Farone, Koger one-hit Flyers

For the second day in a row, Edward Yamin belted a two-run home run into the berm in the top of the first inning to give Dayton (3-10) an early 2-0 lead. Yamin drew a warning from the umpires after his bat-flip was deemed to be excessive, but also warranted.

The Flyers didn’t have much to flip about the rest of the afternoon as that would be their last hit on Saturday.

Greg Farone made his second career start for the Cards but was forced to exit after 4.2 innings due to cramping. Farone allowed 2 runs on one hit, while striking out 5 batters along the way. He struggled finding the zone at times, walking 5 batters.

Although Louisville was ahead when he exited the game, since he did not complete 5 innings, Farone does not get credited for the win.

Will Koger (W, 2-0) continues to show progress from his freshman season, throwing the final 4.1 innings. He struck out 4 batters and did not allow a single hit. Like Farone, Koger was a little wild at times, walking 3 batters himself.

After a freshman campaign where Koger posted a 12.27 ERA, he turned in a successful summer in the Cape Cod League which has translated to his sophomore season, seeing his ERA has drop to 2.31 after 5 appearances. You can never have enough reliable arms in the bullpen and thus far, Koger has shown enormous strides.

JT Benson (1-3, HR, 4 RBI, R), a local product from South Oldham HS, was the star at the plate, tattooing a grand slam in the bottom of the third inning to give the Cards a 5-2 lead. Due to the Yamin bat flips, Benson gave a long stare into the Dayton dugout after stepping on home plate. You love to see it.

Logan Beard (1-4, HR, RBI), from North Oldham HS, wanted some Mustang representation on the afternoon as well, joining the home run parade in the 4th inning off the batter’s eye.

For those keeping track at home, three starters (Logan Beard, JT Benson, and Patrick Forbes), plus Will Koger, all played high school baseball in Kentucky. The state is producing more top tier talent than it ever has and if you look at the future classes, it’s not slowing down. Great place to be in for Coach McDonnell and Co. and they set their eyes on win No. 800.

Louisville will go for the sweep against the Flyers tomorrow, first pitched is slated for 1:00 PM. Carson Liggett (3-0, 1.53 ERA) will face-off against Eli Majick (1-1, 10.57 ERA). The game will be televised on ACC Network Extra and 93.9 The Ville/970AM.