The highs and lows of the season were summed up within one long day of baseball for the Falcon faithful, eventually ending in the elimination of the Orange and Brown from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) tournament.
BGSU baseball (33-22, 19-11,0-2) took back-to-back losses against Toledo (29-27,17-13,1-0), with a final score of 14-12, and Eastern Michigan (21-30,12-18,1-1), with a final score of 10-7.
With the cruel conditions of rain and wind during the MAC tournament so far, multiple delays and schedule changes forced the Falcons to compete in two games in a row. The tough task did not stop BGSU from giving their all throughout both games.
“We’re the only team that had to do it, but we also felt we were the only team capable of doing it,” head coach Kyle Hallock said.
Game One
The Battle of I-75 had made its way to Crushers Stadium in Avon, Ohio, for the MAC baseball tournament, and the heated rivalry did not disappoint on the big stage.
The long-awaited matchup between BGSU and the Toledo Rockets came with even more waiting throughout the hours leading up to and during the game.
After being postponed from the scheduled start time on Wednesday night at 6 p.m. due to rain showers, the matchup was pushed back to Thursday morning with a 9 a.m. start time.
The postponement did not stop the rain from coming, as the hour leading up to the first pitch was filled with drops of rain. The game still started at the rescheduled time before chaos ensued.
The Falcons trotted their way around the bases in the first inning as Toledo starting pitcher Jackson Bergman struggled to gain control of his pitches with the rain pouring down.
The Orange and Brown picked up five runs in the inning while recording zero hits.
As the rain continued to pour, BGSU starting pitcher Jacob Turner also had to battle the rain, which had gotten the best of him as Toledo scored nine runs in the top of the second inning.
Turner had a stint of five walked batters in a row, scoring a run on each.
The Orange and Brown came back quickly with a two-run batted in (RBI) single from sophomore infielder Brady Birchmeier to cut the lead down to two.
The star of the MAC tournament then came back; rain forced the contest to come to a halt and created a seven-hour rain delay.
When the weather was back to playable abilities, redshirt freshman pitcher Nate Kress took the mound to start the third inning.
The Midnight Blue and Gold scored their final five runs of the game in the fifth and sixth innings.
Senior outfielders Caden Konczak and Luke Leto stepped up with a solo home run and a two-RBI triple, along with redshirt sophomores Luke Walton and Troy Sudbrook getting two runs in the sixth with a solo home run and an RBI single.
The Falcons struck back with four runs of their own in a two-out rally contributed by three straight singles and a Birchmeier double, each scoring a run.
The Falcons were no strangers to comeback wins this season, but with two outs and runners on second and third with a chance to win the game, senior utility player Gavin Ganun strikes out to end BGSU’s chances at the comeback.
With the loss, BGSU was then forced to quickly embrace the challenge and face Eastern Michigan 45 minutes after the conclusion of the first game.
“There are many things out of your control, and I thought we did a great job, top to bottom, the whole year of handling what we could control,” Hallock said.
Game Two
With the quick turnaround from their loss to Toledo, the Falcons were put in a dangerous position, being on the brink of elimination from the MAC tournament in their matchup against Eastern Michigan.
BGSU did not let the bright lights get to them defensively as stars shined with multiple highlights.
Senior outfielder Caden Parker and sophomore catcher/outfielder Garrett Wright both had impressive sliding catches created by the wind and rain, along with throw-outs to home plate.
Birchmeier also had plenty of incredible stretches and scoops on his first day back at first base defensively.
Eastern Michigan opened the scoring in the third inning with two sac flies that scored runs.
Senior infielder Gunner Antillon and Parker kept the Orange and Brown fighting with a solo home run and a two-RBI single.
The Green and White scored three more runs before the ninth inning, highlighted by a solo home run by senior outfielder Giano Zuccaro.
As mentioned before, the Falcons tend to have late-game magic when it comes to comebacks this season. As they went into the bottom of the ninth inning, it looked like this would be a similar outcome.
With the Falcons down four and coming up on their final three outs, Birchmeier stepped in the box and hit a three-run homer over the left field fence to cut the lead to one before Parker tied the game with an infield single to send the game to extra innings.
The Falcons and Eagles matchup became the first game to go into extra innings in the MAC tournament this year. Adding even more innings to the Orange and Brown’s long day.
“They continued to compete, show character and represent this university and this baseball program. There should be a lot of people very proud of this group,” Hallock said.
In the tenth inning, Eagles senior outfielder Logan Hugo blasted a ball to the left field wall, which Parker ran into in an attempt to catch it.
This allowed two runs to score and helped push the Eagles over the edge in a 10-7 final in ten innings, keeping their championship hopes alive.
On the other side of the field, the Falcons were officially eliminated from the tournament.
The Orange and Brown received the short end of the stick when it came to weather-related delays and rescheduling, but in life, it’s hard to tell what is going to be thrown at you next.
“Life is not going to be easy all the time; life’s not going to be fair with you,” Coach Hallock said, “The game of baseball can be cruel, but it’s still the greatest game to play.”
