BGSU baseball (4-10, 1-2) began Mid-American Conference (MAC) play with a series loss to Kent State before following it up with a midweek win against Dayton.
There have been numerous lineup changes made by head coach Kyle Hallock that have resulted in more success after a rough start to the season.
The first change by Hallock came in the batting order, when he decided to make a flip between senior infielder Sam Seidel and junior infielder Vinny Salvione. Up until the teams series against Samford, Seidel had batted in the second spot and Salvione had batted in the lead-off spot.
Since the two middle infielders have made the switch in the batting order, the Falcons have picked up three wins, with Seidel and Salvione combining for seven RBIs and six hits, including a triple and two home runs. Salvione also had two more home runs in the losses to Kent State.
The Falcons next solution came from the freshman duo of utility player Griffin Scheiderer and catcher Andrew DiLodovico, who started all three games of the Kent State series at left field and catcher, respectively.
Scheiderer started the season as an occasional designated hitter and has since made four appearances in left field.
DiLodovico began the season splitting reps at catcher with senior Cooper McKenzie, but against the Golden Flashes became the first of the two to start an entire series at that position this season.
Both freshmen were able to make multiple impact plays throughout the previous series, including Scheiderer being the first run scored for the Falcons in their 7-2 win over KSU.
The next switch by Hallock came on the mound, as redshirt sophomore right-hander Nate Kress and freshman left-hander Jackson Miller were given then start on the mound on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
Kress helped boost BGSU to their 7-2 victory over Kent State, going five innings and allowing only two runs and six hits with five strikeouts in his first start of the season.
“He’s been our best guy out of the bullpen from the start of the season. He does everything we ask at a high level,” Hallock said. “So, it was his turn. We trusted him to get us off to a good start, and we definitely feel good about home moving forward behind Turner.”
In the Sunday rubber match game, Miller was given his first collegiate start and produced a good outing, even though the outcome did not go in the favor of Bowling Green.
The White Lake, Michigan, native worked through the first four innings, giving up just one run on three hits, three walks and three strikeouts.
In addition to superb starting pitching, redshirt senior left-hander Ethan Stade provided a pivotal relief outing that included 11 strikeouts in only four innings on the mound.
The Minnesota State transfer was named MAC Pitcher of the Week for his performance against the Golden Flashes.
The Orange and Brown head into their second MAC series of the season on Friday against Miami (OH) in Oxford, Ohio. Already taking a win against the Flyers, Hallock sees the potential for a huge momentum boost heading into the teams first home games of the season.
“I think it could mean something really good. I feel good about the way we went about our business and the level of baseball we can play,” Hallock said. “Hopefully, when we’re talking next week, maybe at the end of the season, it’s this drive down I-75 that got us right and got us going.”
