Wednesday’s Baseball Results
Kent State 13, Pitt 5
Central Michigan 15, Grace Christian 4
Marshall 5, Ohio 2
Stories Courtesy of MAC Athletic Communications
Kent State 13, Pitt 5
Box Score
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Kent State erupted for 13 runs on nine hits and drew eight walks in a dominant midweek performance, rolling past Pittsburgh, 13-5, Wednesday evening at Charles L. Cost Field. The Golden Flashes improved to 32-11 on the season.
Gavin Jones earned the win in relief, improving to 1-2 after tossing 2.2 scoreless innings. Nick Guidas started and went 2.1 innings before Jones took over and shut the door, with Brody Krzysiak, Caden Leonard, Parker Lind, and Peyton Williams finishing out the final four innings of a bullpen effort.
Kent State jumped in front immediately, plating two in the first and never relinquishing the lead. The Flashes kept the pressure on throughout, adding a run in the third, two in the fourth, one in the fifth, one in the sixth, two in the seventh, and four more in the eighth to put the game well out of reach. Pitt's only blemish on an otherwise rough night for their pitching staff came via an AJ Nessler two RBI home run in the seventh, a two-out shot off Caden Leonard.
The Golden Flashes were relentless at the plate, going 5-for-20 with runners in scoring position. Luke Matthews had a standout performance, going 2-for-5 with two RBI, two stolen bases, and one hit-by-pitch. Hunter Klotz went 1-for-5 with two RBI. Brody Williams had two RBI while reaching base twice and stole two bases. Max Humphrey went 1-for-3 with two runs scored and a stolen base, while Grady Mee reached base three times and swiped two bags. Ripken Reese, Micah Rienst-Kiracofe, and Alejandro Covas each added hits, with Covas posting an RBI as well. Pitt burned through 11 pitchers, issuing eight walks and hitting eight batters over the course of the four-hour, one-minute contest.
Central Michigan 15, Grace Christian 4
Box Score
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Back to basics and a little small ball.
Central Michigan collected 12 hits – only one for extra bases – got 13 free passes, and stole five bases on Wednesday in topping Grace Christian, 15-4, in a nonconference baseball game on a rainy and chilly day at Theunissen Stadium.
The Chippewas snapped a four-game losing streak in improving to 19-23. The game was called after seven innings on the 10-run rule.
"I just wanted to see us bounce back and get back to doing things offensively that we've done for so long," CMU coach Jake Sabol said. "We ran into a good Miami team (last weekend), and we had plenty of opportunities to do some stuff offensively, we just never came through. Same thing (Tuesday) at Notre Dame.
"Today was just getting back after it. Three pillars that we want to focus on offensively: Finding the ball on the barrel as much as possible, using the short game, and running the bases at a high level. And I thought today we put pressure on and tried to do that from the get-go."
The Chippewas, who drew eight walks and had five hit batters, scored six runs in the third inning in building a 10-1 lead. They scored at least one run in every inning but the sixth.
"Didn't matter the score, didn't matter the opponent," Sabol said. "We were going to show our guys this is how we're supposed to play, and this is what happens when we do it at a good clip."
Cole Prout, Joey Milto and Miguel Correra Jr. had two hits apiece as Sabol subbed liberally throughout the game. Correra, a sophomore in his first season as a Chippewa, drove in a season-high four runs.
Nate Ross started for the Chippewas and blanked the Tigers (23-21) on two hits over two innings. Mitchell Tarnowski pitched two innings in relief and Kenny Keller went the final three frames.
Keller (1-2) earned his first win as a Chippewa, holding the Tigers scoreless while striking out three and surrendering two hits.
Wednesday's game was the first of nine straight at home for the Chippewas. They entertain Northern Illinois in a three-game Mid-American Conference series beginning on Friday.
CMU is 9-15 in league play and in ninth place. The Huskies are 26-13, 16-8 (third) in the MAC. The top six teams in the conference standings make the MAC Tournament.
The Chippewas are five games out of sixth place with nine to play. In short, they need every MAC win they can muster to keep alive their tournament hopes.
"As simple as it sounds, we've just got to take it one at a time: One play, one pitch, one game," Sabol said. "We just want to do what we've done for three quarters of the season so far (and) not put too much pressure on what we're trying to do or who the opponent is or the standings.
