Baseball Hits the Road to Play Towson in Four-Game Set

Baseball at Towson
Date	Friday-Sunday, March 3-6
Venue	John B. Schuerholz Park
Preview Info	EMU Notes (PDF) \| Media Guide (PDF)
Live Stats	StatBroadcast
Watch/Listen	FloSports - Friday \| FloSports - Sunday

TOWSON, Md. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University baseball team is back on the road, this time for a four-game tilt against Towson University, Friday-Sunday, March 3-5, inside John B. Schuerholz Park. The weekend will feature one game on both Friday and Sunday, with a Saturday doubleheader.
   Eastern Michigan (2-4, 0-0 MAC) is looking to get back on track after a pair of setbacks to close its three-game trip to Evansville, Feb. 24-26. Meanwhile, Towson (2-6, 0-0 CAA) is looking for three consecutive victories for the first time in 2023.
   First pitch of Friday's series-opener is set for 11 a.m. Saturday's games will be played at 11 a.m., and 2:30 p.m., with the series finale coming Sunday at 1 p.m. Friday and Sunday's games will be aired, via paid subscription, on FloSports. Live stats will also be available the provided link.

SCORING STREAK ENDS AT FIVE: Evansville scored the first run of the series finale between the Eagles and Purple Aces, Feb. 26, marking the first game this season in which Eastern Michigan failed to tally the first run of a game. It ended a five-game stretch for EMU to begin the 2023 season, its longest stretch securing the first run of a game at any point since the 2021 season, when it did so in five straight games between April 18-May 7, against Ball State University (one game), St. Bonaventure (one game), the University of Toledo (one game), and Bowling Green State University (two games).

FUN RUN: Eastern Michigan is one of the most aggressive baseunning teams in the nation, ranking 69th nationally and second in the Mid-American Conference with 11 stolen bases this season. Last season, EMU was 157th in the country with just 52 stolen bags for the season, a 0.96 steals per game average. This year, the Green and White average 1.83 swipes per game, nearly double its 2022 number. Last season, it took EMU 18 games to record its 11th stolen base, compared to just six this season.

SURE HANDED: Eastern Michigan ranks second in the MAC and 44th nationally in fielding percentage (0.982). Eastern went three consecutive games without an error at Evansville, Feb. 24-26, its first such stretch since April 17-20, 2022 in games against Ohio, Siena Heights, and Michigan State.

OBSCURE, YET PAINFUL: Eastern Michigan has earned 13 free bags via hit by pitch this season, the second-highest total of any Mid-American Conference team. EMU has been an average of 2.16 times per game this season, up from 1.44 HBP per contest a season ago.

NO RUN NICK: Right handed pitcher Nick Chittum is one of just 59 pitchers across NCAA Division I baseball who is yet to surrender an earned run in 2023. The Grosse Ile, Mich. native has allowed four hits and one walk in 6.0 innings of work this season. His most recent appearance saw him go 4.2 clean innings in a start against Evansville, Feb. 25. EMU ultimately fell, 9-7, but Chittum exited without surrendering a run.

TEN STRAIGHT SIT: Nick Chittum retired a career-high 10 consecutive batters to start the game against Evansville, Feb. 25. His previous high of five consecutive retirements came last season against Alma, April 27.

GOOD EYE GLENN: Senior Glenn Miller is one of the hardest players in the nation to strike out in 2023. The second-year Eagle has fanned just once every 21.0 at bats this season, the 37th-best figure in the nation. Last season, Miller stuck out once every seven at bats. Fellow Eagle Josh Kross also ranks inside the nation's top-50 in the category, ranking 49th with a strikeout just every 17 at bats.

HIT HIT, WIN: The Eagles outhit the Purple Aces at an 8-3 clip, Feb. 24, en route to a 5-2 victory. It marked the first time this season the Green and White has outhit its opponent, and the first time overall since it outpaced Kent State, 18-10, en route to a 15-8 victory over the Golden Flashes, March 21, 2022. Eastern Michigan was 16-4 in games in which it outhit its opponents last season.

STIFLING DEFESNE: The Eagles were on-par defensively in the first of a three-game set versus the Purple Aces of Evansville, Feb. 24. The EMU defense allowed just two runs in the game. The two runs marked the lowest run total given up this season and the fewest since the Green and White allowed a single run in a 5-1 win over Alma College, April 27, 2022.

