Eastern Michigan Athletics
Sunday, April 8
Kalamazoo, Mich.
1 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
13-18, 6-3
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Western Michigan
14-14, 5-3
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Eastern Michigan
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Western Michigan
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Photo by: EMU Athletics/Randy Mascharka
Eagles Soar into First Place with 9-5 Win in Kalamazoo
4/8/2012 5:40:00 PM | Baseball
Ryan Lavoie strikes out 11 as Eagles broom Broncos
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (EMUEagles.com)— The Eastern Michigan University baseball team added to some gorgeous Easter Sunday weather with a 9-5 win to sweep the weekend series with Mid-American Conference West Division rival Western Michigan University, April 8, at Hyames Field. The Eagles got off to a 5-3 lead with a run in the third inning and rode a seven-inning, 11-strikeout performance from Ryan Lavoie to take over first place in the division.
The Eagles (13-18; 6-3 MAC) erased a 1 1/2 game deficit at the onset of the weekend to the Broncos (14-14; 5-3 MAC) with a three-game total of 37 runs and a team batting average of .339 (39-for-115). The Broncos hit a combined .420 (50-for-119) but struggled defensively with eight errors which led to several big innings for EMU.
With Central Michigan's 10-9 loss to Toledo Sunday, the Eagles have sole possession of top spot in the highly-competitive West Division and are a half game in front of the Broncos.
On the mound, Lavoie (3-1) provided the stability that either team was looking for in the series. The freshman pitcher easily surpassed his previous single-game high for strikeouts and set the 2012 season standard while fanning the most batters in an outing since Corey Chaffins racked up 13, May 14, 2010.
Relievers Collin Taylor and Joe Battistelli combined for three punchouts to bring the game total to 14, which was good for a season high.
Ben Magsig followed up his 3-for-5 performance in Friday's win with a 4-for-6 showing Sunday which included a three-run homerun in the ninth to pad the EMU lead. The long ball was his second of the season. He finished the day with four runs driven in and one scored.
Daniel Russell also went yard for the first time this season with a solo shot in the fifth which proved to be the game winning tally. He went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a pair of runs scored.
Brent Ohrman went 2-for-5 on the afternoon with a run scored to complete a 10-for-15 (.667) weekend at the dish with a slugging percentage of .776. The Adrian, Mich. native scored eight runs over three games and posted three RBI while extending his hitting streak to 16 games.
Broncos' starter Will Nimke (1-1) lasted just one inning as a result of allowing three runs on five hits. Mike Moyer surrendered Magsig's homer in the ninth and pitched 1.1 innings.
Patrick Duncan (2-for-4), Caleb Canton (2-for-4), Andrew Sohn (2-for-4) and Jordan Tillman (2-for-3) all posted multiple-hit games for WMU.
In the first, Ohrman snuck a single through the left side and Sam Ott followed with a double to put runners on second and third with one out. Both runners scored when Matt Hitt reached base and advanced all the way to third on a fielding error by WMU third baseman Ryan McMillin. Jamie Simpson plated the final run of the frame to get EMU off to a 3-0 lead.
John Rubino increased the lead to 4-0 in the second when he scored on a wild pitch.
After Lavoie worked a scoreless first inning, the Broncos cut it to a one-run contest with three tallies in the bottom of the second. The freshman right hander uncorked a pair of wild pitches, one of which resulted in a run. The other two came as the result of a Sohn single with one out.
The Green and White drew back-to-back walks to start the third. Magsig drove in the lead baserunner, Russell, to push the lead back to a pair, 5-3. Russell's next plate appearance was in the fifth inning, when he blasted his first homer of the season to lead off the frame and make it a 6-3 contest.
Lavoie settled in nicely after one trip through the WMU batting order, retiring seven consecutive batters from the start of the third inning before allowing a single to Vinnie Booker with one down in the fifth. In the sixth, the Sterling Heights, Mich. native struck out the side to preserve EMU's three-run margin.
Western Michigan pushed a run across in the seventh when Zach Thoma drove in Sohn on a single. Catcher Adam Dennison ended the inning and limited the Broncos to a single score when he gunned down Thoma trying to steal second base.
EMU was poised to break the game wide open in the eighth after Hitt walked to load the bases with just one out. The Eagles could not capitalize, however, as Simpson popped up to second base and Tucker Rubino went down on strikes.
Magsig made up for it in the ninth with a three-run jack to right field to put the finishing touches on an undefeated weekend. Rubino (John) and Russell came around to score on the senior infielder's second bomb of the season.
The Broncos added a final run on a Taylor wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth, but Battistelli came on to secure the final three outs of the game to put the final score at 9-5 for the visitors.
The Eagles are back in action Wednesday, April 11, with a non-conference tilt against Michigan State University in East Lansing, Mich. First pitch is slated for 3:05 p.m.
