Friday’s Baseball Results
Ball State 3, Eastern Michigan 2
Miami 12, Bowling Green 4
Ohio 16, Toledo 5
Western Michigan 9, Northern Illinois 4
Kent State 10, Central Michigan 4
Stories courtesy of MAC Sports Information Departments
Ball State 3, Eastern Michigan 2
Boxscore
MUNCIE - Ball State got the pitching performances it needed and John Ricotta did the rest as BSU beat Eastern Michigan 3-2 on Friday. Ricotta drove in all 3 runs in the win, which pushed the Cardinals closer to the top of the standings.
Drey Jameson started and got the win for BSU, staying a step ahead of the battling EMU ace Scott Granzotto. Jameson struck out 8 over 7.0 innings, allowing just 1 run and 1 walk. He allowed a double and a handful of soft singles as the wind roared straight out to center all day in Muncie. Granzotto answered with a quality start of his own, allowing 2 runs over 6 innings. But Ricotta gave the Cardinals an early lead they wouldn't relinquish.
Ball State's first 3 batters in the bottom of the 1st each walked, setting the stage for Ricotta to rock a 1-0 pitch to left-center for a 2-run double. The lead was 2-1 in the 7th when Ricotta homered for the team-leading 5th time this year, a solo shot that put the Cardinals ahead 3-1.
EMU (7-26-1, 2-8 MAC) scored in the top of the 9th to make it 3-2 and it had runners in scoring position but Kyle Nicolas shut the door with a strikeout and popout. Nicolas relieved Jameson for the last 6 outs, notching his 6th save of the year.
Eastern Michigan actually outhit Ball State 10-6, with 4 players having a mult-hit game. But few balls were hit hard and Jameson and Nicolas rose to the occasion each time the Eagles threatened.
Ball State and Eastern Michigan will play a noon doubleheader Saturday, April 13. There will be no baseball Sunday due to impending rain in the forecast. John Baker and Chayce McDermott are scheduled to take the ball Saturday.
Miami 12, Bowling Green 4
Boxscore
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Miami University baseball team broke open a tight game with eight runs in the final three innings as it took down Bowling Green, 12-4, to open a three-game series on Friday. The RedHawks improve to 27-6 overall and 8-2 in the Mid-American Conference. The Falcons fall to 12-17 overall and 5-5 in the MAC.
Miami got on the board first with single runs in each of the first two innings. In the top of the first, junior third baseman Landon Stephens slid into second before the tag of the base on a grounder by redshirt junior left fielder Kyle Winkler. That allowed sophomore center fielder Cristian Tejada to score. Sophomore right fielder Parker Massman added one more in the top of the second with his third home run of the season.
With two outs in the top of the fourth, Tejada doubled to left field. A single from junior shortstop Will Vogelgesang brought him home. Landon Stephens followed with a single of his own to score Vogelgesang and make it 4-0.
The Falcons got one back off of freshman starting pitcher Sam Bachman in the bottom of the fourth to make it 4-1. It stayed that way until the bottom of the sixth, when BGSU recorded four hits and the 'Hawks committed an error allowing Bowling Green to tie the score at four.
In the top of the seventh, Miami went right back in front. Winkler led off with a triple to center field. Freshman designated hitter Cole Andrews grounded out, allowing him to score. One batter later, junior catcher Cal Elvers hit his third home run of the season, a solo shot that made it 6-4.
In the top of the eighth, the RedHawks made it 7-4 when a sac fly from Winkler scored Vogelgesang.
Miami put the contest out of reach with five runs in the top of the ninth. With the bases loaded and no one out, Landon Stephens drew a walk to force home Massman. A single through the left side by redshirt junior second baseman Jordan Stephens scored Tejada and Vogelgesang to bring the score to 10-4. Andrews' sac fly brought home Landon Stephens, while a single to left field by Elvers scored Jordan Stephens and capped the rally.
While the RedHawks were breaking things open in final three innings, senior pitcher Shane Smith shut the Falcons down. After coming in and getting the final two outs in the bottom of the sixth to prevent BGSU from taking the lead, he would keep it off the board the rest of the way. Smith allowed zero runs on four hits and struck out six in 3.2 innings pitched to earn the victory.
Tejada finished the game 4-for-5 with three runs scored. Landon Stephens was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and one run scored, while Winkler was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and one run scored. Jordan Stephens and Elvers each also had two RBIs for the RedHawks.
Due to expected inclement weather on Sunday, Miami will now conclude the series with Bowling Green with a doubleheader on Saturday. Game one will begin at 12:05 p.m., with the nightcap following 30 minutes after the conclusion of first game's conclusion.
Ohio 16, Toledo 5
Boxscore
ATHENS, Ohio – Behind 8.0 strong innings from sophomore Edward Kutt IV and a hot offense, the Ohio Baseball team (9-22, 4-6 MAC) took down Toledo (10-22, 1-7 MAC), 16-5, on Friday evening at Bob Wren Stadium.
Kutt IV (Westlake, Calif.) pitched 8.0 innings without allowing earned run. Kutt IV fanned six batters, two behind his season high and allowed just five runners to reach base, with four coming on hits and one walk.
