MAC Bats: April 10

Bowling Green 10, IPFW 4

After going down 2-0 after four innings, the Falcons (12-16, 5-4 MAC) responded with four-run innings in the fifth and ninth innings to escape Fort Wayne with the win. Dylan Dohanos had himself a day offensively with three hits, two runs scored, a RBI, a stolen base, and a walk. The pitching staff had a strong outing with seven strikeouts, three walks, and three earned runs allowed. BG now hosts Miami in a weekend series that will be pivotal if it wants to get in the picture at the top of the conference.

Eastern Michigan 9, Oakland 10

The Eagles were in a great position late to pick up the victory as they held a 9-8 lead after seven innings, but a RBI-single scoring a hit batsman and a two-out RBI-single resulted in a walk-off win for Oakland. Five EMU players had a pair of hits in the contest as Taylor Hopkins drove in two runners while didn’t play poorly with seven strikeouts, but seven free bases on top of 13 hits is not ideal. Eastern Michigan has big road series against a solid Ball State squad at a time when it needs some wins to build some momentum.

Miami 12, Cincinnati 8 (11 innings)

It’s a sweet feeling to beat your rival, but it’s even sweeter to beat them in extra innings in the last game of the tournament like the RedHawks (26-6, 7-2 MAC) did yesterday to win the Joe Nuxhall Classic for the third year in a row. Miami had a comfortable 6-0 lead after the top of the sixth inning, but UC stormed back in a big way with eight runs over the next three innings with four runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to tie it up at 8-8. Cole Gnets delivered in the clutch with three shutout innings seven strikeouts, two walks, and two hits allowed while J Stephens, Shepherd, and Norberg supplied two-out RBI hits to give the Red and White the edge in the eleventh inning. Miami now turns its attention to a road stand against a capable Bowling Green team.

Toledo 3, Youngstown State 5

The Rockets (10-19, 1-6 MAC) continue to get in their own way as eight walks issued by their pitching staff (compared to the five strikeouts) and a defensive error doomed them to their second consecutive loss. Darryn Davis was a bright spot for Toledo with two hits, a RBI, and a run scored as the offense only generated six hits in the contest. UT might have a chance to break their skid in a road series against Ohio this weekend, as the Bobcats are on a four-game losing streak.

Western Michigan 12, Notre Dame 2

The Broncos (9-20, 2-5 MAC) are the second MAC squad to down the Fighting Irish this season and they did so in convincing fashion as they jumped out to a 10-1 lead after three innings and never looked back. The relievers for WMU were dominant on the mound as Matt McConnel, Tyler Thorington, and Jack Huisman had eight strikeouts, three walks, and three hits allowed over the final six innings of play between them. Offensively, Jimmy Roche registered six RBIs off of three hits as he had a single, a triple, and a sacrifice fly. This weekend, Western Michigan hosts Northern Illinois in a series that will likely have ramifications for both teams for the rest of the season.