Friday’s Baseball Results
Ball State 3, Northern Illinois 1
Ball State 6,  Northern  Illinois 2
Miami 1, Kent State  0
Kent State 3, Miami 2
Western Michigan 7, Bowling Green 5
Western Michigan 12, Bowling Green 7
Central Michigan 13, Akron 1
Ohio 12, IPFW 2
Ohio vs. IPFW (In Progress)
 
Stories courtesy of MAC Sports Information Departments
 
Ball State 3, Northern Illinois 1 -- Boxscore
Ball State 6,  Northern  Illinois 2 – Boxscore
MUNCIE - John Baker was marvelous and record-breaking, Chayce McDermott was overpowering and the Ball State baseball team won two games over Northern Illinois Friday afternoon at Ball Diamond. Baker, the active Division I leader in career strikeouts, surpassed the career strikeouts record held by Ball State Hall of Famer Bryan Bullington in a 3-1 win in the early game. McDermott then fanned 12 batters and the Cards got big hits late as they swept the doubleheader 6-2.
 
Game 1 - Ball State 3, NIU 1 (PDF Box Score)
Baker threw a complete game and allowed just a single run on a solo homer, an outing head coach Rich Maloney described as "marvelous." He needed six strikeouts to tie Bullington's record, and he came out firing as if it was possible he could get all six in the 1st inning. He had five in the first three innings and tied it in the 4th. The first pitch of the 4th inning was a solo homer by NIU's Nick Drobushevich to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. The record-breaking punchout came in the 5th, just moments after Baker pulled a fake-to-1st-throw-to-3rd pickoff move to help get out of a jam.
 
And, in his 22nd career college win, he was the all-time strikeout leader in a program that's seen four players win MAC Pitcher of the Year and 35 pitchers be selected in the MLB Draft.
 
"I knew I was getting pretty close, and when they made the announcement (over the PA) I was pretty excited. But I still had a guy on base so I was more thinking about that," Baker said. "I'm not too worried about the individual record, Im' just glad we were able to get the win. It's an awesome feeling though, knowing the greats that have played at BSU."
 
Baker (4-2) kept Ball State in the game until the Cards found the timely hits. RBI singles from Ross Messina and Trenton Quartermaine along with an all-out hustle double by Ryan Peltier scored three runs in the 8th inning and then Baker came out in the 9th to finish the job. It was his second complete game of the season. In vintage Baker fashion, 51-out game came in a blistering pace of 2 hours, 14 minutes.
 
Game 2 - Ball State 6, NIU 2 (PDF Box Score)
After Baker's dominance and an 8th inning rally to win the noon game, the Cards neatly scored three runs in the 3rd inning and three more in the 5th to cruise in the 7-inning nightcap win. Decker Scheffler and Peltier delivered RBI hits and BSU scored on a fielder's choice where NIU got a force at home and then there was a collision at 1st base which allowed the Cardinals to score again.
 
Three runs was all McDermott would need. He struck out 12 over 6.0 innings and allowed one unearned run. Andre Orselli slammed the door in the 7th for his 5th save.
 
The run scoring was Peltier and Quartermaine again, each with RBI hits in the 5th inning when BSU put the game out of reach.
 
Miami 1, Kent State  0 -- Boxscore
Kent State 3, Miami 2 – Boxscore
OXFORD, Ohio – Kent State split a double header at Miami on Friday afternoon, winning the first game, 3-2, and falling 1-0 in the nightcap.
 
GAME ONE: Kent State 3, Miami 2
Kent State jumped on Miami's starting pitcher, Grant Hartwig, in the top of the first inning with a Ben Carew sacrifice bunt that scored Kyle Jackson. The sac bunt gave the Golden Flashes a quick 1-0 lead, and the game would stay that way until the top of the fifth.
 
The Flashes' second run came via the long ball, as Carew launched one to left-center. Carew finished the series opener 1-for-3 with two RBIs. Luke Albright started the game and went five innings for Kent State, allowing just four hits and striking out seven. Miami did their damage in the bottom half of the fifth, tying the game on a two-RBI single by Will Vogelgesang.
 
