BGSU baseball got their first Mid-American Conference (MAC) series win a month after sweeping Eastern Michigan, propelling the Orange and Brown to two games back from third place.
The Falcons were the only team to get a sweep. Meanwhile, Ball State, Kent State, Miami, and Western Michigan won two out of three games in their series.
Toledo, despite having a non-conference series over the weekend, once again moved up the standings because of Eastern Michigan going winless.
1. Ball State (31-14, 17-4 MAC)
The Cardinals have been in first place most of the season, and that didn’t change after they won two games against Central Michigan.
Although all three games against the Chippewas were close, Ball State still pulled out the series win on the back of impressive pitching, giving up just 14 runs total over the three games. Ball State’s pitching staff remains one of the best in the conference. They are second in team earned run average (ERA) with a 5.67 and lead the MAC in strikeouts per game (8.64).
The Cardinals will need to continue this dominant pitching this weekend as they face off against Kent State’s powerful offense.
2. Kent State (29-14, 16-5 MAC)
The Golden Flashes outscored Akron 28-16 on their way to a two-win series. Kent State’s offense continues to be on fire, leading the conference in average (.315), runs (417), doubles (104), triples (24), slugging percentage (.530) and on-base percentage (.432).
Kent State’s high-scoring offense has even led them to win six of their last ten games by a seven-inning run rule.
Kent State will take on Ball State in their next series this weekend in a key battle for first place.
3. Miami (25-19, 18-6 MAC)
The RedHawks won the first and third games against last-place Ohio. Miami now has the most wins in the conference but still has the third-best winning percentage.
In a team full of stars, Miami’s leadoff-hitting shortstop Dillon Baker has flown under the radar. Baker went five-for-five with three doubles and a run batted in (RBI) in Saturday’s 18-2 beatdown. The redshirt senior is Miami’s team leader in average (.345), hits (57), and doubles (16). He is also in the top 10 in the MAC in all three categories.
Miami will take on Samford this weekend for their non-conference matchup. The RedHawks could move into a three-way tie for first place if Kent State goes 2-1 against Ball State.
4. Bowling Green (29-14, 16-8 MAC)
The Falcons ended their mini-losing streak after beating the Eagles three times in a row. A thunderstorm delay in game one and an early EMU lead in game two was no match for Bowling Green’s late-game offense which led them to get the sweep.
This was most important at the end of game two when the Falcons were down by four. MAC average leader sophomore catcher Garrett Wright hit a bases-clearing triple in the bottom of the eighth and then senior shortstop Gunner Antillon hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth.
Wright and Antillon have been two of the hottest hitters in the MAC during the month of April. They will need to continue leading Bowling Green’s offense this weekend as they travel to Fifth Third Field to play an improved Toledo team.
5. Toledo (20-25, 10-11 MAC)
The Rockets went 4-2 over their week of non-conference games, beating Ohio State, East Tennessee State, Mercyhurst, and Oakland.
The 11-6 win over the Buckeyes was particularly impressive, giving them their second win this season over a BIG-10 opponent. Toledo was losing through the first seven innings before having a monster six-run eighth inning that featured three RBI singles.
Toledo will take on arch rival Bowling Green in the Battle of I-75 with a chance to start making a push into the top four spots in the standings.
6. Eastern Michigan (17-21, 9-12 MAC)
The Eagles have now lost three straight MAC series’ after getting swept by the Falcons. EMU has gone 4-9 over the last 13 games and has moved out of the top five in the conference for the first time this year.
The pitching staff particularly struggled against Bowling Green, giving up 9.66 runs per game in the series. EMU has now given up 310 runs total this season, fourth-most in the MAC.
EMU will take on Northern Illinois this weekend to try and get back to .500 in the conference.
7. Central Michigan (17-27, 9-12 MAC)
The Chippewas’ season has fallen flat after losing two of three to Ball State and five of their last seven.
The one win they had against the Cardinals was a 4-0 shutout victory thrown by redshirt sophomore starting pitcher Jared Hanson. Hanson has been a young bright spot in the CMU rotation, hurling a 2-2 record and a 4.26 ERA.
CMU has a rivalry matchup next against Western Michigan, with sixth or seventh place potentially on the line.
8. Western Michigan (13-27, 8-13 MAC)
The Broncos got a pair of wins against NIU on the road, scoring double-digit runs in both victories. The 16-15 opening game was especially impressive because they were down 9-1 after three innings but battled back to get the win.
Leading this comeback was Western Michigan’s senior catcher Chris Akers, who had three hits, including a grand slam.
The Broncos will take on the Chippewas next in a matchup of Michigan directional schools.
9. Akron (14-30, 7-17 MAC)
The Zips struggled on all fronts over the last week, going 1-3 with two run-rule mercies against Kent State and Pittsburgh.
The midweek loss against Pittsburgh was one of the worst performances of Akron’s season as they got shut out 11-0 with only six hits.
Akron will look to bounce back against last-place Ohio over the weekend.
10. Northern Illinois (16-28, 5-16 MAC)
The Huskies gave up a whopping 44 runs over three losses in the past week, furthering the notion that this is a team heavily one-sided to a few power-hitting bats in the middle of the lineup.
Despite having the second-most strikeouts thrown in the MAC, the NIU pitching staff also has the second-highest ERA and has consistently struggled all year.
NIU will face another depleted pitching staff, Eastern Michigan’s, in their next series this weekend.
11. Ohio (10-32, 5-16 MAC)
The Bobcats have stayed in last place after dropping two games to Miami at home in Athens.
The single win Ohio had over the RedHawks was dominated by Bobcats’ senior catcher Jackson Cauthron, who had two home runs and four RBIs in the contest.
