BGSU baseball (16-7, 7-2 MAC) faced their first stretch on conference adversity last week, falling one to two in a weekend series that saw BGSU get run-ruled in the seventh inning 20-4 Saturday.
The Falcons will look to get the back-to-back losses out of their system, on Tuesday, March 25 against the Youngstown State Penguins that will conclude a six-game home stand for the Orange and Brown.
Falcon Media Sports Network’s Tyler Kavalecz and Sam Morris will have a call of the game starting at 2:45 for pregame and 3:00 for the first pitch on WBGU 88.1 FM. A recap will also be posted later in the day by Carter Leonard with highlights by Lucas Kleimeyer.
Matchup History
Despite being an in-state matchup, the two birds have not battled very frequently, playing a combined 21 times since the series began in 1982.
BG managed to get the better of the penguins the last time they played on April 16, 2025, which saw a 12-9 victory for the Falcons at home.
In the series, Youngstown State does fare better, going 13-8 over a 21-game span, including a 10-game winning streak from 2007 to 2018.
Bowling Green
Bowling Green has been nothing short of dominant to begin the 2025 season, going on an 11-game winning streak that saw the Falcons hold their longest winning streak in a decade, dating back to 2010.
Even through their two losses to Kent State, BGSU is still prone to a comeback, managing to be 5-5 when trailing after the sixth inning and six and six when trailing after the seventh.
After the losses, BG slid to third in the Mid-American Conference (MAC), tied with the Miami RedHawks at 7-2 with a .778 conference winning percentage.
When above home plate, the Falcons can crush a baseball, ranking second in the MAC in batting average at .307 while topping the conference in hits with 252.
The Orange and Brown also prove to be a thorn in the side of opposing pitchers, following up their strong batting with a third in the conference 0.414 on-base percentage and 394 total bases.
Pitching does however manage to sneak up on BGSU who give up the most doubles, (57), hits, (269) second most home runs, (35) and batting average allowed (.319).
Youngstown State
The Penguins measure up almost completely opposite to the Falcons as their batting is towards the middle of the pack in the Horizon League, but their pitching ranks towards the top.
Through six games of conference play, Youngstown State is tied for last place in their conference with two other teams, sitting at a two-and-four record with a .333 conference winning percentage.
When it comes to games against the same opponent, the Falcons went 2-0 against Akron and Purdue Fort Wayne while Youngstown State was 1-3, including a nine-run loss to the Zips, 11-2.
While they do not rank first in any batting statistics in the conference, the Penguins are second in doubles, (45), triples, (4), total bases, (310) and walks, (112).
They also place third in several categories with batting average, (.263), runs, (133), RBI, (120), slugging percentage, (.433) and on-base percentage, (0.378), but their biggest weakness is strikeouts, getting sent packing 221 times which is the most in the Horizon League.
In terms of pitching, the Penguins are not a very high-contact-allowing team. They are third in batting average allowed at .312 while also allowing the fewest doubles (38) and home runs (17).
Despite this, Youngstown State has the second-worst ERA in the conference, at 9.50, and allows the most runs (222), which could be due to the Horizon League’s worst walks allowed (150) and wild pitches (45).
Falcon Four Players to Watch
Garrett Wright (Bowling Green #3)
When facing a high on-base pitching staff like the Penguins, the Falcons will need a consistent player to land on first, and with Wright becoming the program’s record holder in career hit by pitches, (33), BGSU could have a successful recipe.
The former MAC Freshman of the Year has been adamant about getting to the base paths, sitting just second in the conference in on-base percentage at .523.
If the Falcons can get players like Wright on base consistently then that means Takats could be crossing home plate frequently as the Orange and Brown’s new lead-off batter.
In his last five games, the sophomore has tallied seven hits for seven runs with a double, three home runs, and six RBIs mixed in.
Kyle Fossum (Youngstown State #7)
For much of the year, BGSU’s pitching staff has been prone to let up big plays from savvy batters and no one is more seasoned than this Washington University transfer.
Fossum is a powerhouse for YSU, ranking first in the Horizon League in batting average, (.470), slugging percentage, (.892), on-base percentage, (.559), OPS, (1.451), hits, (39) and doubles, (11).
JJ Tylicki (Youngstown State #45)
Youngstown is no stranger to adding transfers with Tylicki coming from a two-year stint with the Kansas Jayhawks where he was ranked a top 35 MLB Draft Prospect by DI Baseball in 2023.
A usual Saturday starter for YSU could wreak havoc on the Falcon batters if he plays, striking out 31 batters so far this season, which is second in the conference.