Six Golden Flashes tallied hits in the game, none more crucial than Josh Mrozek's triple in the top of the eighth inning. His leadoff three-bagger allowed Collin Mathews to ground a ball to second base and score the go-ahead run. Matthews' extra-inning RBI proved to be the difference, as Jack Zimmerman shut down the RedHawks to secure the game one victory. Zimmerman allowed just one hit over the final three innings and struck out five.
 
GAME TWO: Miami 1, Kent State 0
Collin Romel had the best start of his Golden Flashes career, striking out six RedHawks without any walks and allowing one run on five hits over six innings.
 
Kent State was unable to provide the lefty with any run support, totaling four hits and going 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
 
Miami scored the game's only run in the bottom of the fifth inning. Parker Massman hit a double to start the frame, advanced to third on a sac bunt and then scored on a single by Billy Kopicki.
 
The Flashes' best scoring opportunity came in the top of the seventh. Ben Carew doubled and sprinted to third on a passed ball with just one out. A strikeout and fly ball to center field brought the game to an end.
 
Kent State moves to 15-18 on the season and 8-10 in the MAC. Miami is now 19-13 overall and 12-6 in conference play. The two teams will continue the four-game series tomorrow with a single, nine-inning game starting at 10 a.m.
 
Western Michigan 7, Bowling Green 5 -- Boxscore
Western Michigan 12, Bowling Green 7 – Boxscore
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – An outpouring of offense propelled the Western Michigan baseball team to a doubleheader sweep over Bowling Green Friday afternoon, winning game one 12-7, and taking game two 7-5 at Robert J. Bob Stadium at Hyames Field.
 
The Bronco offense amassed 19 runs on 21 hits in the doubleheader sweep including nine doubles, one triple and three home runs. As a team Western Michigan hit .404 against the Falcons with a stellar .788 slugging percentage and a .530 on-base percentage.
 
On the mound WMU held BGSU to a .291 batting average posting just 16 hits and 12 runs, seven of which were earned. The Bronco pitching staff collected 13 strikeouts while allowing just one extra-base hit.
 
Offensively the Broncos were led by sophomore Jimmy Allen who registered a staggering .714 batting average with one double, one triple, one home run, two runs scored and three RBIs. Senior Drew Devine led WMU with four RBIs on Friday while hitting .500 with one double and one run scored.
 
Fellow senior Ethan Hajdukovic hit .333 against BGSU on Friday with three RBIs to go along with one double and two runs scored. In the lead-off spot for the Brown & Gold, junior Connor Charping hit .667 and had a stellar .750 on-base percentage. Charping posted two RBIs while having one home run, one double and four runs scored.
 
On the base paths Western Michigan swiped four bases with Charping, Devine, Hajdukovic and junior Justin McIntyre each stealing a base.
 
With the doubleheader sweep the Broncos improved their overall record to 13-15 and Mid-American Conference record to 12-6. WMU and BGSU play game three of its four-game series on Saturday, April 24 with first pitch set for 3:00 p.m.
 
Game One (Western Michigan – 12, Bowling Green – 7)
It was an offensive explosion for the Western Michigan baseball team in game one of Friday's doubleheader scoring 12 runs on 12 hits in a 12-7 win over Bowling Green.
 
WMU had seven different players register a hit in game one with five different players recording multi-hit games and three players with multi-RBI games. The duo of Ethan Hajdukovic and Drew Devine each had three RBIs to lead the Bronco offense.
 
Senior Drew Devine led the team going 2-for-4 at the plate with one run scored, a double and a team-high three RBIs. Along with Devine, Ethan Hajdukovic was 2-for-3 with a double, a run scored and three RBIs.
 
Right fielder Jimmy Allen belted his first home run of the season to highlight a 2-for-4 day at the plate with two RBIs and one run scored. Josh Swinehart belted his third home run of the season to cap a 1-for-3 day at the plate with one run scored and one RBI.
 
At the top of the line-up, Connor Charping was 2-for-3 in game one with two runs scored while drawing a walk. Charping also recorded a stolen base against the Falcons. Behind Charping in the two spot was junior Sean O'Keefe who also went 2-for-3 with one RBI and two runs scored.
 
