JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The second seeds from both divisions meet when UNF baseball hosts Kennesaw State Thursday, May 27 at 3 p.m. in North Florida's first game in the four-team double elimination ASUN Championship at Harmon Stadium.

On the other side of the bracket is the top seed from the ASUN North Division, Liberty, and the ASUN South Division fourth-seeded Jacksonville Dolphins.
 

OSPREYS vs. OWLS (HARMON STADIUM | JACKSONVILLE, FLA)
GAME 43	Thursday, May 27 at 3 p.m.
Season Series History	UNF leads, 49-45
Last Meeting	Last Time: KSU, 9-4 (5.12.19)
Social Media	@OspreyBSB | #SWOOPLife | Facebook | www.unfospreys.com

1. Against The Opponent 
UNF and Kennesaw State are familiar foes with extensive head-to-head history despite not seeing each other in the other dugout since 2019 ... North Florida leads a very competitive all-time series, 49-45 ... the two were foes in both UNF's NAIA and Division II days ... the first-ever meeting was 1988 ... the Ospreys took two of three in a series in Kennesaw ... the Ospreys and Owls last faced off in May of '19 ... UNF took two of three in that series at Harmon Stadium ... North Florida paces KSU, 3-2, in meetings during the ASUN Championship ... the Ospreys cruised by KSU, 7-1, in the 2018 ASUN Championship.

2. Last Time Out 
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Just as last night's win went, Stetson jumped out to an early lead in the first but UNF (21-21) pounced on the Hatters (26-23) with an eight-run first frame before Tony Roca settled in for seven strong on the mound in North Florida baseball's 9-2 victory against Stetson Saturday, May 22. UNF advances to the ASUN Championship Final Four with the win, eliminating the Hatters.

3. Talking Tournament Time
This is UNF's ninth appearance in the ASUN Championship since playing its first Division I season in 2006 ... the Ospreys have appeared in eight consecutive ASUN Championships ... North Florida is 14-16 in tournament play ... in its last trip to the ASUN Championship, North Florida went 1-2, defeating No. 1 FGCU before being eliminated by Liberty ... the last time UNF hosted the ASUN Championship, North Florida reached the championship before falling to Stetson ... that was in 2018.

4. Notables
UNF is on a three-game winning streak and is 10-7 at home ... North Florida is 10-5 over its last fifteen games, helping the Ospreys reach the .500 watermark for the first time since the opening weekend of the season ... Division III graduate transfer Alex Kachler has not only proved competitive at the Division I level, but he has thrived ... Kachler became the first-ever ASUN Baseball student-athlete to be named ASUN Scholar-Athlete and Player of the Year in the same season ... he's also the only mid-major player to be named a finalist for the prestigious Senior Class Award ... freshman Aidan Sweatt was named to the ASUN All-Freshman team ... he started his UNF career on a 10-game hitting streak and is currently on a 16-game reached base safely streak ... Marabell is on a 19-game reached base safely streak after continuing to dominate the Stetson Hatters ... Marabell has hit four of his seven home runs against the Hatters this season.

5. The Price is Reitz
Righty closer Brandon Reitz leads the ASUN in saves with nine ... Reitz is tied for second in UNF DI history for saves in a single season ... the closer is tied with Corbin Olmstead (2015) and Matt Naylor (2017) ... Tyler Stohr set the single season mark back in 2008, posting 10 ... Reitz possesses a team-best 0.86 WHIP ... he's holding hitters to just a .100 batting average (3-for-30) with runners on base ... he's fanning 8.39 batters/game.

6. Steady Eddie
Southpaw Eddie Miller became just the third Osprey in UNF's DI history to reach the 80-appearance milestone ... Miller is third in UNF DI history for total appearances on the mound, just one behind Corbin Olmstead and seven back of Matt Naylor ... the Ocala, Fla., native is fourth in UNF DI history for career saves (10), third for games finished (36), third for runners picked off (11) and fourth in opponent batting average (.230).

