth inning, but Kent State scored five runs in the seventh to grab the win.

Sophomore Steve Ross threw a scoreless third and fourth innings, while sophomore Reid Lamport threw three innings of relief for the win. Junior Ryan Davis pitched the ninth inning, recording a save.

Leading the offense was freshman second baseman Chris Tremblay, as he tallied a career-high three hits and went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored.

The Flashes will continue their travels in North Carolina for a series at Elon. The first game is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. Friday.

Contact assistant sports editor Amanda Vasil at [email protected].