Falcons Begin Series With 7-5 Win Over Illinois State

Friday, March 15

Normal, IL (The Corn Crib)

3:00 pm CST

Bowling Green State University

4-9

Illinois State University

6-9

Bowling Green

Illinois State

March 15, 2013 | Baseball

Box Score

By: by Scott Swegan, BGSU Athletic Communications

Box Score (BGSU 7 - ISU 5)

NORMAL, Ill.—The Bowling Green State University baseball team jumped out to a 6-0 lead after just four innings on Friday afternoon, before holding on for a 7-5 win over Illinois State. The game was played at The Corn Crib, home of the Normal CornBelters (Frontier League).

The Falcons stranded five base runners in the first two innings, before breaking through with four runs in the top of the third against ISU starter Will Headean.

T.J. Losby led off the third with an opposite field double. Losby would advance to third on a groundout before Andrew Kubuski was hit by a pitch to put runners at the corners with one out.

Logan Walker would get the Falcons on the board with his RBI single up the middle to score Losby. After Matt Smith's fielder's choice, Jake Thomas would double into the left field corner, scoring both runners on the play. Jesse Rait would single to score Thomas, and the Falcons found themselves on top 4-0.

Patrick Lancaster led off the top of the fourth with a single to left field. The next batter, Losby, would get a hold of a Headean pitch, driving it over the left field wall for a two-run home run. Losby went 3-for-5 on the afternoon, with two runs scored and two RBI.

BGSU starter Cody Apthorpe cruised through the first four innings, not allowing the first hit until the bottom of the fourth.

Apthorpe would retire the first two in the bottom of the fifth, before a two-out error by the Falcon defense would open the floodgates for the Redbirds, leading to five unearned runs in the inning. After the error, ISU singled to left field, putting runners on the corners with two outs.

The Falcons got a chopper to Lancaster at first to get out of the inning at 6-0 in the fifth, but the first base umpire would rule that the ball hit the batter's foot, making it a foul ball. The batter would double on the next pitch to put the Redbirds on the scoreboard. The next four batters would also get hits, as ISU climbed to within 6-5 after the fifth.

A single and two errors would put the Falcons in a world of trouble in the bottom of the eighth, as they held tightly to a one run lead with nobody out. The Orange and Brown would turn to senior closer Nick Bruns to attempt to get out of it.

The first batter would pop a bunt up on a safety-squeeze attempt, with Lancaster making the sliding catch for the first out of the inning.

After a walk loaded the bases with one out, the ISU hitter would hit a line drive to Walker at short. After making the catch, he would flip the ball to Brandon Howard at second for the inning-ending double play.

Bowling Green would add an insurance run with a Matt Pitzulo RBI ground out in the ninth, before Bruns would strike out the side to secure the victory.

Ethan McKenney earned the win for the Falcons, improving to 1-1 on the year. Bruns picked up his first save of the season.

The Falcons and Redbirds will battle twice on Saturday, with the doubleheader beginning at 12 p.m. CT. Mike Frank will start the first game on the mound, with Brett Fitzwater getting the game two start.