The Eastern Michigan University baseball program won two out of three games played away from home against the Ohio Bobcats for a series victory on Friday and Saturday, March 29 and 30.
The Eagles lost the first game Friday by a score of 4-3. After dropping the first game, the remaining two matchups were played as a doubleheader on Saturday, March 29, due to rain in the forecast on Sunday. Eastern Michigan swept these games, winning the first game by a score of 9-5 and the second 18-13.
On Friday, EMU lost the game 4-3. They struggled as a team, having only six hits in the contest. To put it into perspective, none of the hits were for extra bases, and only John Hale (Ashland City, Tenn.) had a multi-hit game with two singles.
Despite the struggling offense in the series' first game, EMU had the lead after five innings, 2-0, before the Bobcats scored three runs in the sixth to take the lead. The Eagles tied the game in the eighth before Ohio scored a run in the bottom of the eighth, which would be the game-deciding run as Ohio won behind six hits, the same amount EMU had.
Game two was a different story, although the Eagles offense only had nine hits versus Ohio’s 16. In the first game that they were outhit by their opponents by seven since 2018, Ty Stecko (North Huntingdon, Pa.) was 2-for-3 off the bench with a home run and a double. He also notched four RBI. Devan Zirwas (Imperial, Pa.) was the other Eagle with multiple hits, going 2-for-5 with one RBI.
By the sixth inning, Eastern Michigan was trailing 5-1. It looked like the Bobcats were going to secure a series win, leading heading into the ninth inning by four runs, but Eastern Michigan scored eight runs in the frame. Five of EMU’s nine hits came in the ninth inning, including a home run and a double from Stecko. Ironically, these were the only two extra-base hits in the inning.
In game two, Tyler Kappa (Waterford, Mich.) was the highlight for Eastern Michigan on the mound. Coming out of the bullpen with two outs in the fourth, he threw five innings and allowed just one run while striking out six batters. He was the winning pitcher and recorded his second win of 2025 in game two.
The third and final game was an offensive fest in every aspect of the game. Eastern Michigan won it by a score of 18-13, and they had 19 hits as a team. Seven players in total had multiple hits and those were the only players who recorded hits. Hale and Logan Hugo (Essexville, Mich.) both hit home runs in the victory. They additionally had four doubles, one each from Hale, Stecko, Connor Walsh (Mattawan, Mich.) and Harrison Travis (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.).
Pitching struggled for Eastern Michigan in the game, but Drew Norris (Leawood, Kan.) and Emmett Gillies (Columbus, Ohio) pitched shutout outings of 1 ⅓ and 1 ⅔, respectively. The 13 runs are tied for the fifth most they have allowed this season.
The game was Eastern Michigan’s from the start, although Ohio had some great offense, too. EMU had two innings where they scored six runs, and they had four runs in the bottom of the first inning which was how the lead started. After six innings, they had 16 runs and led 16-9 at that point and would add two more runs in the last two innings to help them secure the series victory.
Up Next
Eastern Michigan will return to Oestrike Stadium for a mid-week matchup against Notre Dame on Tuesday, April 1. First pitch is set for 3:00 p.m., and the game will be streaming live on ESPN+.
Eastern Michigan baseball falls in home rematch to Michigan, 13-2
