The Owls are entering the 2020 campaign with something to prove. Five seasons removed from their only appearance in the NCAA Division I Tournament and three seasons removed from being conference champions, Kennesaw State is eager to remind the southeast about its baseball program. Fortunately for fans and players, there is a lot to look forward to next season.
Big Bats
Two of the Owls biggest bats are entering their senior year season in 2020. Infielder Justin Russell, who led the team last year in both home-runs (12) and OPS (.983), is back and hoping for his best year yet. The Kell alumni also boasted a team-best slugging percentage, providing a big power component to the lineup. Meanwhile, outfielder Terence Norman led the 2019 team in batting average, hits, and on-base percentage. Norman has had a fantastic career at KSU, tallying 165 hits across his three seasons with the club. With the help of these two and a host of others, the Owls hope to maintain last years conference-best offense to propel the team to victory.
A Pitching Change
It is longstanding wisdom in baseball that pitching wins championships. While the Owls 2019 offense was the best in-conference, the pitching staff left something to be desired. The team had a collective 4.90 ERA, good enough for third worst in the Atlantic Sun Conference. In agreement with the old wisdom, the three worst team ERA’s in 2019 belonged to the three teams at the bottom of the conference. However, it would seem the Owls have made a move to correct this with the hiring of new pitching coach Travis McClanahan.
McClanahan comes to KSU with a truckload of baseball experience. He was the head coach of the Gordon State College Highlanders for 18 years and is coming off a particularly impressive 50-win campaign in 2019. He has received numerous accolades including being named the Georgia Dugout Club Coach of the Year on two occasions.
“We are tremendously excited to add Coach McClanahan to our staff,” said Owls head coach Mike Sansing.
McClanahan might just bring the needed change of scenery and enthusiasm the KSU pitching staff needs in 2020 and it is certainly going to be interesting to watch as the season unfolds.
Mike. Sansing.
The Owls are currently in the midst of a three-year-long losing season streak. This is the longest such streak since the Owls made the switch to Division I play in 2006. Before this streak, the Owls had not even had back-to-back losing seasons in the Division I era. That impressive statistic can be traced back to the excellent coaching of Mike Sansing, who boasts an overall record at KSU of 967 – 551 after more than 25 years. That comes out to a winning percentage of .637, an impressive feat that surely means one thing for the Owls in 2020: they are due for a winning season.
If history can tell us anything about Mike Sansing’s Owls, it’s that they can’t be put down for long. Under his watch, the Owls have only had five losing seasons in the 14 years they have played in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Georgia Dugout Club hall-of-famer clearly has a knack for winning, and with his leadership, a threatening offense, and a new-look pitching staff, fans of the Owls should absolutely be looking forward to a bounce-back season.
Big Crowds Ahead
The Owls are primed to have one of their best attended seasons yet, simply as a result of a record enrollment at Kennesaw State University. The fall semester saw almost 38,000 students and the largest freshman class in school history, firmly cementing KSU as the third-largest university in the state. If the Owls football program (which regularly drew 6,000 fans each game) is any indication, Stillwell Stadium should be rocking all season long. Its capacity sits at 1,200 spectators, and highly anticipated match-ups against opponents like UGA, Georgia Tech, and more should draw healthy crowds. Season tickets for the Owls in 2020 are available at a modest $39, a price-point that should entice fans to come out and provide the lively atmosphere the Owls will surely need in their efforts to make this season the best one yet.
Kennesaw State Baseball 