BGSU Sets Aim For Avon And MAC Tournament, Beginning With Battle Of I-75
AVON, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University baseball team will head into the MAC Tournament this week in Avon, Ohio as the No. 4 seed in the field. BGSU will begin their portion of the tournament on Wednesday, May 21 with a 6 p.m. first pitch against the Toledo Rockets. With a double elimination bracket that will reseed, the Falcons second game will be on Thursday, May 22 with the time and opponent yet to be determined. The games will be played at Crushers Stadium, the home of the Lake Erie Crushers, and will be available to watch on ESPN+. Any schedule changes will be announced on BGSUFalcons.com as well as Twitter/X (@BGSU_Baseball).
Current Week Schedule
Wednesday, May 21 | vs. Toledo | 6 p.m. | Crushers Stadium | ESPN+
Thursday, May 22 | vs. TBD | 10 a.m. OR 2 p.m. OR 6 p.m.. | Crushers Stadium | ESPN+
TBD
What To Watch For
- Bowling Green will be making their second of back-to-back MAC Tournament appearances after being the No. 1 seed last season. This is BGSU's first time with consecutive MAC Tournament appearances since going to three straight from 2013-15.
- The Falcons hold a record of 21-23 all-time in the MAC Tournament with the team's last MAC Tournament title coming in 2013.
- The Falcons recorded 33 wins during the regular season, already matching their win total from the 2024 campaign when they finished 33-20 overall while being 24-6 in the MAC.
- As a team, Bowling Green has tallied 30 sacrifice flies this season, tied for 32nd in the nation while being tied for third in the MAC.
Scouting Toledo
Since the last meeting between Bowling Green and Toledo, the Rockets have posted a record of 6-1, topping Youngstown State while taking two of three from Northern Illinois and sweeping Central Michigan. In the series against the Chippewas, Toledo outscored CMU by a total of 48-12, including two run-rule wins. Toledo started the series with 21 runs on Thursday (May 15) before scoring 11 runs on 22 hits on Friday (May 16). The hot bats carried into the regular season finale with five home runs in a 16-run output. Toledo ended the season with a five-game winning streak as well as wins in eight of their last nine, concluding with a 28-27 overall record and 17-13 MAC standing.
Series History Against The Rockets
- Bowling Green and Toledo will start the MAC Tournament with their fourth meeting this year and the 243rd meeting all-time. BGSU holds the advantage currently with a record of 140-102.
- BGSU took the first meeting this year between the teams, winning 8-3 at Fifth Third Field on May 2, but Toledo claimed both games of a doubleheader at Scott Park on May 3 with 8-3 and 8-1 final scores in the games.
- This will mark the fifth meeting all-time between BGSU and Toledo in the MAC Tournament and the first since three games in 2013. Bowling Green has a 3-1 record against Toledo, taking two in 2013 (4-3 and 1-0) as well as one in 1999 (15-2). Toledo's win in 2013 came in a 5-2 final.
Falcons Nearing Program Milestone
As a team, Bowling Green is sitting just one win away from checking off program win 1,800 after adding 33 wins to the total each of the last two seasons. Dating back to 1915 with the first varsity season in 1918, the Falcons have currently won 1,799 baseball games during the program's 110-year history. The 1,700-win milestone was reached during the 2022 campaign, leaving what would be three years between milestones if BGSU hits the mark. The three-year span would tie for the shortest time span between milestones in program history with three years being the difference between milestones five times previously. The most recent was between wins 1,400 and 1,500 which came in 2007 and 2010. The last 123 wins for the Falcons have come under Head Coach Kyle Hallock with the previous 723 victories being under Head Coach Danny Schmitz over his 30 years at the helm of the program.
Pitching Staff Entering Record Book
This year, the Bowling Green pitching staff has registered 418 strikeouts as a unit, breaking the program record for strikeouts in a season for the second-straight year. Last year, the Falcons broke the record with 403 to best the mark of 368 set in 1999 that stood for 25 years. Earlier this season, the Falcons also broke the program record for saves in a season, now set at 17 with the previous record being set at 12 in 1994, 2009 and 2010. Now, the Falcon pitchers are nearing another record. As a team, BGSU has pitched 461.1 innings this season, needing 18 to tie the program record for innings pitched in a season and 18.1 to break it. The record is currently held by the 2013 team at 479.1 innings pitched followed closely by the 2010 team's 479.0 innings.
Moving Wright Into The All-Time Ranks
Garrett Wright has placed his name all over Bowling Green's single-season record book this year. Most notably, he broke his own hit-by-pitch record, now with 26 this season, but he's also nearing a few others. Wright is currently tied for the most doubles in a season by a Falcon with 19, needing one more to break the record. He's also already entered the Top 10 all-time for hits (79) and runs scored (58), currently ninth all-time for both. Wright is knocking on the door of the Top 10 for triples (4), needing one, total bases (130), needing two, RBI (47), needing eight and at-bats (192), needing 19. In total, Wright is already inside or within range of eight different single-season stats for the Falcons.
