Baseball Walks-Off Conference-Leading Bowling Green, 10-9

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YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University baseball team rallied to score three in the ninth inning and walked it off on sophomore Drew Jones' two-run double to pick up the 10-9 win over the Bowling Green State University Falcons Friday, May 10, at Oestrike Stadium.

Junior Mat Sanfilippo (Webster, N.Y./Webster Schroeder/Niagara C.C.) (1-0) picked up the victory out of the bullpen for Eastern, recording a pivotal strikeout with the bases loaded in the top of the ninth inning.

At the plate, the Eagles were paced by senior Kyle Schroedele (Redding, Calif./University Prep/Crown College), who went 2-for-4 on the day with a double, a home run, a walk and three RBI.

Jones (Cleveland, Ohio/Brush/Ohio State) put together a standout day at the dish as well, going 3-for-4 with a double, a walk and two RBI. Senior Blake McRae (Armada, Mich./Romeo/Lansing C.C.) also contributed for Eastern Michigan, putting together three hits in four trips to the plate while adding a walk and an RBI.

How it Happened
Trailing 4-0, the Eagles first put runs on the board in the second inning. Eastern Michigan plated two runs when Schroedle left the yard with senior Cory Taylor (Shelbyville, Ind./Shelbyville) aboard.

The Eagles kept the Falcons off the board before narrowing the gap further in the third. Eastern Michigan scored once on an RBI single off the bat of Taylor, which tightened the Falcons lead to 4-3.

EMU kept the Falcons off the board before rallying to snatch a 6-4 lead in the fourth, first grabbing the lead off an RBI single from Giano Zuccaro (Middleburg Heights, Ohio/Berea Midpark/Charleston).

Eastern Michigan surrendered the lead they built in the fourth, but got back on the board in the eighth trailing 8-6. The Eagles scored once on an RBI single off the bat of McRae, bringing the score to 8-7 in favor of Bowling Green.

Bowling Green extended their lead to 9-7 before Eastern Michigan rallied to score three times in the bottom half of the ninth to claim victory, culminating in Jones' two-run walk-off double.

Game Notes
» Schroedle hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the second. This was his team leading 10th home run of the season. Furthermore, his two hits marked his 14th multi hit game of the season. He also collected three RBI which gives him his third three RBI game of the season and puts his total for the 2024 campaign at 34.
» Zuccaro hit an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to take the lead at the time. This marks his 18th consecutive game reaching base and his 30th RBI of the year. Zuccaro's hit increased his active team-long hitting streak to five games.
» Lucas Johnson (Hamilton, Ontario/Westdale Secondary/Wright State) finished the game with two hits for his 14th multi-hit game of the 2024 campaign.
» With 15 hits the Eagles surpassed the double-digit hits mark for the 26th time this season.
» Bobby Jones (Loveland, Ohio/St. Xavier/Xavier) finished with eight strikeouts and two walks. This marks his second game with eight strikeouts this season.
» McRae recorded three hits for his fifth three hit game of the season. He also crossed the plate twice to increase his team lead in runs to 40.
» Jones produced three hits from the plate, marking his first three-hit game of the season and his second multi-hit game in the previous four games. His final hit was a two-RBI walk off double, marking his fourth multi-RBI day of the season.
» The Eagles 10-9 walk-off win marked its third comeback and walk-off victory of the season. They previously did so against Central Michigan University, besting the Chippewas 5-4, March 28, and 6-5, March 30.
» Sanfilippo earned his first Division I win on the mound as he entered the game in relief effort in the top of the ninth to get the pivotal last out of the inning via the strikeout.

Historical Notes
» Friday's contest marked the 189th all-time meeting between the Eagles and the Falcons. With the win, the Eagles furthered their all-time series lead to 112-77.
» Taylor recorded his 100th career hit on an RBI single in the bottom of the third. He became the third Eagle this season to do so along with Logan Hugo (Essexville, Mich./Essexville Garber) and Glenn Miller (Pentwater, Mich./Pentwater/Spring Arbor).

Up Next
The Eagles and Falcons will run it back for game two tomorrow, Saturday, May 11. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.

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Team Stats

Blake McRae

Drew Jones

Lucas Johnson

Brendan Kleiman

Players Mentioned

Logan Hugo

Lucas Johnson

Bobby Jones

Drew Jones

Blake McRae

Glenn Miller

Mat Sanfilippo

Cory Taylor

Giano Zuccaro

Players Mentioned

Logan Hugo

Lucas Johnson

Bobby Jones

Drew Jones

Blake McRae

Glenn Miller

Mat Sanfilippo

Cory Taylor

Giano Zuccaro

Eastern Michigan Athletics