KENNESAW, Ga. (Interstat) — Jackson Chirello launched two home runs and drove in four, including the tying run in a five-run eighth inning, as Kennesaw State rallied to defeat Samford 9-8 on Saturday in the first game of a doubleheader at Fred Stillwell Stadium.

The Owls, who won the series opener on Friday, erased an 8-4 deficit in their final two at-bats to improve to 7-6 overall. Samford fell to 5-9.

The game’s decisive turn came in the bottom of the eighth. Trailing by four, Kennesaw State’s Avery Wilson led off with a solo home run to right-center field. Trenton Lyons followed with a single, setting the stage for Chirello. The first baseman, who had a two-run homer in the first inning, doubled to left-center to score Lyons and cut the deficit to 8-7.

After Grayson McCollum singled to move Chirello to third, Wesley Alig delivered a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Chirello to tie the game. The Owls completed the comeback later in the inning, taking the lead on a Samford error and a wild pitch.

Samford’s bullpen could not hold the lead secured by its offense, which produced 13 hits. The Bulldogs built their advantage with a two-run second inning, a two-run fourth on Jackson Harris’s single, and single runs in the fifth and seventh. They added two critical insurance runs in the top of the eighth on an RBI double by Cade Carr and a run-scoring double by Trey Higgins, making it 8-4.

Kennesaw State’s pitching, however, stifled Samford late. Reliever Jayden Summerville entered with the bases loaded in the fifth and induced an inning-ending groundout. He then worked 2 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out four. Nate Helman and Daniel Powell also provided key scoreless relief outings, with Powell pitching a perfect ninth inning for the save.

Chirello was the catalyst, going 3 for 4. His first-inning blast after a walk to Cooper Williams immediately answered Samford’s early scoring and set the tone for the back-and-forth contest. His solo shot in the fourth and the crucial double in the eighth capped his standout day.

Samford starter Joseph Lee pitched four innings, allowing four earned runs on four hits, all of which were solo home runs. He struck out four. Austin Tommasini provided two scoreless innings of relief before the Owls’ rally began against the Bulldogs’ bullpen.

The victory defied the pregame projection from Interstat, which gave Kennesaw State a 51.3% chance to win and predicted a 5-4 final score.

The teams were scheduled to conclude the three-game series with the second game of the doubleheader later Saturday.