BGSU baseball (28-14, 16-8 MAC) took on the Eastern Michigan Eagles (17-21, 9-12 MAC) in game three of their series on a beautiful afternoon during Alumni Weekend.
The Falcons swept the Eagles for the first time since 1973, and they did so in dominating fashion.
“If you wanna win and play your best baseball in May, you have to get out and you have to front-run a little bit,” said head coach Kyle Hallock after the game.
Opening up the first inning, the Eagle’s Giano Zuccaro hit a double. On a fly ball, Zuccaro made it to third base, setting up EMU in scoring position. After two more outs, both of them strikeouts, the Eagles were done batting.
The Falcons stepped up to the plate to start the bottom of the first. BG started strong with their hitter, Gunner Antillon, hitting a single. Another single by Garrett Wright put Antillon on third and him on first. A third single in a row by Gavin Ganun allowed Antillon to score, putting Bowling Green on the board 1-0.
A fantastic hit by Zack Horky gave Wright enough time to score and extend their lead to 2. Bowling Green had their fifth hit of the inning, with Ganun scoring and making the score 3-0 in the Orange and Brown’s advantage. After two strikeouts and a fly ball, the inning ended with a 3-0 score for BGSU.
At the top of the second, Eastern Michigan had a walk to start. Three quick outs sent EMU off the field and BG back up to bat.
After two strikeouts, Wright hit a single for the Falcons. Wright advanced to second after a foul ball hit by Ganun. After a hit, Ganun was tagged out, but not before Wright scored. Right afterward, the third out was tagged, and the second inning was over.
The third inning began with the advantage of 4-0 in BGSU’s favor. A impressive catch by Ganun got EMU’s second out of the inning. The next hitter struck out, and BG took over for the bottom of the third.
Bowling Green had two outs, a hit, and another out all in quick succession to end the third inning. They hold their lead of 4-0.
EMU hit a double for their first bat of the fourth inning. Devan Zirwas had the hit and held second. The Eagles finished the top of the fourth with one hit and still no runs.
Antillon would’ve had a single had it not been for Cooper Vance tagging him out just before making it to first base. A hit by Ganun got him on first and Wright at second. Another single loaded the bases, and a walk gave BG another score. After this, however, the Falcons struck out, and the fourth inning ended with a score of 5-0.
Vance had an impressive double to start the fifth and put EMU in a position to get on the board. He advanced to third. Vance scored off a single by Logan Hugo, cutting into their deficit, 5-1. A fly ball ended the Eagle’s time batting.
The Falcons’ hitter, Alex Laird, hit a single to start the bottom of the fifth. A ground ball ended the fifth inning, with the score remaining 5-1.
Eastern Michigan hit a single to open the sixth inning and switched hands with Bowling Green pretty quickly. TJ Takats had a single for BG to start their batting order. A missed tag allowed Takats to get to third base. Takats scored after a hit by Brayden Curlis to make the score 6-1. Another single later, Caden Parker scored, and the sixth ended with a BGSU lead of 7-1.
The seventh inning began with strikeouts against Eastern Michigan. A couple of walks from the Eagles got the bases loaded. A crucial hit by Ty Stecko gave EMU two runs, making the score 7-3.
Wright got hit by the pitch and got to walk for the Falcons. On the next hit by Ganun, Wright was grounded out while Ganun got to first base. Ganun was tagged out, bringing the seventh inning to a close, the score still 7-3.
At the top of the eighth, the Falcons went three for three and got the Eagles off the field very quickly. Bowling Green had two quick outs; Parker walked and advanced to second base. A great single up the middle by Curlis allowed Parker to score, pushing the score to 8-3.
Two walks by BGSU loaded the bases with Antillon up to bat. He struck out, and the eighth inning ended with a score of 8-3.
At the top of the ninth, EMU hit a fantastic double by Hugo. Zirwas hit a single, giving Hugo the chance to score, making the score 8-4.
The final out of the ninth ended the game with a score of 8-4. After the game, Hallock gave the underclassmen props for their performances. “Our older guys are doing a great job getting these younger guys along, helping their confidence.”
The Falcons will remain at home for their next game against Findlay on April 29 at Steller Field.