Penrod In A League Of His Own
Connar Penrod picked up his team-leading fifth win of the season this past week, making him the only pitcher in the nation with 12 or more saves and five or more wins this season. Penrod is now BGSU's single-season saves leader and the only Falcon in program history to have double-digit saves in a season. The total for Penrod leads the MAC while also being tied for sixth in the nation. As for the MAC record book for single-season saves, Penrod would need 13 saves to enter the Top 10, which would tie him for eighth in conference history. For his career, Penrod now has 13 saves, which is fourth in program history, to go along with 12 wins, which leads the current roster. On top of the wins and saves this season, Penrod has maintained a 1.78 ERA, which would currently be seventh all-time.
Wright On The National Leaderboard
Garrett Wright has bolstered his record-breaking season for the Falcons by placing his name among the best in the nation for multiple stats. Wright is the only player in the Mid-American Conference with a batting average above .400. He's also the only player in the MAC with an on-base percentage above .500. His batting average is currently ranked 19th in the nation and is the best among catchers. As for his on-base percentage, he's ranked 22nd in the nation and is not only the top catcher, but the only one in the top 35 nationally. Wright is also inside the top 25 for three other stats. His total hit-by-pitch of 26 is tied for ninth in the nation while his HBPs per game of 0.50 is tied for 13th in the nation. His top 25 list wraps up with seven sacrifice flies, which are tied for 22nd in the country this season.
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Latest Men's Baseball News
- Seidel Sends Off Regular Season With Eighth Inning Blast To Push Falcons Past HuskiesBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University baseball team wrapped up the regular season on Saturday (May 17) at Steller Field, claiming a 4-2 victory over Northern Illinois. Being tied at the conclusion of every inning entering the eighth, Brady Birchmeier and Sam Seidel changed the script. Birchmeier doubled to the outfield with Alex Laird entering as a pinch runner. In the next at-bat, Seidel launched a two-run shot to right field, pushing BGSU in front for the 4-2 win. The win moves Bowling Green to 33-20 to conclude the regular season and 19-11 in the MAC before beginning the MAC Tournament on Wednesday (May 21).
- Falcons’ Fifth Walk-Off Of The Season Secures No. 4 Seed In MAC TournamentBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University baseball team claimed their fifth walk-off win of the season on Friday (May 16) to top Northern Illinois in a 5-4 final. With the bases loaded, one out and a new NIU pitcher on the mound, Gavin Ganun found a gap in the outfield, scoring Alex Laird for the winning run to give BGSU the victory. The win moves the Falcons to 32-20 on the season while being 18-11 within the MAC, clinching the No. 4 seed in the MAC Tournament. BGSU will conclude the regular season on Saturday (May 17) against Northern Illinois before starting the MAC Tournament on Wednesday (May 21) against Toledo with a 6 p.m. start in Avon.
- Northern Illinois Outlasts Bowling Green In High-Scoring AffairBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University baseball team began the final series of the regular season on Thursday (May 15) against Northern Illinois at Steller Field. The Falcons and Huskies combined for 28 hits and produced 22 runs over the nine frames of baseball in an offensive battle. Bowling Green struck first with three runs in the first, but NIU followed with five in the second and didn't surrender the lead from there, claiming a 14-8 final score. With two games left in the regular season, BGSU moves to 31-20 on the season while being 17-11 within the MAC.
- Tuesday Baseball Against Toledo CanceledBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Due to current and anticipated weather and conditions, Tuesday's (May 13) baseball against Toledo has been canceled. No makeup date will be set for the contest. The Falcons are still scheduled to host Northern Illinois this weekend at Steller Field to conclude the regular season before shifting to the MAC Tournament next week in Avon, Ohio.
- Falcons Focus On Final Week Of Regular Season With Toledo, NIUBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University baseball team will head into the final week of the regular season with four games on the schedule. BGSU will begin the week at Toledo in a non-conference game, set for a 3 p.m. first pitch on Tuesday (May 13) at Scott Park. From there, the Falcons will transition back home to Steller Field, hosting Northern Illinois in the final regular season series. BGSU and NIU will play Thursday, Friday, Saturday (May 15-17) with Saturday's game marking Senior Day for the Orange and Brown. Tuesday and Saturday will be streamed on BCSN with a simulcast on ESPN+ while Thursday will be available to watch on YouTube. As always, home games at Steller Field will be free to attend. Any schedule changes will be announced on BGSUFalcons.com as well as Twitter/X (@BGSU_Baseball).
- Notre Dame Pulls Ahead In Pitcher’s Duel Sunday At StellerBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University baseball team wrapped up the weekend series against Notre Dame on Sunday (May 11), hosting the Fighting Irish at Steller Field. Notre Dame marked the first Power 5 opponent at Steller Field for BGSU since 2009. Bowling Green and Notre Dame went head-to-head in a pitcher's duel with Landon Willeman producing five strong innings in the start, not allowing a run while striking out five. Despite BGSU outhitting the Irish, Notre Dame pushed in front for the 4-0 final, cracking the scoring column in the sixth and seventh before Connar Penrod and Logan Bell shut the ND offense down again in the eighth and ninth. Bowling Green drops to 31-19 on the season with four games left in the regular season before the MAC Tournament begins on May 21.
