Eastern Michigan Athletics
Photo by: EMU Athletics/Randy Mascharka
Eagles Set to Face Cross-Divisional Foe Ohio this Weekend
3/29/2012 4:08:00 PM | Baseball
EMU 2-1 in MAC games this season
Complete Release (.pdf)
Live Stats
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com)– The Eastern Michigan University baseball team (9-15; 2-1 MAC) is off to Athens, Ohio to square off with Ohio University Friday-Sunday, March 30-April 1, at Bob Wren Stadium. First pitch on Friday is slated for 6 p.m., while Saturday's contest begins at 3 p.m. and Sunday's at 1 p.m.
EAGLES AND BOBCATS CROSS PATHS IN ATHENS: After splitting a pair of midweek games with Big Ten opponents Ohio State and Michigan, the Eagles prepare for their first of five Mid-American Conference road series of the 2012 season against Ohio.
WHAT'S THE STORY?: EMU and OU have not crossed paths since the Eagles ended the Bobcats' season at the 2009 MAC Tournament. That day, the Green and White cruised to a 13-4 victory while staving off elimination in Chillicothe, Ohio.
Eastern Michigan has enjoyed success over its history with Ohio, leading the all-time series 60-45. The two clubs first met in the 1973 season, when the Eagles came away 5-2 victors, April 6. The Bobcats took the most recent series played between the two schools, 2-1, April 10-12, 2009.
THE SPLITS: Offensively, the Eagles and Bobcats enter the weekend neck-and-neck in several categories including batting average (.284-.280), runs per game (5.8-5.5) and hits per game (9.5-10.0). EMU has sprinted past the pack in triples with 15, but the Bobcats rank second in the MAC with 18 homeruns. Brent Ohrman and Bo Kinder have each legged out four three baggers this season, while OU's Jensen Painter has belted 10 round-trippers.
On paper, the Bobcats carry the edge on the mound as they lead the MAC with a team ERA of 2.53. EMU comes in with the second-highest ERA in the conference (6.81) despite having struck out 173 batters for the third-best mark in the MAC.
DANCES WITH WOLVES: The Eagles and the Michigan Wolverines met for the 173rd time Wednesday afternoon at Oestrike, with the Green and White jumping out to a 10-0 lead before cruising to a 12-2 thumping of its cross-town rival. Michigan holds a 112-59-2 advantage in the all-time series, but EMU has won the last three meetings dating back to last season.
EMU owns a 5-4 record against Michigan since Jay Alexander took over as head coach in 2009. Last season, the Eagles took two-of-three contests from the Wolverines including an 8-2 win at Oestrike and a 3-1 victory in Ann Arbor.
ON POINT: Bo Kinder has reached base in his last 18 contests and has increased his on-base percentage to .406. Likewise, Brent Ohrman is riding a streak of 12 games in which he has reached safely, including a nine-game hitting streak.
FREELANCERS: Patience is a virtue, especially when that virtue puts you 90 feet closer to home. In 24 games, the Eagles have drawn a MAC-best 119 walks for an average of roughly five free passes per contest. The closest challenger to the Eagles' walk total in the conference is Central Michigan (99). Ben Magsig leads the Eagles and the MAC in free passes (21) and was ranked 42nd in the latest NCAA Division I rankings.
Eastern Michigan walked a total of 234 times last season for second-most in the Mid-American Conference to trail only CMU (235).
SWINGING THE HOT STICK: Since the beginning of their series at nationally-ranked Arizona, March 9-11, the Eagles have raised their batting average from .249 to a robust .284. During that 13-game span, Eastern Michigan has recorded 10-or-more hits on six occasions including a pair of games in which they tallied more than 15 knocks.
The Green and White still has a little work to do before it reaches last year's MAC-leading team batting average of .298.
LEGGING IT OUT: According to the latest NCAA composite statistics released March 26, the Eagles' 15 triples are good a top-five ranking nationally. Last week, the Eagles shared the top spot with No. 6 Arizona and Arkansas-Little Rock. Bo Kinder and Brent Ohrman have legged out a MAC-best four triples so far this season.
EMU has already eclipsed its triples total of 12 for the entire 2011 season. The team's slugging percentage is currently .399 with a .381 OBP.
RECORD WATCH: Outfielder Brent Ohrman has recorded 10 stolen bases this season to run his career total to 42, good for the 13th-most all-time among EMU players. With a swiped bag Saturday, March 17, against Niagara, the senior moved past former Eagle speedster Ryan Arnett's (2003-05) career mark of 37 stolen bases.
