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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
Kent State
BGSU, and Seniors, End Home Season On High Note, Defeat Kent State 8-4
May 06, 2001 | Baseball
May 6, 2001
Bowling Green, Ohio - It was indeed senior day at Warren E. Steller Field as each of the six seniors on the Bowling Green State University baseball team contributed in a crucial league victory over visiting Kent State, 8-4.
Senior right-hander Craig Menke (5-1) earned his fifth victory of the season after missing the past month due to tendinitis in his throwing arm. Menke's last victory came in his last appearance for the Falcons on April 6 against Buffalo. In Sunday's contest, the senior co-captain struck out eight and walked just one in eight innings of work. He scattered seven hits and allowed four runs.
Kent State (23-25 overall, 14-9 MAC) struck first with a run in the first inning when John VanBenschoten doubled down the right-field line, scoring Eric O'Brien.
The Falcons responded, though, with four hits and four runs in the bottom of the inning to gain a 4-1 lead they would never give up. Senior Aric Christman led off the inning with a walk and advanced to second on a groundout by left-fielder Len Elias. A single to right field by senior right-fielder Lee Morrison, his first of four singles on the day, scored Christman to tie the score at 1-1.
It was then Morrison's turn to reach second on a groundout by the Falcons and score on a single to right field, this time hit by shorstop Nick Elrod, for a 2-1 advantage. Senior third baseman Scott Dukate followed suit with a one-bagger to right field which moved Elrod to third base. Dukate then stole second and Elrod trotted home on the throw to give BGSU a 3-1 lead. The final RBI-single of the inning came off the bat of second baseman Corey Loomis, scoring Dukate, to give the home team a 4-1 lead entering the second inning.
Menke allowed just one hit and faced four batters in each of the following two innings before the Flashes plated two runs in the fourth inning to cut their deficit to just one, 4-3.
However, Bowling Green pushed its lead to five in the home-half of the inning when the Falcons scored four more runs, giving them a 8-3 lead after four innings.
BGSU began the fourth inning with two outs but followed with five consecutive hits, including a double from catcher Tim Newell and Christman, and a triple by Elias.
Senior Brian Thacker entered the game in relief in the ninth inning and retired the side in order in his 17th relief appearance of the season. Christman finished 2-for-3 at the plate, but ended 1-for-2 in stolen bases, breaking a string of 24-straight stolen bases without begin caught this season.
Bowling Green (35-13 overall, 17-6 in MAC) has an important series coming up next weekend at the University of Akron. The Falcons can clinch the Mid-American Conference East Division outright with three victories and would create a new school record for wins in a season with two more wins. Also, two more wins would give 11-year coach Danny Schmitz his 300th collegiate coaching victory at BGSU.
