Land Tosses Complete Game in Series Opening Loss to Toledo

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University baseball team opened its final series of the 2015 season by dropping a 7-1 decision to the University of Toledo Thursday evening, May 14, at Oestrike Stadium. Despite Charlie Land's second career-complete game, the Rockets (23-30, 15-10 MAC) jumped on the Eagles early and held on for the victory in the series opener.

The Eagles' (19-34, 8-17 MAC) offense was held to a season-low two hits, as juniors Austin Wilson and Jordan Peterson recorded the only base knocks. Senior John Rubino saw his career-best 27-game streak of reaching base come to an end in the contest. Four Rockets recorded multiple hits, with Matt Hansen leading the way with three. Hansen recorded a pair of RBI as well.

Land tossed his second-career complete game in his final collegiate start on the hill for the Eagles. Land (3-8) allowed seven runs on 13 hits while recording five strikeouts, but the senior did not allow a run after the third inning in his 149-pitch effort. Cameron Palmer recorded his team-best sixth victory for the Rockets. Palmer (6-7) allowed just four Eagles to reach base, tossing seven innings of two-hit baseball.

The Rockets jumped on the board early with a first inning run to take a 1-0 advantage. A.J. Montoya came around to score on John Martillotta's RBI single to center for the first run of the contest.

Toledo's offense continued to click in the second and third innings as the Rockets used back-to-back two-run singles up the middle from Hansen and Deion Tansel to extend their lead to 5-0 in the top of the second. UT then tacked on two more runs in the third to push its advantage to 7-0.

Eastern cracked the scoreboard in the bottom of the seventh, taking advantage of a UT error to cut its deficit down to six, 7-1. Peterson got things started with a one-out single up the middle. Following a flyout, Peterson moved up 90-feet on his 17th stolen base of the season. Mitchell McGeein then hit a one-hopper to the shortstop which he threw away, allowing Peterson to come all the way around from second base to put the Eagles on the board.

Neither team could manage any runs past the seventh inning, as the Rockets held on for the 7-1 victory in the series opener.

The Eagles and Rockets continue the final Mid-American Conference series of the season Friday afternoon, May 15, with first pitch of the middle-game scheduled for 3 p.m. at Oestrike Stadium. Fans that cannot attend can listen live on the airwaves of Eagle All-Access free of charge.

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Team Stats

Jordan Peterson

Austin Wilson

Adam Dennison

John Rubino

Players Mentioned

Charlie Land

Mitchell McGeein

Jordan Peterson

John Rubino

Austin Wilson

Players Mentioned

Charlie Land

Mitchell McGeein

Jordan Peterson

John Rubino

Austin Wilson

Eastern Michigan Athletics