Penrod Breaks Two Records As Falcons Bounce Back Against Broncos
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Bowling Green State University baseball team evened the weekend series with Western Michigan on Saturday (April 12), claiming a 3-1 victory over the Broncos. All three of BGSU's runs came in the second inning, spearheaded by doubles from Gavin Ganun and Zack Horky. Carrson Sova supplied a stellar start for the Falcons, tossing 5.2 scoreless innings on his way to win. For the ninth time this season, Connar Penrod closed it down for the save, breaking both the individual and team single-season save totals in program history with nine and 13, respectively. The Falcons move to 23-10 on the season while being 12-5 within the MAC with the rubber match in the series set for tomorrow at 1:05 p.m in Kalamazoo.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- TJ Takats tallied a single in the first at-bat of the game to get the day started, marking the lone hit of the first inning for either team.
- In the second inning, Gavin Ganun ripped a double to right followed by a Carter Mottice walk to put two on for the Falcons. Zack Horky was able to double to left field, scoring Ganun for the first run of the game.
- Alex Laird kept it going with a single to center in the next at-bat, bringing Mottice home while placing runners at the corners. A sacrifice fly to right by Gunner Antillon was enough to score Horky for a 3-0 BGSU lead after two.
- From there, pitching stood strong for both teams, posting scoreless frames from the third inning through the sixth. In the sixth, WMU worked the bases loaded, but Ty Roder came on in relief and tallied an out to keep the score at 3-0.
- Western Michigan broke the scoreless streak in the seventh, scoring one for the eventual 3-1 final score.
- In the ninth, Connar Penrod entered the Falcons, working on a one-two-three innings with a groundout, pop out and fly out for the save.
STAT LEADERS
- Carrson Sova: W (3-1), 5.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R/ER, 3 K
- Connar Penrod: S (9), 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R/ER
- Ty Roder: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R/ER
- Owen Poole: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R/ER, 1 K
- Zack Horky: 2-for-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 R
- Gavin Ganun: 2-for-3, 1 2B, 2 R, 1 BB
- Garrett Wright: 2-for-4, 1 SB
- TJ Takats: 2-for-5
- Alex Laird: 1-for-3, 1 RBI
FALCON STAT FACTS
- Logging the save, Connar Penrod took over full control of the BGSU single-season saves record now with nine on the season. The save also marked the 13th for the Falcons this year, a new single-season team record as well.
- Penrod's save registered the 10th of his BGSU career. The tally ties him for seventh all-time in program history for career saves, matching both Bob Reichow (1993-96) and Derek Common (1989-92).
- Carrson Sova completed another scoreless start for the Falcons, going 5.2 innings in the outing while picking up the win. Sova now has three wins on the season, tied for the team lead. Since moving into the weekend starting role, Sova has allowed just one earned run and two runs total over 16.2 innings of work while striking out 14 across three starts. All three of his wins have also come since March 25.
- Zack Horky extended his hitting streak to four games for the Falcons with his RBI double. During the last four games Horky has played in he's batting .333 with four runs scored, three RBI and two doubles.
- Garrett Wright singled in the third inning, pushing his on-base streak to a team-best 21 games for the Orange and Brown. Wright finished with a pair of hits, his 17th multi-hit game of the season.
- Gavin Ganun tallied his seventh multi-hit game of the year for the Falcons while recording his sixth double. Ganun also drew a walk, giving him a walk in four straight games and moving his on-base streak to six.
- Carter Mottice drew a pair of walks in the game, continuing his stretch of reaching in each of his first three games as a Falcon. He also scored for BGSU, his fourth time in the three-game span.
UP NEXT
Bowling Green and Western Michigan will conclude the weekend series on Sunday (April 13), with a 1:05 p.m. first pitch in Kalamazoo.
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