BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University baseball team got back in the win column on Tuesday (March 25) with a 12-7 victory over Youngstown State to close out the six-game homestand. The win gives BGSU a 4-2 standing during the homestand while moving to 17-7 on the season overall. The Falcons will be on the road for their next four games, including a three-game series at Central Michigan this weekend.

The game began back-and-forth with a Penguin run in the top of the first. TJ Takats answered with a home run on the second pitch to a Falcon in the game with BGSU adding another later in the first. However, a two-run second pushed Youngstown State in front before adding insurance runs in the fourth and fifth for a 5-2 lead. BGSU scored two in the bottom of the fifth to pull within one, but another YSU run in the top of the seventh made it a 6-4 score. The bottom of the seventh changed the momentum with an eight-run inning for the Falcons, sending 15 batters to the plate for a 12-6 advantage. Youngstown State added a run in the ninth, but it was only enough to cut the final deficit to 12-7. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Youngstown State hit a home run in the first inning to take a 1-0 lead
• TJ Takats quickly answered for Bowling Green with a home run to right field to begin the BGSU half of the first, tying the game at 1-1. 
• Caden Parker kept the momentum going with a single. Parker then advanced to second on an error by the catcher. DJ Newman followed with a double to right center, pushing Parker to third. Brady Birchmeier put a ball in play, scoring Parker to take a 2-1 lead through one inning. 
• Youngstown State tallied two unearned runs in the second inning for a 3-2 lead before plating one in both the fourth and fifth for a 5-2 advantage.
• Parker started off the bottom of the fifth inning with a single up the middle. Newman drew a walk and Birchmeier was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Sam Seidel delivered a single through the right side, scoring both Newman and Parker to close the gap to 5-4 through five innings. 
• After a scoreless sixth inning, Youngstown State hit a home run in the seventh to extend their lead to 6-4. 
• In the bottom half of the seventh, Parker led off with a single. Newman hit into a fielder's choice, but an error by the shortstop kept both Parker and Newman on the bases, standing at the corners. A wild pitch moved Newman up to second before a Birchmeier infield single to third brought home Parker for the first run of the inning. 
• After an out, Cooper McKenzie was hit by a pitch to again load the bases for the Falcons. Zack Horky was able to knock a two-RBI double down the left field line, scoring both Birchmeier and Newman for a 7-6 BGSU advantage. 
• During the next at-bat, a wild pitch by Youngstown State gave McKenzie a chance at home plate to extend the lead. Brayden Curlis kept it going with a single up the middle to score Horky, prompting a pitching change for YSU with the score at 9-6. 
• Gunner Antillon welcomed the new arm with a triple to the right field corner, scoring Curlis. Batting around, Parker followed by reaching on a throwing error, taking second on the errant throw while Antillon scored, now 11-6.
• Newman capped off the scoring for the inning with a single through the right side of the infield to bring home Parker for a 12-6 advantage. 
• Youngstown State added a run in the ninth inning for the eventual 12-7 final. 

STAT LEADERS

• Caden Parker: 3-for-5, 4 R
• Gunner Antillon: 3-for-4, 1 3B, 1 R, 1 RBI
• Zack Horky: 1-for-3, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 R
• DJ Newman: 2-for-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 2 R, 1 BB
• Brady Birchmeier: 2-for-3, 2 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB
• Sam Seidel: 2-for-5, 2 RBI
• TJ Takats: 2-for-3, 1HR, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB
• Brayden Curlis: 1-for-4, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB
• Carrson Sova: W (1-1), 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R/ER, 2 K
• CJ Boudreaux: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R/ER, 1 K

FALCON STAT FACTS

• TJ Takats' first inning home run marked his fourth of the season, all coming during the homestand, and his second to begin a game in the span of a week after doing so against Purdue Fort Wayne last Tuesday as well. 
• Caden Parker registered a three-hit day for the Falcons and scored a season-high four times. The effort pushed his on-base streak to a team-best 16 games. Parker has also now scored in six-straight games for the Falcons with 11 runs scored over the six games. 
• Sam Seidel's two-hit day extended his hitting streak to a team-best eight games. During the eight-game span, Seidel has five multi-hit games as well as nine RBI.  
• Gunner Antillon ripped his first triple of the season as part of a three-hit day for the shortstop. Antillon now has a five-game hitting streak, the second-longest active streak on the team. 
• DJ Newman posted a two-hit day for the Falcons and scored twice while logging his fourth double of the homestand. Newman also scored in the game. He's now registered a hit and a run in eight of BGSU's last nine games. 
• Brady Birchmeier added two more RBI to his team-leading total of 33. Birchmeier has recorded at least one RBI in eight of his last nine games played with a total of 18 RBI over the stretch. 
• Zack Horky tallied his third double of the season and his third multi-RBI game of the year, coming on as a pinch hitter for the Falcons. 
• Carrson Sova tossed two innings of relief for the Falcons, picking up his first career win on the mound. Sova is the 10th different Falcon to tally a win this year through 17 wins as a team. 
• Brayden Curlis knocked the second hit of his collegiate career and recorded his first RBI for the Falcons while also scoring for the fourth time. 

UP NEXT
Bowling Green will resume conference play this weekend with a trip to Central Michigan, taking on the Chippewas in a three-game series. The next home game for the Falcons will be on April 4 against Miami (OH), beginning a three-game series. 

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