Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
8-6, 2-2
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Western Michigan
5-10, 2-2
Late Game Heroics Help Baseball Earn Doubleheader Split with Western Michigan
3/18/2023 7:05:00 PM | Baseball
The Eagles rallied from a 11-7, eighth-inning deficit to win game two, 12-11
GAME 1 | Western Michigan 5, Eastern Michigan 4
GAME 2 | Eastern Michigan 12, Western Michigan 11
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University baseball team dropped game one of its series against Western Michigan University, 5-4, but rallied to pick up a 12-11 win in game two of today's series-opening doubleheader in Bowling Green, Ky. The three-game, Mid-American Conference set is being played on the campus of Western Kentucky University due to inclement weather in Kalamazoo, Mich., where the series was originally scheduled.
With today's split, Eastern Michigan (9-6, 3-2 MAC) picked up its third MAC victory of the young season and moved to three games above the .500 ledger. Meanwhile, Western Michigan (5-11, 2-3 MAC) dropped six games below that mark.
Senior Thomas House (Ross, Ohio.-Ross) (1-2) started and took the loss on the mound for Eastern Michigan in game one. Senior Zach Gillig (Valley Center, Kan.-Valley Center-Friends University-Pratt C.C.) was a bright spot out of the bullpen, going 5.1 innings, surrendering one run on four hits, walking two and striking out one.
Junior Cory Taylor (Shelbyville, Ind.-Shelbyville) led the way offensively for the Eagles, going 1-for-3 in the ballgame with a triple and a walk. Senior Glenn Miller (Pentwater, Mich.-Pentwater-Spring Arbor) put together a noteworthy day at the dish as well, going 2-for-5 with an RBI. Sophomore Josh Kross (Brunswick, Ohio.-Brunswick-Toledo) also contributed, going 1-for-4 for Eastern Michigan with a double.
In game two, senior Tyler Helgeson (Portage, Mich.-Portage Northern) (2-0) picked up the victory out of the bullpen for Eastern Michigan. The right-hander went 2.1 shutout innings while giving up two hits. Junior Joe Grassi (Holidaysburg, Pa.-Holidaysburg Area-Harford C.C.) also made an impact on the mound for the Eagles, throwing three innings, giving up three runs, one earned, on one hit, with one walk and two strikeouts.
Offensively, the Eagles were led by Kross, who went 2-for-5 on the day with a home run and five RBIs. Junior Cole Wilcox (Shiocton, Wisc.-Shiocton-Lake County) put together a noteworthy performance as well, going 2-for-5 with a double, a home run and two RBIs. Senior Ryan Lux (Shelby Twp., Mich.-Stevenson) also contributed for Eastern Michigan, putting together two hits in four trips to the plate while adding a home run and three RBIs.
How it Happened - Game 1
The Eagles were trailing 5-0 in the eighth inning when they first put runs on the board. Eastern Michigan's offense started clicking and put up four runs, including a one-run groundout off the bat of senior Taylor Hopkins (Mason, Ohio.-Archbishop Moeller). The Eagles were unable to get any closer, as neither team scored again in the ballgame.
Game Notes - Game 1
» Logan Hugo's (Essexville, Mich.-Essexville Garber) double down the left-field line in the top-half of the fifth inning goes down as his first extra-base-hit of the 2023 regular-season as well as the third double in the Essexville, Mich. native's career.
» Taylor rocketed a triple to right-center field in the top of the eighth inning to kick off what would be a four-run inning for the Eagles. Taylor's triple goes down as the second of the season for the Green and White, and the first in Taylor's career.
» Amid Eastern Michigan's four-run eighth inning, Miller singled to left-field scoring Taylor. After tallying one RBI in the Eagles previous game versus Akron, March 12, Miller has now notched back-to-back games with an RBI for the second time this season and has tallied one RBI or more in 4-of-5 games.
» After coming in to relieve House in the bottom of the third, Gillig pitched the remainder of the game (5.1 innings), allowing four hits, one run and striking out one. The 5.1 innings pitched is his longest shift on the bump for the Eagles this season, and the longest since the Valley Center, Kan. Native pitched six innings, allowing no runs, zero walks and striking out two in a 6-3 win over Northern Illinois, May 8, 2022.
» Hopkins grounded-out to second base in the top of the eighth inning, scoring Matt Kirk (Milford, Ohio.-Milford-Cypress-Toledo) in the midst of the Eagles' four-run eighth. The RBI adds to Hopkins' team- high 16, and goes down as the 101 of graduate student's career.
Historical Notes – Game 1
» With the 5-4 loss to the Broncos in the first game of the doubleheader, the Eagles' record versus their cross-state rival now shifts to 42-39.
How it Happened - Game 2
Trailing 5-0, the Eagles first put runs on the board in the third inning. Eastern Michigan hit two home runs in the inning on the way to scoring four runs.
The Broncos expanded their lead to 9-4 before the Eagles offense got back to work, cutting into that lead in the sixth. which brought the score to 9-7 in favor of the Broncos.