On the mound senior LHP Brandon Petersen picked up his third win of the season going 6.0 innings allowing just five hits and striking out five. Petersen now owns a 3-1 record on the season with a 4.91 ERA.
 
It was a scoreless through the first two innings before the Falcons got on the board in the top of the third. BGSU knocked a three-run home run off the center field wall in the inning to take an early 3-0 lead over the Broncos.
 
Western Michigan responded quickly in the bottom of the third with six runs on four hits. The Broncos loaded the bases with one out before Justin McIntyre grounded out to the BGSU third baseman, scoring Blake Dunn from third to get WMU on the board. A walk by Logan Hudson once again loaded the bases for senior Drew Devine.
 
Devine on the third pitch he saw blasted it off the left field wall for a bases clearing double to give WMU a 5-3 lead. WMU extended its lead in the next at-bat as Jimmy Allen laced a single to left field and gave the Brown & Gold a 6-3 lead after three innings of play.
 
The Broncos continued its momentum in the bottom of the fourth scoring four runs on five hits. Leading off the inning Josh Swinehart belted his third home run of the season over the left field wall to give WMU a 7-3 advantage. Two batters later after Charping stole second base, O'Keefe doubled down the left field line to score Charping and extend the Bronco lead to 8-3.
 
After a groundout to the BGSU shortstop, Western Michigan recorded back-to-back RBI hits from Logan Hudson and Ethan Hajdukovic to give WMU a seven run lead. BGSU got a run back in the top of the fifth before Jimmy Allen connected on his first home run of the season to give the Broncos a 11-4 lead.
 
A Hajdukovic RBI double in the bottom of the sixth extended the WMU lead to 12-4 heading into the top of the seventh. BGSU looked to make a comeback attempt in the top of the seventh, scoring three runs before a strikeout ended the inning and gave WMU a 12-7 victory in game one.
 
Game Two (Western Michigan – 7, Bowling Green – 5)
Despite trailing 4-0 early the Western Michigan baseball team rallied back in the middle innings to defeat Bowling Green, 7-5 in game two of Friday's doubleheader at Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Hyames Field.
 
The Bronco offense continued to roll in game two of Friday's doubleheader with seven runs on nine hits including one home run and five doubles. WMU had six different player register a hit in game two with Connor Charping and Jimmy Allen each having multi-hit games. Charping along with Justin McIntyre also posted multi-RBI games.
 
Leading off for the Broncos Charping was 2-for-3 at the plate with two RBIs, two runs scored, a double and a home run. In the two spot for the Brown & Gold was junior Sean O'Keefe who went 1-for-3 in game two with a double and two runs scored.
Behind O'Keefe, fellow junior Justin McIntyre went 1-for-3 as well with two RBIs and one double.
 
Sophomore Jimmy Allen registered a perfect day at the plate going 3-for-3 and finishing a home run away from the cycle. Allen scored one run and had one RBI while earning a double and a triple.
 
On the mound the Broncos used three separate pitchers, allowing 11 hits while totaling six strikeouts. Out of the bullpen senior RHP Will Mullen picked up his fourth win of the season throwing 4.2 innings, allowing one earned run on six hits with three strikeouts. Earning his third save of the season was freshman Ryan Watt who pitched two innings, allowing no runs on two hits with three strikeouts.
 
It was once again a quick start for the Falcons who put four runs on the board through the first three innings of play. The BGSU offense got going in the top of the first scoring three runs on three hits and added another run in the top of the third.
 
Western Michigan began its comeback in the bottom of the third scoring three runs on four hits. The inning started off with a bang as Connor Charping belted his second home run of the season on the first pitch of the inning to trim the BGSU lead down to 4-1.
 
In the next at-bat O'Keefe doubled to left field and was then moved to third on a sacrifice bunt with one out. Logan Hudson scored O'Keefe a few pitches later, registering an RBI double to right center field to give WMU its second run of the game. After a groundout, Devine scored Hudson on an RBI single to center field to cut the WMU deficit down to one.
 