Ben Magsig's team-best 21 walks this season have increased his career total to 88 and have earned him soul possession of 10th place on the EMU all-time list in that category. His is now just five walks behind current major leaguer Brian Bixler (2002-04), who racked up 93 free passes. The record for walks in a career is held by EMU great Glenn Gulliver, who received 140 free passes from 1973-76.
BUCKEYES TOPPLE EMU AT “THE NICK”: A five-run fourth inning touched off a string of seven unanswered runs for Ohio State, who snapped Eastern Michigan University's two-game winning streak, 13-4, Tuesday evening, March 27, at Nick Swisher Field at Bill Davis Stadium. The Eagles took a 3-2 lead after three innings, but could not keep up with a Buckeyes' offense that amassed 14 hits. The Eagles fell to 10-3 all-time against the Buckeyes.
HOME IS WHERE THE WINS ARE: Oestrike Stadium has served as a safe haven of sorts for the Eagles this season, as they are 6-1 at their home ballpark this season. Conversely, the squad is 2-12 away from Ypsilanti. At home, the Green and White is batting .346 with 54 runs scored (nine runs per game), while averaging just .262 with 63 runs tallied (4.5 runs per game) on the road.
EMU swept Niagara in its first home series of the season, March 16-18, and took two-of-three games from Miami the following weekend, March 23-25. The Eagles own an all-time record of 479-322-2 (.597) at Oestrike, where they played their first game in 1971. A 3-1 win Saturday, March 24, marked the 800th game played at the venue.
REDHAWK DOWN: The Eagles bounced back from an opening-game setback to Miami to steal games two and three from the RedHawks en route to a series win on opening weekend of the 2012 Mid-American Conference season. Miami took the first contest, 9-1, but stingy EMU pitching and flashy defense propelled the Eagles to 3-1 and 4-2 victories Saturday and Sunday.
The rubber match marked the 100th meeting between the two schools. Ryan Lavoie (2-1) picked up his second straight win in that contest to push EMU's all-time record to 57-43 against the RedHawks.
CAN'T TOUCH THIS: Lost–but certainly not forgotten– in the disappointment of the March 23 series-opening loss to Miami was the record-setting performance put on by left-handed reliever Collin Taylor. Taylor fanned a career-high nine batters in 4.1 innings of work while scattering just five hits and issuing no free passes.
The senior hurler has been one of Jay Alexander's most effective arms out of the bullpen this season, carrying an ERA of 2.51 over 14.1 innings of work.
FROM GOOD TO BETTER: The Eagles received another stellar pitching performance from Neil Butara (2-1) in a 3-1 victory over Miami, March 24. Butara recorded a win for a second straight start. He built off last week's victory against Niagara, and tossed 7.1 innings of one-run, nine-hit baseball. He also struck out four batters and issued a pair of walks.
As of March 27, Butara was leading the MAC with a 1.52 ERA over 23.2 innings of work. The Euclid, Ohio native has allowed just four earned runs this season while recording 20 strikeouts and holding opposing batters to a .241 average.
OHRMAN DOES IT ALL: Brent Ohrman was as good offensively as he was defensively in last weekend's 2-1 series victory over Miami. Typically the every day outfielder, Ohrman played third base against the RedHawks and proved to be a stabilizing force in the EMU infield, making several critical defensive plays while not committing an error.
On Saturday, March 24, he notched the game-winning two-RBI double in a 3-1 victory to earn the Eagles their first MAC win of the year. He recorded a stolen base in the final two games to give him 10 on the year and six in his last seven contests.
HITT CAN HIT: Matt Hitt's eight-game hitting streak came to an end in the MAC opener against Miami, March 23. However, the senior catcher has recorded at least one knock in 11 of his last 12 games and carries a team-best OPS of 1.022 due in large part to three doubles and a pair of round-trippers.
The Fisher's, Ind. native was also clutch defensively in the Eagles' series win against Miami, gunning down four-of-six potential RedHawks' base stealers.
LISTEN TO EMU BASEBALL FOR FREE ONLINE!: The EMU Athletic Media Relations Department is pleased to announce that all 2012 radio broadcasts will be available free of charge on EMUEagles.com/showcase. Tuesday's game against the Buckeyes marked the first broadcast of the season, while Wednesday's matchup with Michigan will also be streamed.
A LITTLE MAC HISTORY: Eastern Michigan finished the 2011 campaign one game behind Central Michigan for the MAC West title at 16-11. The last time the Eagles won their division was in 2008, when they also claimed the MAC Tournament championship for the first time since 2003. Under fourth-year Head Coach Jay Alexander, the Green and White has a record of 54-40 against conference opponents.
