Friday’s Baseball Results
Central Michigan 6, Northern Illinois 4
Central Michigan 5, Northern Illinois 2
Miami 7, Eastern Michigan 6
Bowling Green 7, Ohio 1
Ball State 9, Kent State 8 (13 inn.)
Western Michigan 6, Toledo 3
Stories courtesy of MAC Sports Information Departments
Central Michigan 6, Northern Illinois 4 -- Boxscore
Central Michigan 5, Northern Illinois 2 – Boxscore
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – A balanced attack led Central Michigan to a Mid-American Conference baseball doubleheader sweep of Northern Illinois on Friday at Keilitz Field at Theunissen Stadium.
The Chippewas collected 14 hits in posting a 6-4 victory in game one, and then sophomore Cameron Brown held the Huskies to two hits over seven innings in a 5-2 victory in the nightcap as the Chippewas improved to 18-7 overall, 4-1 MAC.
"In game one we came out and started swinging the bats well," CMU coach Jordan Bischel said. "We hit a lot of balls hard. Game two was all about the pitching. Two great pitching performances from (Brown) and by Jordan (Patty) at the end.
"It's never easy to win two games in one day. Northern Illinois was playing really well coming in. We're glad to walk out of here with two (wins)."
The Chippewas and Huskies (7-18, 3-2) are scheduled to play the finale of their series on Saturday at 3 p.m.
GAME 1
Zavier Warren scored on a Zach Gilles sacrifice bunt in the seventh inning to break a 4-4 tie and put the Chippewas in front for good in the opener.
Chase Rollin and Zavier Warren had three hits apiece to lead the Chippewas, while Gilles and Jason Sullivan added two hits each.
Cameron Miller (1-2) went the final 2 2/3 innings for the victory. He allowed one hit and struck out one. CMU starter Pat Leatherman allowed one earned run on four hits, while striking out four and walking three. Grant Frazer went 1 1/3 innings in relief of Leatherman before giving way to Miller.
GAME 2
Jason Sullivan raced home on a David Cole bunt in the fourth inning, breaking a 2-2 tie and putting the Chippewas ahead for good. CMU added another run in the inning when Chase Rollin scored on a double steal, upping CMU's lead to 4-2.
Rollin and Griffin Lockwood-Powell finished with two hits apiece for CMU.
Cameron Brown improved to 5-0 and Jordan Patty picked up his second save. Brown went seven innings, striking out four and walking four. Patty struck out three
"(Brown) throws a ton of strikes and attacks hitters," Bischel said. "(Brown), at some point in most outings, tends to hit a little bit of a wall. He did again today, but he competed and fought threw it. For him to give us seven innings is awfully impressive."
Miami 7, Eastern Michigan 6
Boxscore
OXFORD, Ohio – After a back-and-forth game featuring several lead changes, a walk-off single by junior third baseman Landon Stephens gave the Miami University baseball team a 7-6 victory in the opening game of its series with Eastern Michigan. The RedHawks improve to 19-5 overall and 3-1 in the Mid-American Conference. The Eagles fall to 5-20-1 overall and 0-4 in the MAC.
Despite getting several baserunners, Miami was unable to get one across early. Eastern Michigan took advantage with two triples and a single to score two runs in the top of the third to give it a 2-0 advantage.
Miami got one back in the bottom of the fourth when freshman designated hitter Cole Andrews hit a line shot over the left field wall for his third home run of the year. It was a solo shot that cut the deficit to 2-1.
Freshman pitcher Sam Bachman made sure it stayed that way for the next several innings. He ended up pitching the first five of the game, allowing two runs on six hits, while striking out six.
In the bottom of the sixth, redshirt junior left fielder Kyle Winkler led off with a ground rule double that hopped the centerfield wall. After Landon Stephens drew a walk, a sacrifice bunt by junior shortstop Will Vogelgesang moved them each up a base. That allowed Andrews to hit one out to left field, just deep enough for Winkler to come home on the sac fly and tie the score.
The Eagles grabbed the lead right back in the top of the seventh by manufacturing a run off of three hits. In the bottom of the frame, redshirt junior second baseman Jordan Stephens led off with a single through the right side. Junior catcher Cal Elvers then hit one over the right field wall for his second home run of the season to give Miami its first lead of the game at 4-3. Later in the inning, Landon Stephens would single home sophomore centerfielder Cristian Tejada to make it 5-3.
EMU did not give up as it led off the inning with a double down the left field line. Another couple hits, plus a RedHawk error would allow three runs to come home and give the Eagles the advantage back at 6-5.
In the bottom of the eighth, junior first baseman Charlie Harrigan led off with a walk. Jordan Stephens then followed with a double to left center. Harrigan hustled all the way from first base and slid in under the tag to tie the score at six.
In the top of the ninth, senior pitcher Andy Almquist retired the Eagles in order to give Miami a chance to win the game in the bottom of the frame. Tejada and Winkler were each hit by pitches to put runners on first and second with no outs. Landon Stephens then singled to left center to score Tejada and give the RedHawks a 7-6, walk-off win.
Landon Stephens finished the game 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Tejada was 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Winkler and Jordan Stephens also had two hits for the RedHawks. Almquist earned the victory after his perfect ninth on the mound.
Miami's series with Eastern Michigan continues on Saturday. Due to the threat of inclement weather, the start time for the game has been pushed up to 1 p.m.
