Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score
KALAMAZOO, Mich.- Western Michigan fell in game one, 13-4, but bounced back to take the night cap, 8-5, against Miami Saturday. WMU's record stands at 7-19 on the season, 3-6 in Mid-American Conference play.
Miami scored in six of nine innings, running away with game one. The RedHawks totaled 12 hits and used three Bronco errors to score five unearned runs.
Bronco starter Brian Stroud lasted just 5.2 innings, giving up eight runs (five earned) on nine hits. Neal Miller threw the rest of the game, allowing five runs (three earned) on three hits.
Offensively, Max Kelmigian was the most productive at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a solo home run in the fourth. Tim Cross also went deep for the Broncos, hitting his first career home run in the ninth, a solo blast to left field.
Chris Lewis drove in a run with a fielder's choice in the fifth and Kyle Galbraith recorded a groundout RBI in the ninth.
Western Michigan looked like a different team in game two, pounding out 13 hits. Seven of those hits were doubles, the most in a game by the Broncos this season.
Three of those doubles came in a row, as WMU went ahead 2-1 in the bottom of the second. Cross and Simotes both found the gap in right center and Simpson took a ball off the wall in left center.
The Broncos put three more runs on the board in the fourth, rallying with two outs. Grant Simotes and Jamie Simpson each hit singles and Brent Gerlach scored both with a two-bagger to center field. Galbraith then hit his first double of the game to score Gerlach.
Miami scored in the top of the second on a solo home run by Adam Nurre, then twice again in the top of the fifth, one of those runs unearned.
Western Michigan leading 5-3, came up with three more runs in the seventh. Galbraith led off with a double and scored on a double by Lewis. Lewis moved to third on a single by Kelmigian and later scored on a wild pitch. Nathan Marquardt and Cross drew walks to load the bases, and Simotes plated Kelmigian with a sacrifice fly to right field.
Miami did its best to keep things interesting, scoring two runs in the top of the eighth. Trailing 8-5, the RedHawks also had bases loaded in the top of the ninth, but came away empty handed. Reliever Tim Mowry tossed the ninth and recorded all three outs with swinging strikeouts, earning his first save of the season.
Game two starter Eric Heckaman (2-3) went eight strong innings, earning the win. Other than the home run in the second, the RedHawks barely touched Heckaman as he scattered eight hits. He caused havoc for the middle of the RedHawks' lineup, twice retiring the 3-4-5 batters, three up, three down.
Western Michigan next has a pair of midweek non-conference games, traveling to Oakland Tuesday for a 3 p.m. contest, then hosting Michigan State Wednesday at 3 p.m. The Broncos head to Buffalo for a three-game MAC series over the weekend, April 10-12.
