Falcons Come From Behind To Defeat Toledo

Tuesday, April 8

Bowling Green, Ohio

3:05 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

11-17

University of Toledo

12-17

Toledo

Bowling Green

Photo by: BGSU Marketing and Communications

April 08, 2014 | Baseball

Box Score

BGSU overcomes 4-1 deficit to defeat arch-rival

By: by Scott Swegan, BGSU Athletic Communications

Final Statistics: HTML
Danny Schmitz Postgame Audio

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio—The Bowling Green State University baseball team came from behind on Tuesday afternoon to defeat University of Toledo, 8-4. The game was the home-opener for the Falcons at Warren E. Steller Field, after playing a program-record 27 straight games away from home to begin the 2014 campaign. With the victory, Bowling Green improves to 11-17 overall, while Toledo falls to 12-17.

Left-handed pitcher Brett Fitzwater got the start for the Orange and Brown, his first outing since tossing a combined no-hitter on March 14 against Bucknell. Fitzwater did not factor into the decision, allowing four earned runs in 5.2 innings of work. Chris Miller picked up the win on the mound for head coach Danny Schmitz, pitching 2.1 innings and allowing just two hits. It was his first win of the season, improving his overall record to 1-0.

Senior T.J. Losby continued his torrid stretch at the plate on Tuesday, going 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored. Losby now has eight hits over his past two games, and 11 hits in his last four. Andrew Kubuski, Jeremy Shay, Matt Smith, Jesse Rait, Greg Basalyga, and Logan Walker all added hits for the Falcons. Shay walked three times, as the senior captain was on base four times in the game.

The Falcons struck first in Tuesday's game, which was played in front of 358 fans at Steller Field. In the bottom of the first, the first three Bowling Green batters reached base as Toledo starter Kyle Slack struggled with his command early on. After a walk to Bien, Kubuski would reach when Toledo shortstop Deion Tansel couldn't field a slow chopper cleanly. Shay would walk to load the bases with nobody out in the inning. A double play would get the Falcons on the board, as Bien scampered home to score the first run of the game, but the Falcons would not be able to capitalize on the bases-loaded, nobody out situation any further.

Toledo would strike right back, scoring two runs in the top of the second inning against Fitzwater. After a hit batsmen to lead off the second inning, Fitzwater would surrender a single to right field—his first hit allowed since March 11 vs. Illinois State. A double and sacrifice fly would follow to plate two runs for the Rockets, giving them a 2-1 lead.

Slack would settle down on the mound after that, putting up zeros against the Falcons over the next four innings.

In the top of the sixth, UT would plate two more runs to extend their lead to 4-1, as they knocked Fitzwater out of the game in the inning. A two-out double by Toledo's Dan Zuchowski would score Tyler Grogg all the way from first base to give the Rockets a 3-1 lead. With Miller on the mound in relief, UT would get a single through the right side of the infield to score Zuchowski from second and increase Toledo's lead to three.

The Falcons would strike back, scoring two in the bottom of the sixth to erase the two runs Toledo had plated in the visitor's half. Kubuski would begin the inning with a single that he pulled through the right side. A walk to Shay would put two runners on base for Losby. The senior captain would line a pitch down the right field line for a double, scoring Kubuski and pushing Shay to third base. A walk to Jake Thomas would load the bases, and Toledo would turn to the bullpen for their top reliever, Andrew Marra. Marra entered the game with an ERA of 0.69 (having allowed just one earned run in the first 28 games of 2014).

With Marra on the mound and bases full of Falcons, Brandon Howard would lift a fly ball to right field—deep enough to score Shay—for the RBI. Marra would get out of the inning to maintain the lead, however, with Toledo leading 4-3 after six innings.

After holding Toledo scoreless in the top of the seventh, the Falcons offense would go back to work in the bottom of the seventh against Marra.

Basalyga, who had been inserted into the game as a defensive sub in the top of the sixth, led off the bottom of the seventh by ripping a double into the left-center gap. He would be lifted for a pinch runner, as Addison Rospert was sent to second base.

After a groundout by Bien, Shay would drive Rospert in to tie the game. In Shay's at bat, he would battle with two strikes, fighting off a good pitch by Marra and flaring it over first baseman Tyler Baar's head to knot the game at four runs apiece.

With Shay on first and Kubuski on third, Losby would deliver with a single up the middle to give the Falcons a lead—giving the Falcon dugout a fist-pump as he ran to first.

Marra lasted just 1.2 innings in the game, allowing four earned runs on three hits and two walks. His season ERA jumped from 0.69 to 2.70 thanks to an explosive seventh inning by the Falcon offense.

With new pitcher John Martillotta on the mound, pinch-hitter Jesse Rait would come to the plate with the bases loaded and deliver for the Falcons with a two-RBI single up the middle to score both Shay and Losby. Howard would be caught in a run-down on the play, allowing Losby to score, but ending the inning with the Falcons leading 7-4.

The Falcons would add a run in the bottom of the eighth, as Kubuski would drive Logan Walker, who had tripled with one out, in with a sacrifice fly to left field.

Trevor Blaylock would come into the game to get some work in the ninth, allowing just one hit and closing out the Rockets in the 8-4 victory.

Bowling Green and Toledo will finish their two-game, midweek series on Wednesday afternoon when the two teams return to the diamond. Wednesday's game will begin at 3:05 p.m. at Toledo's Scott Park. Bowling Green has now won 6-of-7 against their arch-rival, dating back to the beginning of the 2013 season.