CLOSE CALL: The Eagles are 1-4 this season in games decided by one run. EMU claimed a 6-5 win over Marshall, March 2, for its third win of the year.
Live Stats
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com)– The Eastern Michigan University baseball team (9-15; 2-1 MAC) is off to Athens, Ohio to square off with Ohio University Friday-Sunday, March 30-April 1, at Bob Wren Stadium. First pitch on Friday is slated for 6 p.m., while Saturday's contest begins at 3 p.m. and Sunday's at 1 p.m.
EAGLES AND BOBCATS CROSS PATHS IN ATHENS: After splitting a pair of midweek games with Big Ten opponents Ohio State and Michigan, the Eagles prepare for their first of five Mid-American Conference road series of the 2012 season against Ohio.
WHAT'S THE STORY?: EMU and OU have not crossed paths since the Eagles ended the Bobcats' season at the 2009 MAC Tournament. That day, the Green and White cruised to a 13-4 victory while staving off elimination in Chillicothe, Ohio.
Eastern Michigan has enjoyed success over its history with Ohio, leading the all-time series 60-45. The two clubs first met in the 1973 season, when the Eagles came away 5-2 victors, April 6. The Bobcats took the most recent series played between the two schools, 2-1, April 10-12, 2009.
THE SPLITS: Offensively, the Eagles and Bobcats enter the weekend neck-and-neck in several categories including batting average (.284-.280), runs per game (5.8-5.5) and hits per game (9.5-10.0). EMU has sprinted past the pack in triples with 15, but the Bobcats rank second in the MAC with 18 homeruns. Brent Ohrman and Bo Kinder have each legged out four three baggers this season, while OU's Jensen Painter has belted 10 round-trippers.
On paper, the Bobcats carry the edge on the mound as they lead the MAC with a team ERA of 2.53. EMU comes in with the second-highest ERA in the conference (6.81) despite having struck out 173 batters for the third-best mark in the MAC.
DANCES WITH WOLVES: The Eagles and the Michigan Wolverines met for the 173rd time Wednesday afternoon at Oestrike, with the Green and White jumping out to a 10-0 lead before cruising to a 12-2 thumping of its cross-town rival. Michigan holds a 112-59-2 advantage in the all-time series, but EMU has won the last three meetings dating back to last season.
EMU owns a 5-4 record against Michigan since Jay Alexander took over as head coach in 2009. Last season, the Eagles took two-of-three contests from the Wolverines including an 8-2 win at Oestrike and a 3-1 victory in Ann Arbor.
ON POINT: Bo Kinder has reached base in his last 18 contests and has increased his on-base percentage to .406. Likewise, Brent Ohrman is riding a streak of 12 games in which he has reached safely, including a nine-game hitting streak.
FREELANCERS: Patience is a virtue, especially when that virtue puts you 90 feet closer to home. In 24 games, the Eagles have drawn a MAC-best 119 walks for an average of roughly five free passes per contest. The closest challenger to the Eagles' walk total in the conference is Central Michigan (99). Ben Magsig leads the Eagles and the MAC in free passes (21) and was ranked 42nd in the latest NCAA Division I rankings.
Eastern Michigan walked a total of 234 times last season for second-most in the Mid-American Conference to trail only CMU (235).
SWINGING THE HOT STICK: Since the beginning of their series at nationally-ranked Arizona, March 9-11, the Eagles have raised their batting average from .249 to a robust .284. During that 13-game span, Eastern Michigan has recorded 10-or-more hits on six occasions including a pair of games in which they tallied more than 15 knocks.
The Green and White still has a little work to do before it reaches last year's MAC-leading team batting average of .298.
LEGGING IT OUT: According to the latest NCAA composite statistics released March 26, the Eagles' 15 triples are good a top-five ranking nationally. Last week, the Eagles shared the top spot with No. 6 Arizona and Arkansas-Little Rock. Bo Kinder and Brent Ohrman have legged out a MAC-best four triples so far this season.
EMU has already eclipsed its triples total of 12 for the entire 2011 season. The team's slugging percentage is currently .399 with a .381 OBP.
RECORD WATCH: Outfielder Brent Ohrman has recorded 10 stolen bases this season to run his career total to 42, good for the 13th-most all-time among EMU players. With a swiped bag Saturday, March 17, against Niagara, the senior moved past former Eagle speedster Ryan Arnett's (2003-05) career mark of 37 stolen bases.
Ben Magsig's team-best 21 walks this season have increased his career total to 88 and have earned him soul possession of 10th place on the EMU all-time list in that category. His is now just five walks behind current major leaguer Brian Bixler (2002-04), who racked up 93 free passes. The record for walks in a career is held by EMU great Glenn Gulliver, who received 140 free passes from 1973-76.
