David Starn, Baseball
Senior baseball left-handed pitcher David Starn (Hudson, Ohio) has been named the Kent State Student-Athlete of the Week.
The Kent State baseball team rode the arm of the southpaw ace Starn to blank No. 9 Georgia Tech to lift the lid off of the 2012 season in grand fashion in the opening game of the Rock Hill Coca-Cola Classic last Friday (Feb. 17) at the Winthrop Ballpark.
A 2012 Louisville Slugger Third Team Pre-Season All-America selection, Starn twirled eight shutout innings and tallied nine strikeouts while scattering just four hits and walking only two on 104 pitches. He upped his career strikeout total to 229, passing current Los Angeles Dodgers right-handed reliever Matt Guerrier (220; 1997-99) for sole possession of third place in school history and improved to 19-9 in his collegiate career with the win. The co-captain tossed his fourth career shutout and second in three starts and struck out six or more batters for the 18th time.
The Golden Flashes (1-0) earned their second victory over a top-10 team in their last four games dating back to last season courtesy of the triumph over Georgia Tech (0-1). Kent State downed then-No. 5 Texas, 7-5, in the second game of the 2011 NCAA Championship Austin Regional last June. The victory also marked the second time Kent State downed GT in as many seasons. The Flashes posted a 6-1 win over the then No. 19-Yellow Jackets on Feb. 20, 2011, at Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta. Starn was on the hill for last year's win at Georgia Tech as well, tossing seven innings of four-hit ball and fanning six en route to earning the mound triumph.
The Golden Flashes (2-1) split a pair of games on the final day of the Classic Saturday (Feb. 18), falling to No. 9 Georgia Tech, 6-2, but bouncing back to route host Winthrop, 11-3. Kent State is back on the diamond next weekend (Feb. 24-26), traveling to Nashville, Tenn., to battle Lipscomb.
2011-12 KENT STATE STUDENT-ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Week 26 - David Starn, Baseball
Week 25 - Justin Greene, Men's Basketball
Week 23 - Marie Case, Gymnastics
Week 22 - Princeton Bryson, Men's Track & Field
Week 21 - Ian Miller, Wrestling
Week 20 - Diamon Beckford, Women's Basketball
Week 19 - Randal Holt, Men's Basketball
Week 18 - Nic Bedelyon & Brandon Barlow, Wrestling
Week 17 - Casey Newburg, Wrestling
Week 16 - Mallie Shuster, Wrestling
Week 15 - Randal Holt, Men's Basketball
Week 14 - Nic Bedelyon, Wrestling
Week 13 - Michael Porrini, Men's Basketball
Week 12 - Football and Volleyball Teams
Week 11 - Spencer Keith, Football
Week 10 - Carla Johl, Field Hockey
Week 9 - Kelly Sherwood, Soccer
Week 8 - Corey Conners, Men's Golf
Week 7 - Vanessa Salerno, Soccer
Week 6 - Rebecca Lee, Field Hockey
Week 5 - Luke Wollet, Football
Week 4 - Michael Heller, Men's Cross Country
Week 3 - Stephanie Haugh, Soccer