Western Michigan recorded three more runs in the bottom of the fourth off of three hits to gain a 6-4 advantage. With runners on first and second with one out, Charping delivered with an RBI double down the right field line to tie the game at four.
 
A hit by pitch put runners on first and second once again with two outs for Justin McIntyre. McIntyre belted a two-RBI double to right center field to extend the Bronco lead to 6-4 after four innings of play.
 
BGSU cut the Bronco lead down to one in the top of the fifth, scoring one run on two hits. It didn't take long for WMU to respond scoring one run on one hit in the bottom of the fifth. With one out and a runner on second Jimmy Allen recorded his first triple of the season to push the Bronco lead to 7-5.
 
In the bottom of the seventh the Falcons brought the tying run to the plate before a groundout to shortstop ending the scoring threat and propelled WMU to the 7-5 victory.
 
Central Michigan 13, Akron 1
Boxscore
AKRON, Ohio – Plate patience, timely hitting, and Jordan Patty.
 
Winning combination, again, for Central Michigan baseball.
 
Patty threw six scoreless innings of three-hit ball and his teammates collected nine hits and took advantage of 13 walks on Friday as the Chippewas defeated Akron, 13-1, in the opener of a four-game Mid-American Conference baseball series at Akron's Skeeles Field.
 
The Chippewas improved to 21-11, 13-4 MAC. CMU entered the game tied with Ball State for first place in the league. The Cardinals swept a doubleheader from Northern Illinois on Friday to up their league record to 14-4.
 
The Chippewas and Zips are scheduled to play a doubleheader on Saturday (11 a.m.).
 
Friday's win marked the third time in five MAC series that the Chippewas have won the series opener.
 
"We had a stretch, quite a few games, where we just did not play particularly well to start the weekend and obviously that makes it a little bit of a grind," CMU coach Jordan Bischel said. "It's been nice the last couple of weeks we've been really sharp (on Friday).
 
"Game 1 doesn't guarantee anything for game 2 or game 3 or game 4, but certainly it's nice to get off to a fast start."
 
Patty, a junior right-hander, continued his dominant season, extending his scoreless innings streak to 31 2/3 and improving to 5-1. He struck out five and walked one. The reigning MAC Pitcher of the Week threw 88 pitches, 60 of them for strikes.
 
The Zips put the leadoff hitter on in each of Patty's final four innings, but he twice stranded a baserunner at third and induced a double play to erase another baserunner.
 
"We talk about the next pitch or the next play and we put a lot of emphasis on staying in the present and having a process to what you do and that shouldn't change depending on the score or the situation or anything like that," CMU coach Joran Bischel said. "I think that's been the key for him; he has just gotten to a point that he just stays in the present with what he's doing and makes the next pitch and it's put him in a nice routine.
 
"He's got a lot of poise and confidence, for good reason. We had a mistake or two today, but on the whole we've played really well behind him."
 
The Chippewas broke a scoreless tie with three runs in the fifth inning and then blew the game open with five in the sixth. The game was called after eight innings because of the run rule.
 
Justin Simpson singled, doubled and drove in five runs to lead the Chippewas at the plate, while Zach Gilles and Zach Heeke added two hits apiece. Gilles and Garrett Navarra drove in two runs each.
 
Simpson, the Chippewas' No. 9 hitter, drove in the game's first run with a fifth-inning single. His bases-loaded double with one out in the sixth extended the lead to 5-0.
 
His five RBI marked a CMU high for the sophomore shortstop who is in his first year at CMU after transferring from Golden West (Calif.) College. He is third on the team with a .329 batting average and is second with 25 RBI.
 
"We talk a lot that nobody should have to do more than one-ninth," Bischel said. "We should have nine guys in there who contribute and you just kind of do your ninth.
 
"Simp's a great example of that. His first RBI today was on a two-strike count and he did a great job of hitting the ball hard to the middle of the field. He's really been outstanding for us all year. It's tempting to move him up in the order, but certainly having him there (ninth) has really turned it over for the top (of the order) and he's helped us string together some big innings."
 
Ohio 12, IPFW 2
Ohio vs. IPFW (In Progress)
Story coming soon…