Toledo baseball (31-28, 18-13) continues their miracle run in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament on Saturday, defeating Ball State (36-22, 21-9), the preseason favorites to win the conference tournament, 13-10 in the loser’s bracket semifinal matchup at Crushers Stadium in Avon, eliminating the Cardinals.
The contest was a back-and-forth battle, featuring 21 runs scored, 22 hits, four errors and four lead changes. The Rockets out-hit the Cardinals 15-8.
Ball State opened the scoring in the first inning, with junior infielder Blake Bevis driving in a run on a single before senior outfielder Houston King drove in Bevis with a double down the left field line, giving the Cardinals an early 2-0 lead.
However, Toledo’s offense exploded in the top of the third inning, scoring four runs to take a 4-2 lead.
Sophomore infielder Charlie Scholvin drove in a run with a ground-rule double down the left field line. Sophomore infielder Cole Cahill and senior catcher Brayden White drove in a run apiece with singles, with Cahill also scoring on a wild pitch.
BSU’s starting pitcher, 7-foot graduate student left-hander Will Jacobsen, only threw 54 pitches in 2.1 innings, allowing four runs on six hits. Jacobsen finished the outing with just one walk and four strikeouts in only his second start this season.
But Ball State responded with four straight unanswered runs over the next three innings, taking a 6-4 lead halfway through the game.
Senior infielder Alex Richter drove in a run on a fielder’s choice in the third inning. Then, in the fourth frame, senior infielder Nick Husovsky reached on a fielder’s choice after a possible inning-ending double play with the bases loaded was butchered by an errant throw to first by Scholvin, allowing graduate student outfielder Clay Jacobs to score.
Richter again left his fingerprints on the game in the fifth inning, launching a solo home run over the right center field wall.
Toledo’s starter, 6-foot-6 right-handed junior Jackson Bergman, allowed six runs, including four earned, and six hits across 86 pitches through five innings. Bergman, who had a strikeout and a walk, previously threw just over 45 pitches in a rain-filled two innings against Bowling Green on Thursday morning.
However, Toledo completely flipped the script in the top of the seventh inning, scoring seven runs to take a commanding 11-6 lead.
Redshirt sophomore outfielder Luke Walton delivered an RBI single before senior infielder Kaleb Herbert and senior outfielder Caden Konczak each drove in a run on back-to-back bases-loaded walks with just one out in the inning.
Then, redshirt sophomore infielder Troy Sudbrook drove in a run on a ground out before Cahill hit an RBI single through the right side of the infield. Finally, Scholvin scored after Cahill got caught in a rundown attempting to steal second with two outs.
Although he worked a fairly clean first three innings in relief, BSU senior right-hander Garrett Harker got bashed at the end of his appearance, taking the loss. Harker tossed 72 pitches in 4.0 innings, allowing four runs on six hits while striking out three batters and walking two.
Ball State Junior right-handed Owen Quinn also had a rough outing, allowing two runs while recording just one out.
But the Cardinals did not go down without a fight.
Junior infielder Ben Giovannetti drove in two runs with a single to left center field, and Richter scored on a double play, bringing Ball State back within two runs, 11-9.
The Rockets added more padding in the top of the ninth, scoring two more insurance runs on a Sudbrook hit-by-pitch and walk drawn by senior outfielder Luke Leto with the bases loaded to increase their lead to 13-10.
Toledo junior left-hander RJ Shunck earned the win. Shunk allowed three runs and walks across 31 pitches in his lone inning of work.
Meanwhile, UT’s junior right-hander Nathan Leininger earned the save, allowing just one run and two hits while striking out three batters in 3.0 innings.
Next, Toledo will face the loser of the Miami (OH) and Kent State matchup at 6 p.m., with a trip to the MAC Tournament Championship on the line.
