Baseball splits double-header with Northwestern
After taking the first of a four-game series 5-3 on Friday, the Central Michigan baseball team met Northwestern for a double-header on Saturday at Rocky Miller Park in Evanston, Illinois.
The Chippewas (7-11) were defeated 5-1 in game one, but bounced back in the second game and defeated the Wildcats by the same score.
With the win, head coach Steve Jaksa moved into second place on the program’s all-time wins list with his 454 victory. Only Dean Kreiner (1985-1998) has more with 516.
The Chippewas and Wildcats meet again tomorrow for the final game of the series. First-pitch is at 2 p.m.
Game One
Northwestern got its bats going early and won behind the arm of Josh Davis (1-0), who went six innings and only gave up three hits and one walk.
CMU only had four hits in the first game of the day and scored its sole run on a wild pitch in the ninth inning.
Sophomore right-handed pitcher Pat Leatherman took the mound for Central Michigan and lasted 5 1/3 innings while surrendering five runs on eight hits. Leatherman (1-3) struck out three batters and gave up two walks.
The Wildcats struck first with an RBI-double in the second inning off the bat of first baseman Willie Bourbon. NU scored again in the third inning off a balk from Leatherman, who then gave up an RBI-triple in the fourth inning to push the lead to 3-0.
In the sixth inning, Northwestern shortstop Jack Dunn singled to left field to bring in a run and Bourbon scored on a wild pitch the next at bat to make it 5-0. Freshman left-handed pitcher Jake Raether came on after that and allowed only one hit in 1 2/3 innings.
Junior left-hander Markle Braxton took the mound in the eighth and got out the side.
The Chippewas loaded the bases in the ninth to make things interesting. Sophomore right fielder Daniel Robinson scored off a wild pitch but the Wildcats got out of the jam to end it.
Game Two
Central Michigan flipped the script in game two.
Trailing 1-0 in the fourth inning, Daniel Jipping hit a home run to left field to tie it. In the sixth inning, Jipping singled to left field to bring in Alex Borglin and the CMU bats seemingly woke up after that.
Catcher Robert Greenman then doubled to center field to score Jipping and Sullivan and make it a 4-1 game. Dazon Cole lead off the seventh inning with a triple and scored off a single from Grant Frazer to push the lead to 5-1.
Freshman left-handed pitcher Tyler Hankins did the rest.
The Bartlett, Illinois native pitched a complete game and allowed only six hits and one walk. Hankins (1-0) had four strikeouts, but the CMU defense was errorless behind him. It was Hankins’ first complete game of his young career.
Northwestern on the other hand used five pitchers as the Chippewas earned seven hit—most of which came in the later innings.
Jipping and Frazer finished the game batting a combined 4-for-8 with three RBIs.
The Chippewas improved to 5-8 on the road and head to Michigan State on Tuesday to face the Spartans.
