Sports are all about momentum, and the Falcon baseball team certainly has plenty of it.
After going 3-1-1 in Florida over spring break and sweeping Eastern Kentucky University last weekend, the BG squad looks to notch a couple wins this week before opening Mid-American Conference play at home this weekend and continue their five-game winning streak.
The Falcons (6-7-1) will take on West Virginia University tonight in Chillicothe, Ohio.
Chillicothe is the site of the MAC tournament, and tonight’s game will be played there as a neutral-site game to cut down on travel distance for both teams. West Virginia will be the home team.
The Mountaineers (10-10) have seen a lot of time on the field this year. They have already played 20 games this season, including games against Kentucky, Virginia Tech, Indiana, Iowa and Michigan State.
After a shaky start, they have won six of their last seven games, and will prove to be a tough opponent against a BG team that has seen considerably less action this year due to bad weather.
BG is coming off a sweep of Eastern Kentucky in which the team scored 37 runs in the three games against the Colonels.
Of the Falcon hitters with 25 at-bats or more, four are hitting better than .432. Senior Logan Meisler is hitting .340 on the year.
The Falcons relied heavily on home runs last weekend.
Senior T.J. Blanton blasted four homers in the series and is now leading the team with five on the season. BG is hitting .319 on the year and will look to continue its hot streak tonight against West Virginia.
The team is still working on extending the pitch count of its rotation and will be looking to get longer outings from its starters.
The Falcons have a team ERA of 6.81 thus far, but have gotten some strong outings from several pitchers, including sophomore Ross Gerdeman, who boasts a 1.50 ERA in 18 innings pitched.
Sophomore Patrick Martin has also been a solid contributor, pitching nine innings for the team this year and allowing only three earned runs on six hits.
Today’s first pitch is slated for 3 p.m.
The Falcons’ home opener is scheduled for 3 p.m. Wednesday against Central Michigan University, and BG will open MAC play Friday at home against Northern Illinois University. That game is also scheduled for 3 p.m.