Redshirt junior Nathan Mallott (Omaha, Neb.) had a breakout performance, going 2-for-3 with a season-high five RBI. Mallott ripped two doubles and reached base three times. Mallott scored two runs.
Sophomore INF Aaron Levy (Cincinnati, Ohio) hit a grand slam and ended up 1-for-4 with four RBI and one run scored.
Rott hit his seventh home run of the season in the third inning and finished the day 2-for-4 with two RBI, a double and home run.
Toledo scored first right of the gate when Trevor Hatfield singled through the right side to score Brad Boss.
Ohio took the lead in the third inning and did not look back. Senior INF Rudy Rott (Holmen, Wis.) tied the game with a homerun to right field. The Bobcats loaded the bases after a redshirt sophomore INF Michael Richardson (Cambridge, Md.) bunt single, redshirt freshman INF Cole Revels (Charlotte, N.C.) walk and sophomore INF Treyben Funderburg (Beavercreek, Ohio) infield single. Junior INF Trevor Hafner (Perrysburg, Ohio) walked Richardson in to put Ohio up 2-0. Mallott then cleared the bases with a double to left center to score three and put the Bobcats up 5-1.
Hafner was 0-for-3 with a one RBI and two runs scored after walking three times.
The Bobcats put up four more runs in the fifth. Mallott had his second double of the day, scoring Hafner and Revels, who both reached on walks. Mallott advanced home on a wild pitch. Rott doubled in a runner to give Ohio a 9-1 lead.
Revels finished the day 0-for-2 with three runs scored and four walks. Fabik walked twice and scored two runs.
Sophomore OF Sebastian Fabilk (Lebanon, Ohio) walked in a run in the sixth. With the bases loaded all on walks, Levy hit a grand slam over the left field fence and the Bobcats took a 14-1 advantage.
The Bobcats added two more runs in the eighth, when Revels and redshirt junior Ryan Sargent (Algonquin, Ill.) each walked with the bases loaded.
The Rockets cut the advantage down to 16-5 with four runs in the ninth.
Freshman RHP Matt Brosky (Strongsville, Ohio) tossed 0.2 innings and fanned both batters he faced.
Ohio will wrap up the series on Sunday at 1 p.m. with a doubleheader against Toledo. Due to weather, the Saturday game will not be played.
Western Michigan 9, Northern Illinois 4
Boxscore
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – In its 2019 home opener at Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Hyames Field the Western Michigan baseball team used a five-run sixth inning to power past Northern Illinois, 9-4 on Friday afternoon.
On the mound the Broncos got a stellar outing from redshirt junior Will Mullen, throwing a career-high 4.2 innings allowing no runs on 11 hits with four strikeouts to secure his second victory of the season. The Rochester, Mich., native has not allowed a run in his last four appearances and has accumulated eight strikeouts in 10.1 innings of work.
The Broncos posted nine runs on 12 hits against the Huskies, marking the 17th time this season posting double digit hits. Eight of the nine batters in the starting line-up recorded a hit on Friday with four earning multi-hit games.
Senior Cooper Marshall led the WMU offense going 2-for-3 at the plate with two runs scored and a team-high three RBIs. It was Marshall's third multi-RBI game of the season and fifth multi-hit game. The senior delivered with a two RBI single in the bottom of the sixth to give WMU the lead.
Joining Marshall with multi-RBIs was sophomore Blake Dunn who went 2-for-5 with two RBIs, a double and a run scored. Dunn notched his team-leading 18th multi-hit game of the season and sixth multi-RBI game. With the performance at the plate, Dunn extended his reached base streak to 31 games.
The sophomore duo of Sean O'Keefe and Logan Hudson each went 2-for-4 on the day with an RBI and two runs scored. O'Keefe improved his hitting streak to three games while Hudson notched his sixth-multi hit game of the year. Junior Ethan Hajudkovic posted a 1-for-4 day at the plate as well with an RBI, a double and a run scored.
Freshman Dane Armbrustmacher picked up his second save of the season after entering the game in the top of the ninth with the bases loaded and no outs. Armbrustmacher ended the NIU scoring threat in the final inning registering two strikeouts and a ground out to secure the victory.
Western Michigan improved its overall record to 10-20 and is now 3-5 in Mid-American Conference play. The Broncos will square off with Northern Illinois on Saturday, April 13 in a doubleheader with first pitch of game two beginning at 12:00 p.m. Game three of the series will follow approximately 30 minutes after.
After both teams went down in order in the first inning, the Huskies got on the board first in the top of the second, launching a home run over the left field wall to take a 1-0 lead.
The Broncos regained the lead in the bottom half of the second, scoring two runs on three hits. O'Keefe led off the inning with a single followed by a fly out and a single to right center field by Hudson gave WMU runners on the corners with one out. After taking a few pitches, Hajdukovic laced an RBI double to left field, scoring O'Keefe to tie the game at 1-1. In the next at-bat, Cooper Marshall recorded a sacrifice fly to right field to give WMU an early 2-1 advantage.
