JACKSONVILLE, Ala. (Interstat) — Kennesaw State used a balanced pitching effort to defeat Jacksonville State 5-2 on Friday night at Rudy Abbott Field in a Conference USA matchup. The Owls improved to 24-22 while the Gamecocks fell to 38-11.

Nolan Sliver started for Kennesaw State, allowing two runs over 5 1/3 innings despite not yielding a hit. Daniel Powell and Ty Bayer combined for 3 1/3 scoreless frames with four strikeouts. Eli Pillsbury struck out 12 over 7 1/3 innings for Jacksonville State but took the loss.

Kennesaw State capitalized on defensive miscues. In the fifth inning, a dropped fly ball resulted in two unearned runs. The Owls added three more unearned runs in the ninth. Trey King tripled and scored for Jacksonville State in the sixth, but the Gamecocks could not muster additional offense. Chris Cole had an RBI single for the Owls.

The teams play again Saturday and Sunday.