The Bowling Green Falcons (18-11, 14-0 MAC) flew away with two wins against the Central Michigan Chippewas (11-24, 5-12 MAC) in a doubleheader at Steller Field on Saturday, with scores of 10-8 and 10-7 respectively.
BG earned their first home win against the Chippewas since April 22, 2017.
GAME 1
BGSU was able to use their first turn at bat to develop a quick lead. With one out, Sam Seidel hit a double to left field, marking 27 games in a row this season the outfielder has reached base. A single from Tyler Ross allowed Seidel the run, ending the inning with a score of 1-0.
Neither team would go on to score until the third inning.
CMU was able to tie up the game early on using a series of errors from BG. A hit by pitch thrown by DJ Newman enabled a base on balls for Mikey Murphy and a fly ball to right field by Bryson Webb allowed a runner to reach scoring position. Although Nick Dardas struck out immediately after, Murphy stole second base while an error by Garrett Wright gave Jackson a chance to run home.
In the third inning, the Falcons were able to set up a flurry of runs to set the score up 5-1. Seidel started the process with a hit by pitch thrown by Adam Mrackitsch, but was later thrown out at second trying to steal a base. Ross made up for this misfortune by doubling to right field. Two walks in a row by Jack Krause and Leighton Banjoff pushed Ross to third and a two-run RBI by TJ Takats gave Krause and Ross a run apiece.
The frenzy continued for BG the rest of the inning as Landon Roque walked to first which enabled a run from Banjoff. The Falcons were hungry for more as a pitching swap for CMU (Mrakitsch relieved for Bryce Hellgeth), gave Wright the go-ahead to single up the middle of the field for one last score of the inning, this time by Takats.
The Chippewas tried to overcome the 5-1 deficit created by the Falcons in the previous inning but were only able to score one run- a solo home run by Cole Prout.
BGSU retaliated during their time at-bat with a fly ball to center by Seidel and a single to the outfield by Newman. Ross ran to first base with a single to center field, which advanced Newman to second. Ross was also able to move across the bases via a wild pitch, Hellgath’s second of the season. A single by Banjoff, who advanced to second, allowed a set of RBIs with runs from Ross and Newman, setting the score apart 7-2.
CMU’s home run in the previous inning gave the Falcons a green light to relieve Newman- who was replaced with senior Logan Bell out of the bullpen.
The fifth inning showed flashes of excellence from both teams. The Chips had two home runs from back-to-back batters, Jackson and Robby Morgan IV, to creep up the scoreboard. The Falcons set the score straight 8-4 during the bottom of the fifth with a run by Landon Roque via a Seidel RBI.
CMU in the sixth scored another three runs- this time via a home run by Ely Stuart, allowed the batters before him, Jacob Donahue and Prout, to take a trip home each. Connar Penrod then relieved Bell of his duties on the mound and closed out the inning but not before the Chippewas got to a neck-and-neck 8-7.
The bottom of the sixth was rather tame for the Falcons, with a three and out from Hellgrath.
Central Michigan did not score in the top of the seventh but the Falcons did soon after. A double from Wright allowed Takats, who started their turn with a walk, to score a run. Wright scored a run of his own from another double from Seidel.
The Falcons rounded out their scoring for the game after the set of runs in the seventh, giving them 10 on the game. The Chippewas, however, were not ready to end the game just yet.
One final score for CMU was tacked on in the eighth inning, with a pitching switch to Peyton Wilson after a double from Stuart and a single from Drew Loikits. A single from Webb let Stuart run to home plate, setting the score to a final 10-8 in favor of the Falcons.
GAME 2
The second game proved to be a strategic and chippy match between the two opponents as the Chips hoped to tear down BGSU’s 13-game streak in Mid-American Conference play.
This time, CMU started with the lead with a run by Dardas who was able to reach home from a hit-by-pitch by Nic Good and a trip to second on a successive wild pitch. A single from Donahue and a single from Stuart gave Dardas the go-ahead to run.
Bowling Green responded with a four-run stint at-bat. Singles from Nathan Archer, his first of the series, Wright, Ross and Roque loaded the bases and a grand slam from Banjoff allowed the four of them to reach home base. The Falcons used this rally to bump them up 4-1.
Central Michigan did not have an answer, as only two batters reached a base during the second inning.
BGSU used this to their advantage, as pitcher Ben Vitas gave up his two final runs of the game to the Falcons to Caden Parker and Wright. A HBP from Vitas allowed Parker to walk, followed by a single by Ross and Roque to close out the inning.
Finally, CMU crafted a way to get back into the scoring column in the top of the third. Another homer from Stuart gave Donahue, who had just hit a single, to cross home base along with Stuart himself, pressuring the Falcons with a 6-3 score.
BGSU could not retaliate against the two RBIs but CMU had another answer in the top of the fourth. A double from Elijah Henning and a ground ball by Dardas advanced Henning to third, where he finished the job on a single from Donahue.
CMU had more gas left in the tank as a single from Stuart pushed Donahue to second allowing Danny Wuestenfield a run, setting the score even closer at 6-5.
A strong but brief turn at bat led by pitcher Jack Bach at the bottom of the fourth gave the Falcons a sizable gap in the score. A home run from Archer allowed him to score a run for the Orange and Brown.
The Chippewas decided to stay chippy in the top of the fifth with a double from Jackson and a stolen base right after, who then scored on an error by Wright to set the score at 7-6.
BG went on another scoring rampage that set the tone for the rest of the game, accumulating another two runs made possible by bullpen pitcher Quin Konuszewski.
Another single from Banjoff evoked the previous hitters, Roque and Krause, to move up the bases. Roque was out a second but a single from Takats kept the inning going and gave Krause the go-ahead for a trip home.
The Falcons could not be brought down. The next batter of the inning, Gavin Ganun, hit a ground ball that let Takats advance to second base and Banjoff to third. A single from Parker gave the Falcons another run, this time by Banjoff, to set the score 9-6.
The top of the sixth was a three-and-out from CMU with the help of pitcher Isaiah Seidel. The bottom of the inning proved to be a different story with a walk from Ross which eventually ended in a final Falcon run with the assistance of a double by Roque and a hit from Krause.
Bowling Green ended the game with a total of 10 runs but were almost able to surpass the previous game’s total in that same inning. Roque was caught stealing at home and was tagged out by CMU’s catcher, Drew Stengren.
Neither team scored in the seventh inning but CMU earned the final run of the game in the top of the eighth. A home run by Morgan brought the score up to 10-7 and a combination of pitching from bullpen hitters Seidel and Jacob Turner sealed the Falcons’ second win of the day and 14th in the MAC.
BGSU and CMU will play the final game of their series on April 14 at Steller Field in Bowling Green, Ohio. First pitch will be at 1 p.m.
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