Eastern Breaks Late Tie for 9-6 Victory Against MAC Leader Kent State

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YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University baseball team broke through after a 6-6 tie in the seventh inning to defeat the Kent State University Golden Flashes, 9-6 Friday, inside Oestrike Stadium.

Junior Jagger Jefferies (Barnesville, Ohio-Barnesville-Bryant & Stratton C.C.) (3-2) got the win out of the bullpen for Eastern Michigan (23-24, 9-16 MAC). The southpaw went three shutout innings, giving up one hit, two walks and striking out two. The win brought Kent State's (35-14, 19-6) five-game win streak to an end.

How it Happened
Sophomore Josh Kross (Brunswick, Ohio-Brunswick-Toledo) led the way offensively for the Eagles, going 2-for-4 in the ballgame with a home run and two RBIs. Senior Blake McRae (Armada, Mich.-Romeo-Lansing C.C.) put together a standout performance at the plate as well, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs.

Junior Cole Wilcox (Shiocton, Wisc.-Shiocton-Lake County) also contributed, going 1-for-3 for Eastern Michigan with a double and two RBIs.

Game Notes
» Kross smashed a homer to left center in the bottom of the first, putting the Eagles up 1-0 at the time with his 14th long ball of the season. With the home run, the switch hitter is now tied for fifth in the Mid-American Conference.
» Taylor Hopkins (Mason, Ohio-Archbishop Moeller) roped a single to left field, scoring Kross for the Eagles third run of the game, and marking the shortstops 64th hit and 46th RBI of the season.
» McRae drilled a single to left field in the top of the fourth inning, scoring Aaron Dolney (Plymouth, Mich.-Detroit Country Day-Nebraska-Hillsborough C.C.) for his ninth RBI of the regular season. Moreover, the Armada, Mich. native's RBI in the fourth marks the first time McRae has recorded a hit with a runner in scoring position this year. Also recording a base knock through the middle of the infield in the first, the senior notched his fifth multi-hit this season. Next, the senior flied out to shallow right field for the sacrifice fly, driving in EMU's ninth and final run of the game, and marking McRae's third multi-RBI performance.
» Eastern Michigan plated runs in four of the first five innings Friday afternoon, entering the sixth inning tied 5-5 with the Golden Flashes. Today marks the first time the Green and White have scored in four out of the first five frames since it did so versus the Zips from the University of Akron earlier this season, April 18.
» Cory Taylor (Shelbyville, Ind.-Shelbyville) singled to shortstop in the fifth inning, scoring Kross for the Shelbyville, Ind. native's 43rd base hit and 27th RBI this season. The second baseman now has a hit in six straight contest which is currently the longest on the team. Taylor also owns the team's longest hit streak this season as he tallied a knock in 12 straight games, Feb. 19-March 18.
» Dolney rocked a double out to left center field for a two-bagger to lead off Eastern's portion of the sixth. The double goes down as the catcher's sixth of the season, and 15th overall extra-base-hit. With a single to left field in the eighth, Dolney captured his 11th multi-hit outing.
» Wilcox came through with a terrific at-bat in the eighth, smacking a chopper down the left field line and scoring two Eagles, giving the Green and White a two run cushion at the time. Ending the day with two RBIs, the Shiocton, Wisc. Native recorded his third multi-RBI game, also doing so versus Towson University, March 4, and Western Michigan University, March 18.
» EMU pitching held Kent State's Aidan Longwell hitless this afternoon. This marks just the fifth time the MAC's leading hitter has been held hitless all season.
» Jefferis came in to pitch in the seventh inning and tossed the remainder of the game, allowing just one hit and tallying two strikeouts, eventually securing his third win as an Eagle.

Historical Notes
» Friday afternoon's contest marks the 127th all-time meeting between Kent State and Eastern Michigan, after today's game, the Eagles now hold a 48-79 all-time record when matching up with the Golden Flashes.
» With Friday afternoon's win, Eagles Head Coach Eric Roof has eclipsed the century mark in wins. Roof now joins former Green and White skippers, Ron Oestrike (658), Roger Coryell (544), Jay Alexander (159), and Bill Crouch (153) in the 100-win club.
» Kross is now three home runs away from tying his teammate Matt Kirk (Milford, Ohio-Milford-Cypress-Toledo) for fourth in Eastern Michigan baseball history with 17 homers in a single season. Kirk accomplished this last season, en route to capturing MAC Player of the Year honors. The sophomore grounded out to second base in his second at-bat scoring McRae and earning his 19th multi-RBI outing of the 2023 campaign. Kross is now just three RBIs away from tying former Eagle Matt Skirving who drove in 64 in the 2009 season.
» Logan Hugo (Essexville, Mich.-Essexville Garber) followed suit after Dolney, as he too would double to left field, for his ninth double of the season. One more double from the Essexville, Mich. native means the Eagles would have six batters with double-digit doubles for the first time since the 2011 season, when former Eagles Zack Leonard, Brent Ohrman, Ken Battison, Ben Magsig, Lee Longo, and Daniel Russel all knocked double-digit doubles throughout the season.

Up Next
The Eagles and Golden Flashes will play the second game of their three-game set tomorrow, Saturday, May 13 at 3 p.m. The game will be streamed live on EMUEagles.com/watch with Greg Steiner and Alex Jewell on the call. Fans can also follow along via Twitter with live in-game updates @EMU_Baseball.

Eastern Breaks Late Tie for 9-6 Victory Against MAC Leader Kent State

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Team Stats

Josh Kross

Aaron Dolney

Logan Hugo

Blake McRae

Players Mentioned

Aaron Dolney

Taylor Hopkins

Logan Hugo

Matt Kirk

Blake McRae

Cory Taylor

Cole Wilcox

Players Mentioned

Aaron Dolney

Taylor Hopkins

Logan Hugo

Matt Kirk

Blake McRae

Cory Taylor

Cole Wilcox

Eastern Michigan Athletics