Eagles Welcome Broncos For Weekend MAC Series

Live Stats Live Audio (Friday Only)

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Following a midweek split against the University of Notre Dame and Michigan State University, the Eastern Michigan University baseball team returns to Mid-American Conference action this weekend, April 3-5, as the Eagles welcome in-state rival Western Michigan University to Oestrike Stadium for a three-game set.
    The Eagles and Broncos get the series underway Friday, April 3, with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m. The series continues Saturday, April 4, with a 3 p.m. tilt before the series finale on Easter Sunday, April 5, set to begin at 1 p.m. Fans will be able to listen to first game of the series live on the airwaves of Eagle All-Access.

THE SERIES: Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan will be meeting on the diamond for the 163rd time Friday evening, with the all-time series deadlocked at 81-81.
    The Broncos took two-of-three from the Eagles last season in Kalamazoo, claiming victories in the first and final games of the series. The pair of victories last season marked the first time WMU had defeated EMU since the 2010 season. The last victory for Western in Ypsilanti came in 2010, the first of a three-game MAC series Friday, April 23.

ON THE MOUND: Head Coach Mark Van Ameyde and the Eagles will go with the same starting rotation as last weekend against Kent State. Senior Charlie Land (2-3, 3.79 ERA) will look to make it three-straight victories in in the series opener against LHP Derek Schneider (1-1, 5.26 ERA) while Saturday will see senior Jake Andrews (2-2, 2.18 ERA) against RHP Chad Mayle (2-2, 4.81 ERA). Junior Augie Gallardo (1-2, 4.79 ERA) will battle LHP Keegan Akin (2-1, 4.45 ERA) in the series finale against Sunday afternoon.

EAGLE ALL-ACCESS RETURNS THIS WEEKEND: The first games of the series Friday night can be heard live on the airwaves of Eagle All-Access free of charge at EMUEagles.com/watch. Veteran play-by-play voice of the Eagles Chad Bush and Greg Steiner will have the call beginning at 5:50 p.m.

SCOUTING WESTERN MICHIGAN: Western Michigan enters the weekend series with an overall record of 10-13 and a 3-3 mark in conference play. The Broncos are coming off a series victory over Ohio University in Athens last weekend. WMU's midweek contest against Northwestern scheduled for Wednesday, April 1, was cancelled.
    At the plate, the Broncos are hitting .252 as team, led by junior Kurt Hoekstra. As of games through March 30, Hoekstra was 35th among all NCAA Division I hitters with his .404 batting average. He has recorded four triples, which is tied for 16th in the country as well. Hoekstra also leads the team in RBI (25) and slugging percentage (.585). Senior outfielder Jared Kujawa is only batting .187 but has a team-best three home runs and is second on the team with 16 runs driven in. Kujawa is also a perfect five-for-five on stolen bases this year.
    On the mound, WMU has compiled a team ERA of 5.17 and is allowing opponents to hit at a .289 clip. Gabe Berman (1-2, 3.66 ERA) and Jacob Piechota (1-0, 3.77 ERA) are first out of the bullpen with a team-high 12 appearances. Berman has recorded five saves while striking out 20 in 19.2 innings pitched. Keegan Akin has made eight starts for the Broncos and has collected a record of 2-1 with a 4.45 ERA.

RECENT SUCCESS AGAINST THE BRONCOS: Even though the all-time series is tied entering this weekend's series between Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan, the Eagles have dominated play over the last eight seasons. Since the 2007 season, EMU has won 21 of the last 25 meetings against the Broncos. The last five out of eight regular season series have resulted in EMU sweeps. The Eagles have taken care of business at Oestrike Stadium as well against their in-state rival, having won eight of the last nine meetings at home.

MID-WEEK REVIEW: The Eagles dropped a 6-0 decision to the University of Notre Dame Tuesday, March 31. EMU out-hit the Fighting Irish, 10-7, but could not put any runs on the board. All nine batters in the lineup reached base in the contest led by a pair of hits from Michael Mioduszewski and Austin Wilson. Freshman Adam Hornstra took the loss in his collegiate debut, pitching three innings and allowing four runs on five hits while striking out one. Brent Mattson pitched the final five innings for the Eagles, allowing two runs on two hits with a pair of strikeouts.
    EMU responded the next night, defeating Michigan State University by a final score of 10-5 at Oestrike Stadium, April 1. The victory was the first over the Spartans since the 2012 season and the first for Head Coach Mark Van Ameyde over his former team. The Eagles recorded a season-high 13 hits in the game, led by another four-hit performance from John Rubino. Jordan Peterson had a solid day as well, recording three hits and one RBI. Mitchell McGeein posted a team-high two RBI for the Eagles.

OFFENSIVE OUTBURST: The Eagles recorded a season-high 13 hits in the 10-5 victory over Michigan State Wednesday night, April 1, at Oestrike Stadium. The 13 hits mark the highest total against the Spartans since the last victory over MSU April 11, 2012, when the Eagles recorded 15 hits in a 13-5 win in East Lansing. Four Eagles had multi-hit performances Wednesday night, led by John Rubino's four hits. Jordan Peterson finished with three while Mike Mioduszewski and Tony DiLeo each had two.

ANOTHER FOUR-HIT DAY FOR RUBINO: Senior John Rubino recorded his second four hit performance in four games for the Eagles against Michigan State, April 1. Rubino also had four hits in the first game of a Sunday doubleheader against Kent State, March 29. The Scottsdale, Ariz. native has now posted four hits in a game four times in his career. His career-high is five base knocks, which he accomplished last season against Ohio University in a 10-5 victory over the Bobcats, April 27.

ON DECK FOR THE EAGLES: Following the three-game MAC series against the Broncos, the Eagles make the short trek to Ann Arbor for a matchup against Washtenaw County rival, the University of Michigan Tuesday, April 7. First pitch against the Wolverines is scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Wilpon Complex. The Green and White will then return home for a rare non-conference matchup with Bowling Green State University at Oestrike Stadium Wednesday, April 8, set to begin at 6 p.m.

ALL EAGLES FLOCK TO ANN ARBOR ON APRIL 7TH: The Eastern Michigan baseball team announced last week that it has added a game against the University of Michigan Tuesday, April 7, at the Wilpon Complex with first pitch scheduled for 4 p.m. The Eagles softball team is scheduled to play in Ann Arbor as well, taking on the Wolverines in a 6 p.m. contest at the Wilpon Complex.

THE DIFFERENCE AT THE PLATE: In the Eagles' 10 victories this season, the Green and White has a team batting average of .319 and has scored 57 runs which is good for 5.7 runs per contest. EMU has belted eight home runs in those nine games as well. Eastern Michigan is hitting over 100 points lower in the 17 losses, however, batting at a .213 clip while only scoring 2.6 runs per game.

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Players Mentioned

Jake Andrews

Tony DiLeo

Augie Gallardo

Adam Hornstra

Charlie Land

Brent Mattson

Mitchell McGeein

Mike Mioduszewski

Jordan Peterson

John Rubino

Austin Wilson

Eastern Michigan Athletics