7. Start Me Up
UNF starting pitching has put up strong numbers when spinning it at home ... the Osprey hurlers are 6-4 with a 3.90 ERA, fanning 55 while allowing just 24 free passes in 17 games started at Harmon Stadium this season ... conversely, on the road UNF starting pitching is 5-10 with a 6.77 ERA away from Harmon Stadium.

8. Last 15
Over the last 15 games dating back to April 23, UNF is 10-5 ... the Ospreys are hitting .275, outscoring opponents 97-85 ... Blake Marabell is hitting a team-best .424 with four home runs and a .712 slugging percentage during this stretch ... Alex Kachler is close behind, hitting .379 with two home runs and 12 RBI ... while only hitting .172 over UNF's last 15, Isaiah Byars has been an important spark plug atop the UNF lineup, scoring 14 runs on 10 hits and 11 walks ... UNF pitching has tallied a 4.85 ERA with six saves and 97 punchouts in 130 frames of effort.

9. Interstate Foes
Against teams outside the Sunshine State, UNF is 3-6 ... the Ospreys took two of three at The Citadel and one game of a three-game set at No. 21 Georgia ... North Florida is 0-2 against Georgia Southern, while falling in its only battle against No. 19 South Carolina ... UNF's game with Kennesaw State is just the second against a non-Florida school at home this season ... the Ospreys last hosted a team from outside of Florida March 3 against Georgia Southern.

10. No Freebies
Max McKinley leads the ASUN and is sixth in the country in the walks/nine innings rankings ... he's only allowing 1.02 walks for every nine innings pitched ... the righty has fanned 39 and walked only six batters ... for his career he's struck out 50 and permitted nine free passes.

Scouting Report | KSU | Stats | Schedule | Roster

• The Owls are the second seed in the ASUN North Division.
• KSU comes into play with a 29-20 overall record and 13-8 mark in ASUN play.
• Kennesaw State swept Lipscomb in the ASUN Divisional Round, winning by scores of 14-1 and 10-2.
• Kennesaw State is hitting .287 as a team, producing 340 runs while slugging a robust .432.
• Alex Carballo paces Kennesaw State with a .337 batting average, while walking a team-high 35 walks.
• Garrett Hodges has homered eight times, while Tyler Tolve and Terence Norman have clubbed seven.
• Jake Rice and Ryan Kennedy lead the way for KSU starting pitchers. Rice is 9-2 with a 1.68 ERA, while Kennedy has turned in an 8-1 mark with a 3.74 ERA.
• Two hurlers have six saves. Jared Rine and Kolby Johnson have picked up six apiece.
• Six Owls were named to ASUN Postseason awards, trying a program record.

Scouting Report | Liberty | Stats | Schedule | Roster

• Liberty is 37-12 and 19-2 in ASUN play.
• The Flames have defeated three ACC teams in North Carolina, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.
• Liberty is the top seed in the ASUN North Division.
• The ASUN North Division champs won in convincing fashion during the divisional round, sweeping Bellarmine with scores of 5-2 and 12-6.
• The Flames headlined the superlative ASUN Postseason Awards. Head coach Scott Jackson was named ASUN Coach of the Year, Trevor Delaite was ASUN Pitcher of the Year, Cam Locklear was ASUN Defensive Player of the Year and Trey Gibson was the ASUN Freshman of the Year.
• The Flames pace the league in doubles, triples, total bases, slugging percentage, ERA and batting average against.

Scouting Report | Jacksonville | Stats | Schedule | Roster

• Jacksonville comes in as the fourth and final seed in the ASUN South Division.
• The Dolphins shocked ASUN South Division top seed FGCU by taking two of three in Fort Myers.
• JU exploded for 17 runs in the deciding third game Sunday afternoon.
• Jacksonville is 13-32 and 3-15 in ASUN during the regular season.
• Jackson Grabsky and Jesus Pacheco were named to the ASUN All-Freshmen Team.
• As a team the Dolphins are hitting .261 with 19 home runs while allowing 48 long balls and a .277 batting average.
• Tyler Santana has accrued the majority of the innings for JU this year, spinning 83.1 frames while fanning 86.
• UNF is 6-1 against the Dolphins this season.