Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
13-26
Oakland
22-18
Baseball Defeated by Oakland in Non-Conference Mid-Week Contest
4/23/2024 5:58:00 PM | Baseball
Eastern is back on the diamond this Friday, April 26, at 3 p.m., to open a three-game road MAC series at Miami
ROCHESTER, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University baseball team dropped a non-conference mid-week contest to Oakland University, 14-11, Tuesday, April 23, at the Oakland Baseball Field.
The Eagles were led by Giano Zuccaro (Middleburg Heights, Ohio/Berea Midpark/Charleston), who batted 4-for-5 on the day with one home run and one double, and Nathan Ball (Bay City, Mich./Bay City John Glenn), who homered for the first time in his collegiate career, finishing the game with two hits and a career-high three RBI.
How it Happened
After falling behind 3-0 in the first, the Eagles got on the board in the top of the second. Eastern scored four runs in the frame, led by Ball's two-run shot to center field, along with RBI from Glenn Miller (Pentwater, Mich./Pentwater/Spring Arbor) and Logan Hugo (Essexville, Mich./Essexville Garber).
The Eagles would tack on two more runs through the fifth inning, exiting their half of the fifth with the 6-4 advantage.
Oakland plated eight runs in the fifth and sixth innings combined, bringing the score to 12-6, Oakland after six innings.
Zuccaro's seventh inning jack and Cole Wilcox's (Shiocton, Wis./Shiocton/Lake County) RBI single scored two for EMU, trimming the OU lead to four.
After the Golden Grizzlies added two insurance runs in the eighth, Eastern punched back with a three-run ninth inning rally. Blake McRae (Armada, Mich./Romeo/Lansing C.C.), Cooper Vance (New Waterford, Ohio/Mohawk), and Hugo each drove in one Eagle in the frame.
The Eagles' rally fell short, as the game concluded in a 14-11 victory for Oakland.
Game Notes
» Ball homered for the first time in his collegiate career with a two-run, 445-foot blast to center field in the top of the second inning. He finished the day with three RBI, marking both a career-high and the first multi-RBI outing of his EMU tenure. Ball would barrel a double to center in the seventh for his second hit of the day. The double secured his fourth multi-hit performance.
» Zuccaro batted 4-for-5 from the plate for his third four-hit game of the season, the most on the team. One of Zuccaro's hits went for two bases, marking his 11th two-bagger of the season, a figure that leads the Eagles, and stands third in the MAC. The outfielder also homered in the seventh, his fourth jack of the season.
» Wilcox knocked two hits in the game, his second multi-hit outing in his previous three games. He drove in an Eagles' baserunner in the seventh inning for his first RBI of the season.
» Lucas Johnson (Hamilton, Ontario/Westdale Secondary/Wright State) drew three walks in the contest, marking an EMU career-high and tying for the most from an EMU player in a single game this season.
» Vance notched two hits and an RBI. He now has 11 multi-hit outings and 26 RBI this year.
» Hugo drove in two EMU baserunners, bringing his RBI total to 25 on the season. The game went down as his sixth this season with multiple RBI.
» Eastern logged double-digits hits (13) and runs (10) for the 11th time in the 2024 campaign, it is now 7-4 in such contests.
Historical Notes
» After Tuesday's result, the Eagles post a 48-22 record when facing Oakland, and a 11-7 record when facing the Golden Grizzlies at the Oakland Baseball Field.
Up Next
The Eagles will return to Mid-American Conference play this Friday-Sunday, April 26-28, as they are slated to face Miami University in a three-game series. Game one will begin at 3 p.m. Friday.
Follow Us
For all things EMU Baseball, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMU_Baseball on X (formerly Twitter), emu.baseball on Instagram, and emu.baseball on TikTok.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Tanner Ware (3-0)
L: Topolski, Jack (0-1)
S: Aaron Evers (2)
Batting:
2B: Vance, Cooper 2 ; Zuccaro, Giano 1 ; Ball, Nathan 1 ; Wilcox, Cole 1
HR: Zuccaro, Giano 1 ; Ball, Nathan 1
RBI: Vance, Cooper 1 ; Hugo, Logan 2 ; Zuccaro, Giano 1 ; Ball, Nathan 3 ; Wilcox, Cole 1 ; Miller, Glenn 1 ; McRae, Blake 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Johnson, Lucas 1 ; Zuccaro, Giano 2 ; Arbogast, Aidan 1 ; Ball, Nathan 3 ; Wilcox, Cole 1 ; Milene, Logan 1 ; Miller, Glenn 1 ; McRae, Blake 1
SB: Miller, Glenn 1
HBP: Arbogast, Aidan 2
PO: Johnson, Lucas 1
Batting:
2B: Brandon Nigh 1 ; Brandon Heidal 2 ; Trent Rice 1 ; Sam Griffith 1
HR: Ben Clark 1 ; Brandon Nigh 2 ; Brandon Heidal 1 ; Gavin Arseneau 1 ; John Lauinger 1
RBI: Reggie Bussey 1 ; Ben Clark 2 ; Brandon Nigh 2 ; Brandon Heidal 2 ; Gavin Arseneau 1 ; John Lauinger 2 ; Trent Rice 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Reggie Bussey 1 ; Ben Clark 1 ; Brandon Nigh 3 ; Carter Hain 1 ; Brandon Heidal 3 ; Gavin Arseneau 2 ; John Lauinger 1 ; Trent Rice 1 ; Sam Griffith 1
SB: Reggie Bussey 2 ; Brandon Nigh 1 ; Carter Hain 1 ; Brandon Heidal 1 ; Gavin Arseneau 1 ; Trent Rice 1 ; Sam Griffith 1
CS: Reggie Bussey 1
HBP: Carter Hain 1 ; Brandon Heidal 1 ; Trent Rice 1 ; Sam Griffith 1