Western Michigan expanded their lead to 11-7 before the Eastern Michigan offense got back to work, reducing that lead to 11-9 in the eighth. The Eagles picked up two runs when a single from Kross scored Wilcox and Miller.
Eastern Michigan held the Broncos off the board before taking the lead in the ninth. The inning resulted in three runs for the Eagles, all of them scoring on a three-run homer from Lux to left, bringing the Eastern Michigan advantage to 12-11. The score remained 12-11 for the rest of the game, as the Eagles held on for the win.
Game Notes – Game 2
» Wilcox got the scoring started for the Green and White with a solo homerun to left field in the top of the third inning. Wilcox's homer goes down as the first of his EMU career, and the 15 for the Eagles as a team in the 2023 campaign.
» Joining Wilcox, Kross also homered in the top of the third, a three-run shot for the sophomore goes down as third in his EMU career, tying him with Taylor for the second most long-balls on the team this season. Kirk currently leads the Green and White in homeruns this season with four.
» Wilcox and Kross' respective homers in the top-half of the third inning mark the third time this season the Eagles have had multiple homeruns in the same inning. Taylor and Kirk each homered in the second inning in a 8-3 win over Akron, March 11, along with Blake McRae (Armada, Mich.-Romeo-Lansing C.C.) and Taylor who each homered in the top-half of the fifth in a 5-3 loss to Evansville, Feb. 26.
» Miller singled to center-field in the top of the sixth inning to score Wilcox. This marks Miller's third consecutive game with an RBI, the longest RBI streak of Miller's EMU career.
» With homeruns from Wilcox, Kross, Hopkins, and Lux, the Eagles set a season-high in home runs with four. Furthermore, the Green and White tied a season-high in hits (16) and RBIs (12) in today's 12-11 comeback win. The Eagles notched 16 hits in a 9-0 shutout win over Towson, March 4 as well as driving in 12 runs in a 13-9 win over Northern Kentucky, Feb. 19.
» Kyle Schroedle (Redding, Calif.-University Prep-Crown College) doubled to left-center field in the top half of the fourth inning for his first extra-base-hit of his Eastern Michigan career. The 6-foot-3 outfielder finished the day going 2-for-4 at the plate, marking the second time in his EMU career he has had multiple hits in one game. The Redding, Calif. Native also had two hits in a 11-6 win over Towson, March 5.
» Kross was hot at the plate today for the Eagles. The Brunswick, Ohio. Native drove in a career high five runners in today's contest. Kross' five RBIs are the most in a single game of any EMU batter this season. Furthermore, with Kross' performance today, he now takes the team lead in RBIs with 19.
» It was a career day for Lux as he drilled a go-ahead homer over the left-field wall to put the Eagles on top for good, 12-11. The homer goes down as the first in Lux's career. The Shelby Twp., Mich. native also ended the day with a career-high three RBIs in today's win.
» Hegelson and senior Luke Russo (Howell, Mich.-Howell) combined to shut-down the WMU hitting in the bottom-half of the ninth inning, securing the come-back victory for the Eagles. After being credited with the win, Hegelson is now tied with Russo for the most wins on the team with two. Moreover, Russo was awarded with his second save of the 2023 season, a team high.
Historical Notes – Game 2
» Today's 12-11 comeback win marks the first time the Eagles have come back to win a game in the ninth inning since they plated two in the bottom-half of the ninth inning after being down 5-4 entering the final inning, and eventually winning 6-5 versus Bowling Green, April 29, 2022.
» Eastern Michigan has now come back to win after trailing by four or more runs four times this season. Today's five-run comeback is the second-largest of the season for the Green and White. The team eliminated a six-run deficit to defeat Towson, 11-6, March 5.
Up Next
Eastern and Western will play their rubber-match tomorrow, Sunday, March 19 with the first pitch slated for 1 p.m. ET.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: MILLER, Brady (1-2)
L: House, Thomas (1-2)
Batting:
2B: Kross, Josh 1 ; Hugo, Logan 1
3B: Taylor, Cory 1
RBI: Miller, Glenn 1 ; Kirk, Matt 1 ; Hopkins, Taylor 1
SF: Kirk, Matt 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Miller, Glenn 1 ; Kirk, Matt 1 ; Kross, Josh 1 ; Taylor, Cory 1
SB: Taylor, Cory 2
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Batting:
2B: SWINEHART, J. 1 ; HARRITY, Brendan 1
HR: SULLIVAN, Cade 1
RBI: KITCHEN, Jackson 1 ; SULLIVAN, Cade 2 ; SWINEHART, J. 1 ; BUDIG, Greg 1
SH: HARRITY, Brendan 1
SF: SULLIVAN, Cade 1
Base Running:
RUNS: KITCHEN, Jackson 1 ; SULLIVAN, Cade 1 ; ALLEN, Jimmy 1 ; SWINEHART, J. 2
SB: MORRISON, Will 1
HBP: MORRISON, Will 1