Northern Illinois battled back in the top of the third scoring one run on one hit and capitalizing on one Bronco error. With two outs, NIU's Brendan Joyce collected an RBI single to left field to tie the game. NIU grabbed a two-run lead in the top of the fourth
after a two RBI double dropped in left center field to give the Huskies a 4-2 lead.
Western Michigan cut into its deficit in the bottom of the fifth as junior Drew Devine roped an RBI single back up the middle, scoring Marshall from second to cut the NIU lead down to 4-3.
In the bottom of the sixth the WMU offense exploded for five runs on four hits to propel back in front, 8-4. O'Keefe drew a walk to lead off the inning and then advanced to second on a wild pitch to give the Brown & Gold a runner in scoring position with no outs. After a fly out, Hudson delivered with an RBI single through the right side to tie the game at four's.
An error by the NIU first baseman gave WMU runners on the corners with Marshall rocketed a two RBI single to center field, scoring both runners and giving the Broncos a 6-4 advantage. Later in the inning the Broncos loaded the bases for Dunn who crushed a two RBI single up the middle to give WMU an 8-4 lead.
WMU added one more run in the bottom of the eighth off the bat of Sean O'Keefe. With two outs and a runner on second, O'Keefe smacked his second hit of the game into centerfield to score Dunn from second and propel the Bronco lead.
NIU looked to mount a comeback in the top of the ninth, loading the bases after a double followed by an error and hit by pitch. However, Armbrustmacher quickly halted the scoring threat registering back-to-back strikeouts followed by a ground to earn his second save of the season and a series opening victory for the Broncos.
Kent State 10, Central Michigan 4
Boxscore
KENT, Ohio –The Kent State University baseball team (14-17) improved to 4-4 in the Mid-American Conference, slugging past Central Michigan (24-9, 7-3 MAC) 10-4 in the series opener Friday night at Schoonover Stadium. Junior Alex Ronnebaum highlighted the Kent State offense that totaled 13 hits, launching two home runs and a double on the night.
Senior Connor Wollersheim (3-4) earned the win on the mound in his ninth start this season, providing the Flashes with 6.0 solid innings with four strikeouts. Junior Zach Schultz picked up his second save, tossing 3.0 scoreless innings of relief. He allowed just one hit in his appearance while striking out two.
"I think we got a good start out of Connor Wollersheim," Head Coach Jeff Duncan said.
Offensively we were relentless, scoring almost every inning. We had several at bats in the beginning that set the tone. Obviously, we had a big performance from Alex Ronnebaum, Michael Turner and Ben Carew, but we just really good at bats one through nine in our order."
Long at bats and two-out strikes were pivotal in the Flashes' victory, forcing Central Michigan to dip into the bull pen early. The Kent State offense made CMU ace Pat Leatherman (5-1) throw more than 80 pitches in just 2.2 innings of work and allow six runs (five coming with two outs) before he exited the game. The Chippewas would see three additional pitchers take the mound on the night.
"Central Michigan's starter came in with great numbers, but I think we had a good plan for him and we stuck to it," Duncan explained. "It was important, especially with a Friday starter like that, to get into their bullpen. It was huge going into two games tomorrow."
Wollersheim started the game with a six-pitch inning to retire the side and give the offense a chance to strike first. The Flashes capitalized on the opportunity, scoring a run off the bat of O'Brien to take a 1-0 lead.
The Chippewas answered with a run in the next frame, however the Flashes scored on an RBI-single up the middle by redshirt sophomore Ben Carew in the bottom half of the inning to regain the lead – a lead that was never relinquished through the remainder of the game.
The Flashes poured on four runs in the third inning to extend the lead to 6-1. Senior Kian O'Brien drew a one-out walk and was moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by senior Pavin Parks. Junior Patrick Ferguson followed with a walk before senior Josh Hollander singled to left field, scoring O'Brien. Ronnebaum then stepped to the plate and rocketed a three-run home run to right center to force Leatherman to leave the game.
Central Michigan managed a run in the top of the fourth, but it was quickly erased in the bottom half of the inning by an RBI single by junior Cam Touchette to make it 7-2.
Ronnebaum went opposite field to left in the fifth inning for a two-run home run, his fourth of the season, to extend the Kent State lead to 9-2.
Central Michigan scored its final runs of the game in the top of the sixth with a two-run long ball.
The Flashes rounded out Friday's scoring in the bottom of the sixth as sophomore Michael Turner notched his first home run of the season, a solo moonshot to right field to bring the final score to 10-4.
The Kent State offense notched 13 hits without striking out once on the night, seeing all nine starters reach base. Ronnebaum led the team going 3-for-4 with two home runs and a double to total five RBIs and two runs scored. Carew, Hollander, Parks, and Turner added two hits apiece while Hollander crossed home plate three times on the night.
"I'm really excited about the enthusiasm we had in the game," Duncan added. "We won pitches and stayed with it. We really attacked the game."
Due to inclement weather expected in Northeast Ohio on Sunday, the schedule for the remainder of the series has been rearranged. Saturday, April 13 will feature a twin bill to close out the series a day early with games scheduled for 1:00 and 4:00 p.m. Tickets will cost just $5 for the day and will include both games of the day.
