HARRISONBURG, Va. (JMU Athletics) – The pitching staff of James Madison baseball combined to strike out 17 Canisius hitters and allow only four hits, giving the Dukes a 5-2 series-opening win on Friday afternoon at Veterans Memorial Park.

The Dukes moved to 2-3 while the Golden Griffins begin their season 0-1.

All eight hits for JMU came from a different batter for the offense contribution. Sophomore Jackson Logar went five innings to earn his first career win, striking out nine while scattering three hits with three walks.

How It Happened
Third Inning
A double into the left-center gap with the bases loaded plated two runs for Canisius for the first runs of the game and a 2-0 lead.

The Dukes responded quickly, as senior Ryan Dooley drew a walk and scored all the way from first on a double off the bat of sophomore Ike Schmidly. Schmidly was thrown out at third trying to stretch the hit into a triple, but Dooley crossed home plate before the out to make it 2-1.

Fourth Inning
JMU took the lead with a pair of runs, beginning with sophomore Kyle Langley leading off with a single before advancing to third on a double from senior Coleman Calabrese right after. A wild pitch on a dropped third strike allowed Langley to score and tie the game at two, setting up freshman Reece Moody to knock in Calabrese for a 3-2 lead on an infield single into the hole at shortstop.

Sixth Inning
Pinch hitting to lead off the inning, junior Jack Guerrero drew a walk, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt, advanced to third on a wild pitch and then scored on a grounder from classmate Jack Cannizzaro to make it 4-2. Dooley then added a second run in the inning on a double into the left field corner for a 5-2 lead.

Game Notes
• The nine strikeouts from Jackson Logar are the most strikeouts by a Duke since Donovan Burke tossed nine against Old Dominion in the Sun Belt tournament last season.
• Jackson Logar’s nine strikeouts are the most by a Duke at Veterans Memorial Park since Donovan Burke struck out 10 Texas State batters on March 24 last year.
• The 17 combined strikeouts from JMU are a season-high and the most in a game for the Dukes since striking out 20 against Towson on May 2, 2019.
• Griffin Madden tossed three innings and struck out six batters, setting career highs for both.

Up Next
The Dukes and Griffs will meet in the middle game of the series tomorrow, Feb. 22 at Veterans Memorial Park for a 2 p.m. first pitch.

— JMU Athletics —