JACKSONVILLE, Fla. —
Cody Kuzniczci went 3-for-4 from the plate and collected two doubles for the Northern Kentucky University baseball team, but the Norse dropped a 7-4 decision to the University of North Florida in Atlantic Sun Conference action at Harmon Stadium on Friday evening.
Kuzniczci was one of two NKU players to record a multi-hit night as
David Head finished 2-for-4. Head scored twice for the Norse, who recorded 10 hits and left eight runners stranded in the second game of the conference series.
NKU (9-17 overall, 0-2 Atlantic Sun) took a 2-0 lead after the first inning.
Logan Spurlin's two-out single to center field sparked the scoring. He moved to second on a single by Head, and he went to third on a fielding error by right fielder Donnie Dewees. Kuzniczci delivered a double down the left-field line, and Spurlin and Head came home for the early Norse lead.
North Florida (22-11 overall, 3-2 Atlantic Sun) answered in the second. Corbin Olmstead recorded a one-out single, and Patrick Ervin followed with a single through the left side. Olmsted and Ervin moved forward a base on a wild pitch. Garrick Ferguson then sent a 1-0 blast over the left-field wall to push the Ospreys ahead, 3-2.
A lead-off home run from Trent Higginbothem in the third extended the North Florida lead to 4-2, but the Norse chipped away at their deficit in the following frame. Head recorded his second hit of the contest and was followed by Kuzniczci's second double down the left-field line. A sacrifice fly by
Anthony Vagnier brought Head home to pull NKU to within one (4-3).
The North Florida offense stretched its lead back to two at 5-3 in the bottom of the frame as Olmstead, who hit a one-out single, scored on a Ferguson hit through the left side.
Cole Bauml cut the Norse deficit to one again at 5-4 with his team-leading sixth home run of the year, but the Ospreys added one run in both the seventh and eighth innings for the final margin of the game.
Justin Watts (1-2) took the loss on the mound for NKU, allowing four runs on five hits in three innings of work.
Cody Cooper pitched five innings of relief and gave up three runs, just one earned, on seven hits. He struck out one batter and walked one.
Ervin went 3-for-3 with a triple to lead North Florida, who collected 12 hits and stranded eight base runners, and he scored once. Ferguson finished 2-for-4 from the plate with a home run, four RBIs and two runs, while Dewees and Olmstead recorded two-hit nights as well.
Matthew Naylor (4-0) earned the victory for the Ospreys after pitching 3.1 innings of scoreless relief with one strikeout. Starter Tyler DuPont surrendered four runs, three earned, on six hits with four strikeouts in 4.1 innings of work.
NKU and North Florida conclude the three-game series on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. Links to live stats and John Asalon's audio broadcast are available at NKUNorse.com. Fans can also track the game's progress by following @NKUNorseGameDay on Twitter.
