By Nick Gray | @KYKernelGray

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Dominant starting pitching by junior left-handed pitcher Corey Littrell and two big offensive innings led UK baseball (10-1) to a three-game sweep and a 9-2 victory over Akron (0-9) Sunday in Cliff Hagan Stadium.

Littrell pitched seven innings, allowing five hits and a run while striking out eight, a career high, and no walks.

At one point in innings two through four, Littrell struck out seven Zips hitters in a row. Overall, Littrell retired the first 11 Akron batters.

“I thought Corey was a lot better today. I am really glad to see him make some adjustments,” UK head coach Gary Henderson said. “Obviously the ball was down. He had command of all four pitches. He worked ahead in the count. He had very good secondary command. Just a much more efficient and poised outing and he’ll just keep getting better.”

Offensively, the Cats exploded for five runs in the second inning, punctuated by a three-run home run by sophomore centerfielder Austin Cousino to push UK’s lead to 5-0. The home run was Cousino’s second of the season.

The Cats added four more runs in the fourth inning, starting with a bases-clearing double by sophomore designated hitter A.J. Reed that one-hopped off the centerfield wall.

UK would add another run on an error after a strikeout of junior infielder Paul McConkey by Akron catcher Austin Mooney. Reed would score on the error.

Junior catcher Micheal Thomas was 3-for-3 Sunday and scored two runs and a run batted in. Senior outfielder Zac Zellers hit 3-for-4 and also scored two runs.

A career-best effort by senior left-handed pitcher Jerad Grundy lead the Cats to a 7-0 win over Akron Saturday in the second game.

Grundy went a career-high eight innings, allowing two hits and striking out 12, also a career high. Grundy faced two batters over the minimum in his 86-pitch effort.

“I thought (Grundy) was on top of it the entire day and I’m really glad to see him to continue to improve,” Henderson said.

Reed started the offensive output with a solo home run to right field to give UK a 1-0 lead. It was Reed’s fourth home run of the season and second in as many games.

The Cats would plate three runs in both the fifth and the sixth innings. UK was aided in the fifth inning by a two-out error by Akron sophomore third baseman Matt LaRocca off the bat of Zellers, which scored freshman catcher Greg Fettes. Zellers would also score in the inning on a single by junior infielder J.T. Riddle, who extended his hitting streak to 13 games.

Reed hit 3-for-4 with three runs batted in and a run scored along with his home run.

UK used an 11-run second inning to ignite a 21–2 victory against Akron on Friday, in the first game of the series.

The Cats plated 16 runs overall in the first two innings, sparked by a two-run triple by McConkey in the first and a three-run home run by designated hitter and starting pitcher Reed.

Reed (2-1) lasted six innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits with two walks and four strikeouts. Reed also went 4-for-5 (tying a career high in hits) with four RBIs and two runs scored.

“It was good to get some runs early. It was good to see A.J. pitch better than he has in the last two outings,” Henderson said. “It was really nice to see some of our guys get on track offensively and I was glad to get Jeff Boehm and Tyler Cox a couple innings.”

McConkey went 2-for-4, collecting four RBIs and scoring twice. Cousino went 3-for-3, scoring four runs. UK was aided by nine walks taken against Akron pitching.

The Cats now have a seven-game winning streak and have won their first five games at home.

UK baseball plays two weekday games this week, beginning Tuesday against Cincinnati (4-5) at 4 p.m. in Cliff Hagan Stadium. The Cats will then face Xavier (3-6) Wednesday at 4 p.m. as a part of the initial 11-game home stand for UK.