Baseball falls to Northwestern in home opener, 4-2


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Redshirt freshman Griffin Lockwood-Powell swings at the ball during the game against Northwestern at Theunissen Stadium on March 16.

In its home opener at Theunissen Stadium, the Central Michigan baseball team fell short for the 14th time in the 2018 season.

The Chippewas (2-14-1) fell to Big Ten conference opponent Northwestern (6-7), 4-2, March 16, giving CMU head coach Steve Jaksa a 0-1 record to start at home. 

“It’s great to play at home,” Jaksa said. “It would’ve been better if we had got the win today, but we didn’t. They scored three runs in the first two innings and we couldn’t answer. That was the essence of the game.” 

In the top of the first inning, Northwestern struck first as senior catcher Jack Claeys drove in two runs on a double, giving Northwestern a 2-0 lead against CMU junior right-handed pitcher Michael Brettell. 

The Wildcats pushed the lead to 3-0 on a home run to left field off the bat of sophomore outfielder Leo Kaplan in the top of the second inning. 

CMU junior outfielder Daniel Robinson reached second base on an error, allowing junior catcher Evan Kratt to score in the bottom of the second inning, cutting Northwestern’s lead to two runs. 

The Chippewas had a chance to put more runs on the board with the bases loaded in the bottom of the fifth inning, but Kratt flew out left field with two outs, ending the inning. 

After allowing sophomore infielder Charlie Maxwell to reach due to an error in right field with two outs in the top of the sixth inning, Jaksa relieved Brettell of his duties. Junior left-hander Jack Collins replaced CMU’s ace. 

Brettell went 5 and 2/3 innings, allowing three hits, five walks and three earned runs while recording seven strikeouts. 

“There’s always positives to look at,” Jaksa said. “I thought there were some guys that did well. We need to continue to grow as a team. I want to speed the process up.”

Northwestern freshman right-hander Quinn Lavelle was pulled after finishing the fifth inning. He was spectacular against the Chippewas, allowing one unearned run on four hits and four walks with two strikeouts. 

Off Collins in the top of the seventh inning, Northwestern took a 4-1 lead over Central Michigan on an RBI single to left field by sophomore infielder Alex Erro. 

Redshirt freshman right-hander Cameron Miller entered the game for CMU in the top of the ninth and shut the door on the Wildcats. 

The Chippewas scored a run on a sacrifice fly but were never able to make a full comeback push in the bottom of the final inning, giving Northwestern a 4-2 victory. 

Up Next

The Chippewas take on Northwestern in a doubleheader on March 17 to finish the three-game series. After a day off on Sunday, CMU returns to Theunissen Stadium for a nonconference battle against Lawrence Tech on March 19. 

“Our energy is going to be good,” Jaksa said. “We are going to be ready to play. We have to take care of our own business. We have to pitch, hit and take care of the ball.”

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