BUCKEYES TOPPLE EMU AT “THE NICK”: A five-run fourth inning touched off a string of seven unanswered runs for Ohio State, who snapped Eastern Michigan University's two-game winning streak, 13-4, Tuesday evening, March 27, at Nick Swisher Field at Bill Davis Stadium. The Eagles took a 3-2 lead after three innings, but could not keep up with a Buckeyes' offense that amassed 14 hits. The Eagles fell to 10-3 all-time against the Buckeyes.
HOME IS WHERE THE WINS ARE: Oestrike Stadium has served as a safe haven of sorts for the Eagles this season, as they are 6-1 at their home ballpark this season. Conversely, the squad is 2-12 away from Ypsilanti. At home, the Green and White is batting .346 with 54 runs scored (nine runs per game), while averaging just .262 with 63 runs tallied (4.5 runs per game) on the road.
EMU swept Niagara in its first home series of the season, March 16-18, and took two-of-three games from Miami the following weekend, March 23-25. The Eagles own an all-time record of 479-322-2 (.597) at Oestrike, where they played their first game in 1971. A 3-1 win Saturday, March 24, marked the 800th game played at the venue.
REDHAWK DOWN: The Eagles bounced back from an opening-game setback to Miami to steal games two and three from the RedHawks en route to a series win on opening weekend of the 2012 Mid-American Conference season. Miami took the first contest, 9-1, but stingy EMU pitching and flashy defense propelled the Eagles to 3-1 and 4-2 victories Saturday and Sunday.
The rubber match marked the 100th meeting between the two schools. Ryan Lavoie (2-1) picked up his second straight win in that contest to push EMU's all-time record to 57-43 against the RedHawks.
CAN'T TOUCH THIS: Lost–but certainly not forgotten– in the disappointment of the March 23 series-opening loss to Miami was the record-setting performance put on by left-handed reliever Collin Taylor. Taylor fanned a career-high nine batters in 4.1 innings of work while scattering just five hits and issuing no free passes.
The senior hurler has been one of Jay Alexander's most effective arms out of the bullpen this season, carrying an ERA of 2.51 over 14.1 innings of work.
FROM GOOD TO BETTER: The Eagles received another stellar pitching performance from Neil Butara (2-1) in a 3-1 victory over Miami, March 24. Butara recorded a win for a second straight start. He built off last week's victory against Niagara, and tossed 7.1 innings of one-run, nine-hit baseball. He also struck out four batters and issued a pair of walks.
As of March 27, Butara was leading the MAC with a 1.52 ERA over 23.2 innings of work. The Euclid, Ohio native has allowed just four earned runs this season while recording 20 strikeouts and holding opposing batters to a .241 average.
OHRMAN DOES IT ALL: Brent Ohrman was as good offensively as he was defensively in last weekend's 2-1 series victory over Miami. Typically the every day outfielder, Ohrman played third base against the RedHawks and proved to be a stabilizing force in the EMU infield, making several critical defensive plays while not committing an error.
On Saturday, March 24, he notched the game-winning two-RBI double in a 3-1 victory to earn the Eagles their first MAC win of the year. He recorded a stolen base in the final two games to give him 10 on the year and six in his last seven contests.
HITT CAN HIT: Matt Hitt's eight-game hitting streak came to an end in the MAC opener against Miami, March 23. However, the senior catcher has recorded at least one knock in 11 of his last 12 games and carries a team-best OPS of 1.022 due in large part to three doubles and a pair of round-trippers.
The Fisher's, Ind. native was also clutch defensively in the Eagles' series win against Miami, gunning down four-of-six potential RedHawks' base stealers.
LISTEN TO EMU BASEBALL FOR FREE ONLINE!: The EMU Athletic Media Relations Department is pleased to announce that all 2012 radio broadcasts will be available free of charge on EMUEagles.com/showcase. Tuesday's game against the Buckeyes marked the first broadcast of the season, while Wednesday's matchup with Michigan will also be streamed.
A LITTLE MAC HISTORY: Eastern Michigan finished the 2011 campaign one game behind Central Michigan for the MAC West title at 16-11. The last time the Eagles won their division was in 2008, when they also claimed the MAC Tournament championship for the first time since 2003. Under fourth-year Head Coach Jay Alexander, the Green and White has a record of 54-40 against conference opponents.
CLOSE CALL: The Eagles are 1-4 this season in games decided by one run. EMU claimed a 6-5 win over Marshall, March 2, for its third win of the year.
Mondays are better after a series win🙂↔️
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Sweeps are fun!
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