Clemson, S.C. ? Freshman Preston Land’s solo home run in the top of the eighth inning helped the No. 25 Kansas University baseball team knock off No. 2 Clemson, 6-5, before a crowd of 5,261 on Saturday at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.
Land’s blast broke a 5-5 tie and made a winner out of senior reliever Don Czyz (2-0), who tossed 21â3 scoreless innings of relief.
Fellow senior Ricky Fairchild overcame a rough start to keep the Jayhawks (15-5) in the game. The right-hander allowed four unearned runs in the first inning, then settled in before allowing a solo homer by Ben Hall in the the seventh.
KU rallied to take a 5-4 lead, fueled by Erik Morrison’s two-run double in the seventh.
After Hall’s homer knotted the score for the Tigers (9-3), Land answered in the next frame with what proved to be the game-winning drive.
The finale of the three-game series is at noon today.