The Eagles (13-18; 6-3 MAC) erased a 1 1/2 game deficit at the onset of the weekend to the Broncos (14-14; 5-3 MAC) with a three-game total of 37 runs and a team batting average of .339 (39-for-115). The Broncos hit a combined .420 (50-for-119) but struggled defensively with eight errors which led to several big innings for EMU.
With Central Michigan's 10-9 loss to Toledo Sunday, the Eagles have sole possession of top spot in the highly-competitive West Division and are a half game in front of the Broncos.
On the mound, Lavoie (3-1) provided the stability that either team was looking for in the series. The freshman pitcher easily surpassed his previous single-game high for strikeouts and set the 2012 season standard while fanning the most batters in an outing since Corey Chaffins racked up 13, May 14, 2010.
Relievers Collin Taylor and Joe Battistelli combined for three punchouts to bring the game total to 14, which was good for a season high.
Ben Magsig followed up his 3-for-5 performance in Friday's win with a 4-for-6 showing Sunday which included a three-run homerun in the ninth to pad the EMU lead. The long ball was his second of the season. He finished the day with four runs driven in and one scored.
Daniel Russell also went yard for the first time this season with a solo shot in the fifth which proved to be the game winning tally. He went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a pair of runs scored.
Brent Ohrman went 2-for-5 on the afternoon with a run scored to complete a 10-for-15 (.667) weekend at the dish with a slugging percentage of .776. The Adrian, Mich. native scored eight runs over three games and posted three RBI while extending his hitting streak to 16 games.
Broncos' starter Will Nimke (1-1) lasted just one inning as a result of allowing three runs on five hits. Mike Moyer surrendered Magsig's homer in the ninth and pitched 1.1 innings.
Patrick Duncan (2-for-4), Caleb Canton (2-for-4), Andrew Sohn (2-for-4) and Jordan Tillman (2-for-3) all posted multiple-hit games for WMU.
In the first, Ohrman snuck a single through the left side and Sam Ott followed with a double to put runners on second and third with one out. Both runners scored when Matt Hitt reached base and advanced all the way to third on a fielding error by WMU third baseman Ryan McMillin. Jamie Simpson plated the final run of the frame to get EMU off to a 3-0 lead.
John Rubino increased the lead to 4-0 in the second when he scored on a wild pitch.
After Lavoie worked a scoreless first inning, the Broncos cut it to a one-run contest with three tallies in the bottom of the second. The freshman right hander uncorked a pair of wild pitches, one of which resulted in a run. The other two came as the result of a Sohn single with one out.
The Green and White drew back-to-back walks to start the third. Magsig drove in the lead baserunner, Russell, to push the lead back to a pair, 5-3. Russell's next plate appearance was in the fifth inning, when he blasted his first homer of the season to lead off the frame and make it a 6-3 contest.
Lavoie settled in nicely after one trip through the WMU batting order, retiring seven consecutive batters from the start of the third inning before allowing a single to Vinnie Booker with one down in the fifth. In the sixth, the Sterling Heights, Mich. native struck out the side to preserve EMU's three-run margin.
Western Michigan pushed a run across in the seventh when Zach Thoma drove in Sohn on a single. Catcher Adam Dennison ended the inning and limited the Broncos to a single score when he gunned down Thoma trying to steal second base.
EMU was poised to break the game wide open in the eighth after Hitt walked to load the bases with just one out. The Eagles could not capitalize, however, as Simpson popped up to second base and Tucker Rubino went down on strikes.
Magsig made up for it in the ninth with a three-run jack to right field to put the finishing touches on an undefeated weekend. Rubino (John) and Russell came around to score on the senior infielder's second bomb of the season.
The Broncos added a final run on a Taylor wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth, but Battistelli came on to secure the final three outs of the game to put the final score at 9-5 for the visitors.
The Eagles are back in action Wednesday, April 11, with a non-conference tilt against Michigan State University in East Lansing, Mich. First pitch is slated for 3:05 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Lavoie, Ryan (3-1)
L: NIMKE (1-1)
Batting:
2B: Ott, Sam 1
HR: Magsig, Ben 1 ; Russell, Daniel 1
RBI: Magsig, Ben 4 ; Hitt, Matt 1 ; Simpson, Jamie 1 ; Russell, Daniel 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Magsig, Ben 1 ; Ohrman, Brent 1 ; Ott, Sam 1 ; Hitt, Matt 1 ; Rubino, Tucker 1 ; Russell, Daniel 2 ; Rubino, John 2
SB: Russell, Daniel 1
HBP: Russell, Daniel 1 ; Dennison, Adam 1
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Batting:
2B: CATON 2
RBI: THOMA 1 ; SOHN 1
Base Running:
RUNS: McMILLIN 1 ; DUNCAN 1 ; CATON 1 ; SHUTES, Dan 1 ; SOHN 1
SB: SHUTES, Dan 1 ; TILLMAN 1
CS: THOMA 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
6
R
1
H
4
RBI
4
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
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