The Eastern Michigan University baseball team battled against intrastate rival Western Michigan University in a three-game series over the weekend on Saturday and Sunday, March 23-24.
The series was originally scheduled to run all three days of the weekend with the Eagles and Broncos facing off once for each day, but snowy conditions on Friday, March 22, caused the first game to get postponed to Sunday.
It was an 11-4 thrashing in their first game of the triple-header on the weekend with solid showings from the roster and notable performances from the upperclassmen, including senior Bobby Jones and senior Isiah Lindsey.
Jones pitched eight innings while giving up four earned runs on six hits, only allowing a single walk, and striking three Broncos out. Lindsey also pitched successfully for the Eagles, throwing a scoreless inning, only allowing one walk, one strikeout, and no hits to secure the win.
Offensively, the Eagles were led by senior Cory Taylor (Shelbyville, Ind.), junior Lucas Johnson (Hamilton, Ontario), and junior Brendan Kleiman (Olney, Md.). In the batter’s box, Taylor went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a walk, and three RBIs. Johnson played well, going 2-4 with three RBIs while Kleiman contributed three trips resulting in one hit with a walk and RBI.
The Eagles began the day trailing the Broncos 3-0 in the first inning, but once Eastern’s offense began hitting on all cylinders, they had six consecutive runs that would lead to claiming the first of three in the series.
EMU's next game would result in a loss on the second day, as the Broncos secured an 8-3 equalizer.
The Eagles were led by Kyle Schroedle (Redding, Calif.) with three runs scored, while many Eagles provided hits when they were at bat. Only Schroedle and Johnson were able to capitalize on those hits with runs scored.
For Western, they managed to score in all innings besides the first and sixth. Led by junior Dylan Nevar who went 2-for-4 at bat with three RBIs. Western’s offense was also successful with multiple contributors in the batting box.
With five players having multiple hits, Western's offensive output was on display in this contest. The Broncos were also given an advantage due to multiple players receiving walks, with senior Cade Sullivan and junior Cj Richmond receiving two walks each.
Lastly, with the final game of the triple-header, the Eagles edged out the Broncos, scoring three runs to the Broncos' zero.
Both Eagles' scores came in the fifth and sixth innings. The same offensive firepower that was shown in the two earlier matchups faded away in the third set, but multiple Eagles managed to knock off WMU, 3-0.
Players, including sophomore Cooper Vance (New Waterford, Ohio), Johnson, and Schroedle, capitalized on those hits from the team scoring runs for each of them. In terms of pitching, senior Nick Chittum pitched all nine innings, having six strikeouts.
The Eagles are now 9-13 on the season after the triple header while the Broncos sit at 10-12.
The Eagles' next game will be held at Oestrike Stadium as they host Central Michigan University at 3 p.m. on Thursday, March 28.