Bowling Green 7, Ohio 1
Boxscore
ATHENS, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University baseball team moved to 4-0 in Mid-American Conference play with a 7-3 victory over Ohio University on Friday (March 29) evening. The ballgame was played at OU's Bob Wren Stadium. The Orange and Brown posted 13 hits in the winning effort.
Bowling Green starter, sophomore Andrew Abrahamowicz, picked up his second-career win on the night. The righty tossed 6.0 innings of one-run ball, and the only run he surrendered in the contest was unearned. Abrahamowicz struck out three and did not issue a walk. Fellow sophomore Jeremy Spezia secured the win by hurling 1.1 hitless innings.
The Falcons set the tone early, as RBI singles from Adam Furnas and Neil Lambert gave Bowling Green a 2-0 lead in the third inning. The Bobcats would get on the board in the bottom half, but Bowling Green proceeded to break the game open with a four-run fifth.
Ryan Johnston was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, and then Dylan Dohanos cleared the bases with a three-RBI double. Dohanos' extra-base hit pushed BGSU's lead up to 6-1. Brad Croy notched an RBI single in the sixth, prior to Ohio concluding the game's scoring with single runs in the seventh and eighth.
The top four in Bowling Green's batting order – Mike Malewitz (2-for-5), Jake Wilson (2-for-5), Adam Furnas (3-for-5), and Croy (3-for-5) – each recorded multiple hits.
Ball State 9, Kent State 8
Boxscore
MUNCIE, Ind. –The Kent State University baseball team fell to the Ball State Cardinals 9-8 in a 13-inning show down to kick off the three-game series at First Merchants Ballpark Friday afternoon. Home runs by senior Kian O'Brien and redshirt sophomore Alex Ronnebaum in the top of the ninth inning lifted the Flashes' from 5-2 deficit and forced Kent State's second straight extra-inning ballgame.
The Flashes fell behind early, as the Cardinals notched a home run to left field in the bottom of the first inning. Ball State went on to add four runs through the next two innings to take a 5-0 lead.
Kent State put up its first run of the day in the top of the fifth inning. Senior Josh Hollander led off the frame, legging out a triple to deep left-center field. Ronnebaum scored Hollander a pitch later with a ground ball to first base, bringing the score to 5-1.
Just when it looked like the Cardinals would walk away with the victory – Ball State's starter had stymied the Kent State offense, allowing just two hits while striking out 13 heading into the inning– the Flashes managed to score six runs in the top of the ninth inning to come back and take a 7-5 lead.
Senior Pete Schuler led off the frame with a single to right field. Carew reached base while Pavin advanced to third in the next at-bat, capitalized on a fielding error and advanced to third. Schuler finally scored on a single off the bat of senior Pavin Parks, bringing the score to 5-2, Cardinals.
O'Bried tied the game with one swing of the bat, clobbering a three-run home run over the wall in left field. Next in order, Hollander reached base on a hit by pitch and Ronnebaum launched the second home run of the inning, a two-run shot over the wall in right field, giving the Flashes their first lead of the day, 5-7.
The Cardinals managed to fight back and tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, sending the game into extra innings.
The score remained until the top of the 12th inning, when the Kent State took the lead for the second time. Touchette doubled to lead off the strike, and eventually scored when freshman Justin Kirby legged out a bunt-single and forced a throwing error by the Ball State defense.
The Cardinals once again managed to erase the Kent State lead in the bottom of the frame, and eventually pushed across the winning run in the bottom of the 13th inning.
Senior Connor Wollersheim made his sixth start of the season, tossing a season-high 7.1 innings with six strikeouts. Sophomore Jack Zimmerman made his ninth appearance out of the bullpen with an inning of work, and redshirt senior Chris Martin added 2.1 innings. Junior Zach Shultz (1-2) finished the day with 2.0 innings, suffering the loss.
The Kent State offense tallied nine hits on the day, seven of which came in the final five innings. O'Brien went 2-for-5 at the plate with three RBIs while Hollander scored two times for the Flashes.
The Flashes and Cardinals will continue the series at First Merchants Ballpark at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 30.
Western Michigan 6, Toledo 3
Boxscore
TOLEDO, Ohio -- A big second inning led the Western Michigan baseball team to its first Mid-American Conference win of the season, 6-3, at Toledo on Friday afternoon.
The Broncos (7-17, 1-3 MAC) also snapped a seven-game losing streak with the victory. Sophomore Sean O'Keefe led the Broncos with four RBIs, going 2-for-3 with a home run. Senior Cooper Marshall scored two runs and knocked in one, while Drew Devine went 3-for-3 with a RBI and a run scored. Senior Chris Modrzynski pitched six innings, striking out five and allowing just two earned runs to improve to 3-1 on the season. Dane Ambrustmacher came in and pitched three no-hit innings in relief with two strikeouts to earn the save.
Western Michigan did most of its damage in the second inning. Nate Grys opened the second with a double to left field and advanced to third on a single by Logan Hudson. Marshall singled to right field to score Grys. With two on and one out O'Keefe homered to right field to score Marshall and Hudson, giving the Broncos a 4-0 lead.
The Rockets got one back in the third inning on a RBI single by Chris Meyers and another in the sixth inning on a two-run homerun by Michael Ryan to cut the lead to 4-3.
From there Ambrustmacher shut down Toledo and the Broncos added two more runs in the ninth inning on a double by Devine and a single by O'Keefe.
The Broncos and the Rockets battle again on Saturday at 1 p.m.
