No. 27 Kent State Baseball Lowers The Boom On Western Michigan To Advance To 2012 MAC Tournament Bracket Final
5/24/2012 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Bores comes of age on the mound while bats break contest open for the Golden Flashes with eight runs in the ninth inning.
AVON, Ohio – The No. 27-ranked Kent State baseball team overcame a 3-1 deficit after six innings thanks in large part to an eight-run outburst in the ninth inning to lower the boom on Western Michigan, 12-3, Thursday (May 24) at All Pro Freight Stadium to advance to the bracket final of the 2012 Mid-American Conference Tournament.
Ranked No. 27 in the nation according to Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, the No. 1-seeded Golden Flashes (39-17) ran their winning streak to a nation-long 15 games courtesy of the triumph over the No. 5-seeded Broncos (26-28). The Flashes have won 30 of their last 37 games – including 19 of their last 21. Kent State has outscored the opposition, 40-3, in its last four MAC Tournament games and has never lost a conference tournament tilt under eighth-year head coach Scott Stricklin when it has scored five or more runs. Kent State, which improved to 2-0 in the double elimination tournament, will take on the winner of the Friday (May 25) elimination game between Western Michigan and No. 8-seeded Buffalo. The Bulls, who lost their tournament opener, 9-0, Wednesday (May 23) to the Flashes, kept their season alive with a 6-5 win in 10 innings over No. 4-seeded Ohio. The Broncos and Bulls will square off at 9 a.m., with Kent State facing the winner at 4 p.m.
"It was a dogfight," said Stricklin. "We were a little bit flat early. We had guys come off the bench and do their jobs to give us a jolt, and we once again received outstanding starting pitching that kept us in the game. We hung in there and fought, and it was a great team win."
Kent State's offense pounded out 12 runs on 13 hits, led by a 4-for-6 effort by sophomore right fielder T.J. Sutton (Uniontown, Ohio). First Team All-MAC senior shortstop Jimmy Rider (Venetia, Pa.) – the MAC's all-time hits leader with 328 – went 4-for-5 with his team-leading 26th double of the season. Junior center fielder Evan Campbell (Beloit, Ohio) added a double and a single, an RBI and two runs scored.
Junior right-handed starting pitcher Ryan Bores (Strongsville, Ohio) limited Western Michigan to three runs on nine hits on 98 pitches and struck out three over eight innings. He improved to 8-2 on the season with the pitching victory.
"I just wanted to go out there and throw as many strikes as I could," said Bores. "I felt good. It was a nice day, and it was fun."
The Broncos drew first blood with single tallies in the bottom of the third and fourth innings. Sophomore center fielder Vinnie Booker hit a leadoff single through the left side in the third and scored two outs later on a base hit through the left side by senior third baseman Ryan McMillin. Western Michigan upped its lead 2-0 in the ensuing frame when freshman catcher Jared Kujawa shot a one-out single up the middle, moved to second on an infield single by freshman shortstop Andrew Sohn and scored on an infield hit by sophomore second baseman Dan Shutes.
Kent State put a dent in Western Michign's lead in the top of the fifth when Campbell smashed a leadoff double to center, advanced to third on a ground out by Roberts and scored when senior catcher and 2012 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award finalist David Lyon (Emporium, Pa.) lifted a sacrifice fly to center.
The Broncos responded when redshirt senior first baseman Troy Forton shot a leadoff solo home run over the left field wall in the sixth to make it a 3-1. Bores came of age, though, by shrugging off the round tripper to produce the turning point of the contest by retiring the next three batters to limit any further damage.
"I tried to keep the ball low and throw strikes and not let the wind effect the game," said Bores. "I kept throwing ground balls and letting guys make plays behind me."
Kent State built off the toughness of Bores in the top of the seventh. Rider knocked a double down the left field line to chase Western Michigan sophomore southpaw Steve Laudicina from the contest. Junior first baseman George Roberts (Summerhill, Pa.) – the MAC Player of the Year – coaxed a walk one out later, setting the stage for redshirt junior pinch hitter Nick Hamilton (Avon Lake, Ohio) to knock a base hit through the right side to plate Rider and cut Western Michigan's lead to 3-2. Sutton turned the tide of the game with a two-RBI ground-rule double to right center to give the Flashes a 4-3 lead.
Bores continued to baffle Western Michigan's bats, shrugging off a one-out double to left by redshirt senior designated hitter Zach Thoma to keep the Broncos off the scoreboard in the seventh, then sitting down the side in the eighth.
Kent State sought more insurance in the ninth but instead turned the contest into a blowout. Hamilton reached on a throwing error by Sohn and was replaced on the base paths by redshirt sophomore Troy Summers (Minerva, Ohio). Summers stole second, then moved to third on a strikeout wild pitch that put Sutton on, setting the stage for freshman third baseman Sawyer Polen (Wooster, Ohio) to send a sacrifice fly to center. Freshman right fielder Alex Miklos (Grove City, Pa.) followed by legging out an infield single. Toadvine coaxed a walk to load the bases, and Campbell bumped home another run when he was hit by a pitch. An RBI groundout by Rider allowed Miklos to score. Lyon drew a walk to reload the bases for Kent State, setting the table for Roberts to crush a grand slam over the left field wall – Kent State's third in the last three conference tournaments – to break the contest wide open.
"I was just trying to help my team out however I could," said Roberts. "I struggled a little bit early by not laying off some bad pitches, but I took advantage of their mistake in the ninth."
Summers scored Kent State's final run when he reached on an error and scored by way of a single by Sutton.
