Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
25-34
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Western Michigan
24-29
Eagles Blow By Broncos to Advance to MAC Tournament Semifinals
5/26/2017 5:09:00 PM | Baseball
It is the second straight semifinal appearance for the Eagles
Re-Listen to the Game.
AVON, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) – The No. 3 seeded Eastern Michigan University baseball team led early and cruised to a 12-6 win over No. 6 seeded Western Michigan University Friday afternoon, May 26, at Sprenger Stadium. With the win, EMU won its 25th game of the season and has advanced to the semifinal round for the second straight season.
The EMU offense carried the day, going off for 12 hits to score the 12 runs. Seven of the nine starters had at least one hit, while five players had multi-RBI days. Leading the offense was redshirt senior Marquise Gill (Paw Paw, Mich.-Paw Paw) who had a three-hit, three-RBI output including a double. It was the fifth three-hit and second three-RBI game of his career.
On the mound, junior Justin McMurtrey (Redding, Calif.-Shasta (Butte C.C.)) earned his team-best sixth win of the season and second straight in the tournament after going five innings in relief, striking out two.
Eastern took the early lead in the first after a leadoff single from redshirt senior Jordan Peterson (Gilbert, Ariz.-Highland (Chandler-Gilbert C.C.)). The veteran then stole second and advanced to third on the throw, setting him up there with no outs. One batter later, senior Jeremy Stidham (Colorado Springs, Colo.-Sand Creek (Colby C.C.)) knocked in the runner with an RBI groundout to make it 1-0.
EMU added onto the lead in the second, tagging the Broncos for three more runs. The scoring got started with an RBI double from Gill after a leadoff walk. The next batter, freshman Drake Peggs (Knightstown, Ind.-Knightstown Community), knocked him in on an RBI groundout after a wild pitch, and he himself reached after an error. After a sacrifice bunt and single put runners on the corners, Stidham knocked in his second runner with a sacrifice fly, making it a 4-0 game after two innings.
Following a scoreless third, EMU broke the game open in the fourth, going for five runs. The Eagles got the first two runners on via hit by pitch and walk, and the first run was singled in by senior John Montgomery (Anaheim Hills, Calif.-JSerra). One batter later, with the bases loaded, sophomore Max Schuemann (Portage, Mich.-Portage Northern) singled in runner number two. Freshman Nick Jones (Battle Creek, Mich.-Lakeview) followed that with a sac fly, and Gill then singled in the next two, his third hit and RBI of the game, putting it at 9-0 into the fifth.
On the mound, the starting pitcher, junior Luke DeVenney (Des Moines, Iowa-Dowling Catholic), and the first reliever, McMurtrey, held WMU without a hit through the first four innings. Western got its first hit of the game in the fifth inning, and it was a big one as a two-run home run got them on the board as well, making it 9-2 in the middle innings. After the homer, McMurtrey settled in, pitching clean innings in the sixth and seventh to maintain the seven-run lead.
The Eagles tacked on three runs of insurance in the seventh. After a leadoff double from Peterson and a pair of walks, WMU went to the pen with the bases loaded. Another walk, this time drawn by Montgomery, brought in the 10th run of the game for the Green and White. Then, Schuemann knocked in his second with a sacrifice fly, and Jones followed that with his second RBI on an infield single. With two to play, Eastern held a commanding 12-2 advantage.
WMU got one back in the eighth on another big fly, a solo homer to left, but McMurtrey kept the Broncos in check to maintain the big lead into the ninth. In the ninth, WMU mounted a small comeback, scoring three to get within six, but senior Justin Thompson (Canton, Mich.-Plymouth (Concordia)) got the final three outs to preserve the win.
Eastern will get back into action tomorrow morning, May 27, for day four of the MAC Tournament against the No. 2 seeded Central Michigan University Chippewas. First pitch of the first semifinal game is set for 9:30 a.m.
Hear from senior captain @Mgill_11 after his 3-hit, 3-RBI day leads the Eagle offense in the 12-6 win over WMU! #EMUBats #RiseUp #MACtion pic.twitter.com/gE0EXAanml
— EMU Baseball (@EMU_Baseball) May 26, 2017
Eastern Michigan Head Coach Mark Van Ameyde [@EMUskipper] on the Eagles ability to get hits with runners in scoring position. #MACtion pic.twitter.com/RL3ECThlNK
— #MACtion (@MACSports) May 26, 2017
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: McMurtrey, Justin (6-3)
L: TOWNSEND-CHASE, Jimm (3-3)
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Batting:
2B: ALLISON, Tanner 1
HR: GRYS, Nate 2
RBI: SMITH, Connor 1 ; ALLISON, Tanner 2 ; GRYS, Nate 3
Base Running:
RUNS: VOGELMEIER, Nick 1 ; SMITH, Connor 2 ; GRYS, Nate 2 ; FRANK, Tyler 1
HBP: FORESTELL, Jesse 1 ; MILLER, Grant 2
Batting:
2B: Peterson, Jordan 1 ; Gill, Marquise 1
RBI: Stidham, Jeremy 2 ; Montgomery, John 2 ; Schuemann, Max 2 ; Jones, Nick 2 ; Gill, Marquise 3 ; Peggs, Drake 1
SH: Peterson, Jordan 1 ; Jones, Nick 1
SF: Stidham, Jeremy 1 ; Schuemann, Max 1 ; Jones, Nick 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Peterson, Jordan 2 ; Mioduszewski, Mike 2 ; Stidham, Jeremy 2 ; Montgomery, John 1 ; Owings, Zachary 1 ; Schuemann, Max 1 ; Jones, Nick 1 ; Gill, Marquise 1 ; Peggs, Drake 1
SB: Gill, Marquise 2
HBP: Mioduszewski, Mike 1 ; Schuemann, Max 1
