Baseball set to play home opener against Northwestern Friday
After trips to Texas, New Mexico and Florida, the Central Michigan baseball team is ready to finally come home.
Led by head coach Steve Jaksa, CMU will play its first game of the season at Theunissen Stadium on March 16. The Chippewas (2-13-1) take on Northwestern in the home opener at 3:05 p.m. March 16 in Mount Pleasant.
The Chippewas will then take on Lawrence Tech March 19 — a game that was originally rescheduled for March 15.
“Our energy is going to be good,” said CMU head coach Steve Jaksa. “We are going to be ready to play. Lawrence Tech is Lawrence Tech, so we have to take care of our own business. We have to pitch, hit and take care of the ball.”
Originally, the game was slated for 3:05 p.m. on March 13, but snow in the forecast bumped the game back until Thursday, then Monday.
CMU has not ended a game victorious since Feb. 18. Since then, the Chippewas missed out two dozen opportunities.
“We have to be resilient,” Jaksa said. “We have to learn something by not finishing those games. There were a lot of tight games and the competition was good. Unfortunately for us, there was quite a few in that stretch.”
Sophomore outfielder Sean Fannon leads Lawrence Tech, slashing .367/.448/.700. He has 10 doubles, four triples, four home runs, 24 RBIs, 11 walks and seven stolen bases to his name.
Redshirt freshman catcher Griffin Lockwood-Powell leads CMU, hitting .342 at the dish. Sophomore infielder Zach Heeke owns a .289 batting average and sophomore outfielder Zach Gilles has 15 hits, which is a team-high for the Chippewas.
“I’m happy with the way things have started, but I obviously want to win some games and get things rolling for the team,” Lockwood-Powell said.
Junior infielder Jason Sullivan is the Chippewas runs batted in leader with 11 on the season.
Following one game against Lawrence Tech, CMU will host a three-game series in two days against Big Ten Conference opponent Northwestern (5-7).
Junior right-handed pitcher Michael Brettell (1-2, 6.95 ERA) will throw on Friday, while junior righty Dazon Cole (0-3, 6.45 ERA) is slated to toss the first game of Saturday's doubleheader in his second start of the season. In the second game, sophomore left-hander Tyler Hankins (0-2, 6.23 ERA) is set to toe the slab.
Northwester is carried by junior infielder Willie Bourbon, hitting .286 with two doubles, two triples, four home runs, 14 RBI and a .714 slugging percentage.
Up Next
After four home games, CMU is headed to East Lansing to play Michigan State in a nonconference game at 3 p.m. on March 21. The next weekend, CMU opens Mid-American Conference play on the road against Northern Illinois for a three-game series.
