Darnell tosses complete-game shutout in UK victory

Junior pitcher Logan Darnell threw a complete-game shutout to lead the Cats (8-1) to a 6-0 victory against San Diego.

Darnell, making his third career start, was a model of efficiency.  He needed only 90 pitches — and 70 of those were strikes — to work through all nine innings.  He struck out three and allowed no walks.

“Well, he was tremendous,” UK head coach Gary Henderson said. “When you throw 70 strikes in 90 pitches that is getting it done at a high level. No question about that. Not only did he throw a whole lot of strikes, but he did it with three pitches. It is pretty rare that you see a complete-game, 90-pitch effort in college baseball.”

UK’s defense backed up Darnell with four double plays, three of which ended the inning.

Henderson said Darnell showed up in “a big way,” especially considering the performance came a day after the Cats’ first loss of the season.

The complete-game shutout for UK was the first since James Paxton tossed a complete-game shutout against Ole Miss in Lexington, Ky., in 2008, coming on the final weekend of the regular season.

UK used a two-out, five-run rally in the third inning to stake their claim to the lead.