CMU baseball fighting for MAC West championship in final week
It all comes down to this week for the Central Michigan baseball team.
The final week of the regular season is a big one for the Chippewas (28-25, 15-9 Mid-American Conference), who come in one game behind first-place Toledo in the MAC West. After playing Michigan State Tuesday at Comerica Park in Detroit, CMU will host a three-game series with rival Western Michigan at Theunissen Stadium.
“Last year we had Eastern Michigan, and the winner of that was MAC West Champs; and in 2010 it came down to the final series as well,” head coach Steve Jaksa said. “These four games right down the stretch, it doesn’t matter who is coming in. We have put ourselves in the best position for the MAC West.”
The Spartans (33-17, 12-9 Big Ten) took the first two games of the three-game series by winning in East Lansing 6-5 and in Mount Pleasant 11-1.
The rival Broncos (23-25, 13-10 MAC) are in town for the final regular season MAC series starting at 3:05 p.m. Thursday, running through Saturday. Toledo (27-24, 16-8 MAC) hosts Eastern Michigan (24-25, 14-10 MAC), a team it lost to twice last season, making this series a must-win for CMU.
“I think we’re a pretty motivated group right now, and the guys like the position we’re in,” Jaksa said. “We’re not going to want to change that. We want to stay where we’re at, and if we do that then we’re playing well.”
With this being the final games of the regular season that means it will be the final time for the CMU seniors to play at Theunissen Stadium.
There are nine seniors on the team this season, and the group that has been here all four years has had a lot of success. This weekend, they will be playing for their third-straight MAC West championship.
“I haven’t really thought of that until now,” senior third baseman Will Arnold said. “I grew up playing here, I’ve been here a long time and so it would be nice to end the regular season here at home.”
