Falcons Travel To Youngstown State Tuesday Night

Tuesday, April 21

Youngstown, OH

5:30 p.m. ET

Bowling Green State University

Youngstown State

April 20, 2015 | Baseball

By: by Scott Swegan, BGSU Athletic Communications

Bowling Green Falcons (14-20)
at
Youngstown State Penguins (10-24)
Tuesday | April 21 | 5:30 pm
Eastwood Field | Niles, Ohio
Live Stats
Complete Game Notes (.pdf)

The Week Ahead
The Bowling Green State University baseball team takes to the road for four games this week, beginning on Tuesday evening at Youngstown State. The Falcons, who have won nine of their last 13, will face the Penguins at Eastwood Field at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday night. Following the midweek game with YSU, BGSU travels to first-place Central Michigan this weekend for a three-game series with the Chippewas.

BGSU Coaching Staff
Bowling Green is coached by Danny Schmitz, who is in his 25th season at the helm of the Orange and Brown. Schmitz owns 651 career wins and 339 Mid-American Conference wins in his career, both of which are the third-most in MAC history. He is assisted by Rick Blanc, who is in his eighth season in charge of BGSU's pitchers and recruiting. Ryan Shay coaches the hitters and infielders, while Garrett Gray coaches the catchers under Schmitz.

About Falcon Baseball
The BGSU baseball program is in the midst of its 95th season playing varsity baseball, with an all-time record of 1,602-1,392-27. The Falcons have won seven MAC East championships, five MAC regular season titles, and have won the MAC Tournament on three occasions. Bowling Green has qualified for the MAC Tournament 11 times since 1994, including six times in the last seven seasons.

Scouting Youngstown State
Youngstown State comes into the week of play with an overall record of 10-24. The Penguins were swept in Horizon League play at Milwaukee over the weekend, dropping to 4-14 in conference play. Coached by Steve Gillispie, the Penguins are 4-6 at home this season. Gillispie is assisted by Kevin Smallcomb, Jason Neal, and Cal Lambert. As a team the Penguins are batting .243 entering the week with a team earned run average of 6.29. Frank Califano and Alex Larivee lead the offensive attack, both batting over .300 currently. Califano leads the team with 23 runs scored and 10 stolen bases.

They Said It
"Coming off a good weekend against WMU, we look to continue playing well on Tuesday night at Youngstown State," head coach Danny Schmitz said. "They beat us earlier this season so we know we have our work cut out for us. Following that game, we have a big weekend at first-place Central Michigan."

The Last Meeting
Bowling Green hosted Youngstown State in their home opener on March 18 earlier this season, losing to the Penguins 6-2. Seven Falcons each had one hit in the game, led by Greg Basalyga's double. Jason Link got the start in the game, but nine Falcons saw action on the mound in the contest.

The YSU Series
Youngstown State leads the all-time series against the Falcons, having won 5-of-8 meetings in the series history. The series began in 1989 and YSU has won three straight in the series. The Falcons last win over the Penguins came in 1996, a 6-5 triumph at Steller Field.

The Week In Review
Bowling Green won 3-of-4 last week at home, defeating Eastern Michigan in a midweek contest before taking the series from Western Michigan. In Tuesday's game against EMU, the Falcons scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth, including a game-winning, two-run home run from Randy Righter to secure the victory. After a Friday 12-2 win over WMU, the Falcons and Broncos played a doubleheader on Saturday. Western Michigan was victorious 8-6 in game one, coming from behind to win it in extras. The Orange and Brown got revenge in game two, winning 1-0 on a bottom-of-the-ninth walk-off single.

Carey Named MAC East Pitcher Of The Week
Zac Carey (London, Ohio) carried Bowling Green to a series win, pitching a complete-game shutout in the Falcons' series-clinching, walk-off win on Saturday in the nightcap of a doubleheader. Carey was efficient in the performance, facing just 33 batters and throwing just 103 pitches in his first career complete-game shutout. Carey induced two double plays and worked out of a bases loaded jam in the eighth, the only real threat against him in the game. Carey, a true freshman, is now 3-0 with a 2.41 ERA in MAC play. The Falcons have won four straight decisions with him on the mound.

Entering The Home Stretch
Following Tuesday's game, the Falcons travel to CMU this weekend for a crucial MAC series. With just four weekends left in the regular season, every game counts. BGSU currently holds the seven-seed if the MAC Tournament were to start this week, but plays the toughest schedule in the MAC the rest of the way. The Falcons' final four opponents have a combined MAC record of 35-25, while no other school's remaining opponents have more than 33 wins.

Toughest Remaining MAC Schedules
1. Bowling Green 35-25 (combined opp. record)
2. Northern Illinois 33-27
T3. Miami 31-29
T3. Western Michigan 31-29
T3. Buffalo 31-29

The Turnaround
Bowling Green has had a remarkable turnaround the last 13 games, after starting the season 5-16 (0-5 MAC). At that point, the Falcons had lost 10 straight games and had been beaten badly by NIU in the first two games of the series. But, a veteran-led club infused with talent from the freshman/newcomer class has helped the Falcons gel and put themselves in a good position going into the final stretch.

First 21		Last 13
5-16	Record	9-4
0-5	MAC Record	7-3
.263	Batting Avg.	.295
.347	Slugging Pct.	.407
.335	On-base Pct.	.370
23	Stolen Bases	24
5.14	Runs/game	7.08
5.92	ERA	3.48
7.09	Runs/game allowed	4.15
.308	Opp. Average	.232

BGSU, LLC
Bowling Green's starting rotation of Jason Link, Andrew Lacinak, and Zac Carey combined to pitch 22.2 innings in last weekend's series, allowing just two earned runs. The three starters combined for an earned run average of 0.79 in the weekend series. Link pitched a career-high six innings on Friday in a 12-2 win, while Lacinak pitched a season-high 7.2 innings without allowing an earned run in Saturday's first game. In the nightcap of the doubleheader, true freshman Zac Carey pitched a complete-game shutout in a 1-0 win.

Keegan's Cannon
Redshirt sophomore Trey Keegan has excelled behind the dish this season, throwing out 15-of-29 would-be base stealers for a MAC-best percentage of .517. Keegan has also picked off three base runners this season. In addition to his defense, Keegan leads the Falcons with a batting average of .336.

Glanzman Walks It Off
Redshirt sophomore Nick Glanzman hit a walk-off single with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning on Saturday, propelling the Falcons to a 1-0 win to clinch the series against Western Michigan. After Brandon Howard walked to lead off the inning, a balk and sac bunt advanced him all the way to third. A walk to Matt Smith preceded Glanzman's game-winning single for the Orange and Brown.

Bombs Away
Bowling Green has had a power surge this season, hitting 15 home runs so far through 34 games. The Falcons, who hit just eight home runs last season, have gotten at least one home run from six different players this year. Randy Righter leads the team with five home runs. The 15 home runs is already tied for the most in a season since the Falcons hit 20 in 2011, the first year of the "dead bat" era in college baseball.

Seventh Inning Stretch
BGSU has made a habit of stretching the lead this year in the seventh inning of games, outscoring opponents 28-3 this season. The Falcons are 13-2 this season when leading after seven innings.