Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
Detroit
Falcons Win Wild One at Detroit-Mercy, 20-18
May 13, 2003 | Baseball
May 13, 2003
Detroit, Mich. - Bowling Green pounded out 19 hits and scored 20 runs to defeat Detroit-Mercy on Tuesday afternoon, 20-18, in a seven-inning game. BGSU plated 14 runs in the final two innings and, as it turned out, needed every one of them.
UDM jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two innings off of Neil Schmitz, making his first start of the season. Senior Kelly Hunt cut deep into that deficit in the top of the third inning with a three-run home run over the right field fence. David Barkholz and Jeff Warnock hit back-to-back, two-out singles before Hunt smacked his ninth home run of the season and record-tying 45th of his career. Hunt tied Andy Tracy for the all-time home run record at Bowling Green.
After holding the Titans scoreless in the bottom of the third inning, the Falcons took the lead with three runs in the fourth inning, 6-4. Jimmy Lipari singled to left field, scoring Steve Raszka from third base and Kevin Longstreth from second base. Lipari moved to second base on a throw to the plate on his single and later scored on a single up the middle by Tyler Wasserman for the two-run lead.
UDM rattled off seven runs over the next two innings (two in the fourth, five in the fifth) to build up an 11-6 lead over BGSU. Schmitz was chased after three complete innings (four runs, four hits, four walks, three strikeouts) and reliever Tom Oestrike lasted just one inning (four runs, three earned, one hit, three walks).
The Falcons fought back, though, with nine runs in the top of the sixth inning off of six hits and sending 13 batters to the plate. In the sixth inning alone, Wasserman hit a two-run homer and a two-run double for four of the nine BGSU runs and a 15-11 Falcon lead. It marked Wasserman's first career home run.
BGSU added what turned out to be very crucial insurance runs in the top of the seventh inning. The Falcons scored five times to build a 20-11 lead. Nate Henschen and Bobby Majer both collected base-on-balls with the bases loaded while Wasserman drove in his sixth RBI of the game with a single.
However, UDM scored seven times in the bottom of the seventh inning to make things interesting, including a two-out grand slam.
Junior-transfer Dino Cowell (1-0) pitched two and two-third innings of relief to pick up his first victory as a Falcon. He have up nine runs (eight earned) on seven hits, three walks and two strikeouts.
Wasserman finished 4-for-5 with six runs-batted-in and two runs scored while Hunt also finished with four hits (single, two doubles, and a home run). Barkholz, Warnock and Lipari each finished with three hits apiece.
The Falcons (15-26 overall) conclude their season this weekend with a four-game series versus Toledo (May 16-18). BGSU travels to Toledo on Friday, hosts the Rockets in a doubleheader on Saturday at Warren Steller Field, and then plays at Fifth Third Field on Sunday, May 18, at 2 p.m.
NOTES...
* Kelly Hunt has hit four home runs in his last seven games and is one of just three active MAC players with 45 or more home runs for his career.
* Tyler Wasserman's six RBI is a career-high and is just the third time this season that a Falcon has knocked in six or more runs in a game.
* The 20 runs is the second most by BGSU this season. The Falcons defeated Penn 23-7 on March 8.
* The win snapped BGSU's second five-game losing streak of the season.