SPECIAL K: Eastern Michigan pitching combined to strike out 11 Purple Aces hitters in the first game against Evansville, Feb. 24. That number is the highest single-game total of the season, and the most in a game since EMU hurlers struck out 12 against Kent State, May 21, 2022.

POWERFUL PEN PERFORMANCE: Senior Luke Russo came on in relief and collected six strikeouts en route to the win on the mound, Feb. 24 at Evansville. In addition to his six strikeouts, Russo (1-0) tossed 4.1 no-hit innings. The third-highest strikeout total in his career, it was the most for Russo since he collected seven in a game against Bowling Green, May 1, 2022. Additionally, Russo is now 5-0 since the start of the 2022 campaign. His last loss on the mound came April 17, 2021, against Ball State. The effort against the Purple Aces was his first without allowing a hit since May 15, 2021 against Northern Illinois. Moreover, the six punchouts are good for third most in relief by an Eastern Michigan pitcher since former Eagle Frankie Volkers sat down six against Northern Illinois, May 8, 2022.

KRISS KROSS WILL MAKE YOU JUMP: Sophomore Josh Kross continued his stellar start to the 2023 season with an impressive weekend against Evansville, Feb. 24-26. The first-year Eagle finished the weekend hitting at a .500 clip, with five hits in 10 trips to the plate. He notched two extra-base hits, and tallied a team-best six RBIs, all while going without a strikeout.
       His weekend got started off with a bang as he helped the Eagles pick up a Friday night win. Up 3-2, Kross blasted a two-run shot in the top half of the eighth inning that all but put the game away.
   On Saturday, he delivered a three-hit, four-RBI day. The RBI totals are not only the most for a single-game in his career and also tie for the most by any EMU player this year as well as for the fourth most by any player in the league.

HOME RUN FUN: Blake McRae and Cory Taylor each blasted a homer for the Eagles in the top-half of the fifth inning, Feb. 26, at Evansville. For McRae, it was the first hit of his EMU career. It was the third long ball of Taylor's career. Furthermore, it was the first time EMU has hit two home runs in the same inning since Matt Kirk and Aaron Dolney went back-to-back versus Central Michigan University, May 15, 2022.

DISCIPLINED AT THE DISH: Matt Kirk garnered two intentional walks and three overall in the second game at Evansville, Feb. 25. Kirk leads EMU with five walks this season and is the only Eastern player with multiple walks in a single game this season. Furthermore, Kirk became the first Green and White batter to notch three walks in a single game since former Eagle Daniel Warkentin was also walked three times in a 6-4 loss to Western Michigan University, April 3, 2022.

STARTING OFF HOT: Senior Glenn Miller has seamlessly transitioned to hitting lead-off for EMU this season. With his first inning lead-off single Feb. 25 versus Evansville, the Pentawater, Mich. native has now been on base in his first at-bat in 4-of-6 games played in the 2023 regular-season. The stretch marks the most efficient stint as a lead-off man in Miller's career.

STAT STUFFING DEBUT: Logan Milene made his first start for the Green and White at Evansville, Feb. 25. The North Iowa C.C. transfer doubled to deep left-center in the top of the second inning. The double, which plated teammate Josh Kross, was the first extra-base hit and RBI for Milene. He added a stolen base and run scored in the fifth inning.

BIG BAT MATT: Graduate student Matt Kirk notched his second multi-hit game of the 2023 season with a two-knock day at Evansville, Feb. 24. Last season, Kirk led the Eagles with 24 multi-hit games.

ALL-TIME AGAINST TOWSON: Eastern Michigan and Towson will meet for the first time during this weekend's series.

ON THE HORIZON: After the four-game set at Towson, Eastern Michigan returns to the Mitten State for a midweek game at Oakland University, March 7. Following that game, EMU is set to begin league play with a trip to the University of Akron Friday-Sunday, March 10-12.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Nick Chittum

Aaron Dolney

Matt Kirk

Josh Kross

Blake McRae

Logan Milene

Glenn Miller

Luke Russo

Cory Taylor

Frankie Volkers

Daniel Warkentin

Eastern Michigan Athletics