Kent State’s baseball team was unable to overcome the hitting storm from the Hurricanes of University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida.

Before the season, Miami baseball was ranked No. 16 in the nation by the NCAA. The Hurricanes, now No.1 in the country, defeated Kent State 12-0.

It was a rough first inning for senior right-hander Zach Schultz, who gave up a three-run homerun to right-center field to make it 3-0 Miami. He worked the first two innings for the Flashes, giving up those three runs and adding on two strikeouts.

The Flashes had runners in scoring position in the first and third innings, but were unable to capitalize on their efforts. Sophomore Grant Vera went 2 for 2 and hit by a pitch. Juniors Ben Carew and Alex Ronnebaum both contributed a hit as well.

Kent State’s bullpen locked down late in the game, throwing three scoreless innings to end the game. Freshman Richie Dell made an impressive collegiate debut out of the Flashes’ bullpen. He threw a pair of strikeouts in a scoreless inning.

In the eighth inning, the Flashes were in a promising position. Kent State had the bases loaded from a hit by pitch, a walk and a fielder’s choice. Junior Michael Turner hit a line drive into left field, but Vera was thrown out at home on the play, preventing the Flashes from scoring that inning.

With the victory, Miami improved to a 4-0 record on the season and Kent fell to 2-2. The Flashes will remain in Florida, traveling to Fort Myers to take on Florida Gulf Coast on Friday to start a three-game weekend series. First pitch on Friday from Fort Myers is set for 6:30 p.m.

Nick Pedone is a sports reporter. Contact him at [email protected].