Ball State University
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Western Michigan
Baseball Falls To Western Michigan, 20-10
April 25, 2009 | Baseball
Sophomore shortstop T.J. Baumet (Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg) paced the Cardinals as he tallied a career-high three home runs in the loss. Baumet, who entered the season with three home runs, drove in four runs as he tallied long balls in the first, third and seventh innings.
Sophomore third baseman Kolbrin Vitek (Bryan, Ohio/Bryan) continued his strong play as he recorded three hits, all of which were doubles. Vitek now has recorded 21 doubles this season which leads the MAC and is already tied for third most in a single season in Ball State history. He trails former Cardinal Brad Snyder for the single-season record as Snyder tallied 25 doubles in the 2003 season.
Western Michigan opened the windy afternoon quickly as it scored eight runs in the top of the first inning against BSU right-hander Brenden Stines (Granger, Ind./Penn). In an omen of the afternoon, leadoff hitter Kyle Galbraith ripped a solo home run to open the scoring. The Broncos continued to hit the ball and took advantage of three Ball State errors in the inning to take the early 8-0 lead.
Ball State responded right back in the bottom of the first inning against WMU starter Brian Stroud. After two quick outs, Vitek walked and junior catcher Zach Dygert (Angola, Ind./Angola) ripped in infield single to put two aboard. Freshman first baseman Ian Nielsen (La Porte, Ind./La Porte) drove in two runs with a single up the middle and junior designated hitter Kory Benbow (Muncie, Ind./Cowan) ripped a run-scoring double to left center field to score Nielsen.
Junior right fielder Ryan Chenoweth (Fort Wayne, Ind./Homestead) drove in two more runs as he singled to right field. Baumet capped the inning as he ripped his first home run over the center field wall to narrow the gap to 8-6.
Western Michigan extended its lead to 14-6 with six runs in the top of the third inning as it took advantage of the long ball. Max Kelmigian tallied a three-run home run in the inning while Jamie Simpson hit his first home run of the afternoon in Stines' last inning on the mound.
Baumet added his second home run in the bottom half of the inning as he ripped a solo home run to right center field. The Broncos added four more runs in the top of the fifth inning as Simpson homered for the second time and Kevan Hess hit a solo shot.
After the Broncos took a 20-7 lead in the top of the seventh inning, Ball State made one final push in the bottom of the seventh inning. Nielsen led off the inning with a solo home run over the left field wall for his seventh of the season. After two outs, Baumet recorded his third home run of the afternoon this one over the center field wall. Freshman left fielder Cody Elliott (Florence, Ky./Beechwood) kept things going with a single and senior second baseman Nate Fields (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) drove him home with a single to left field to cap the afternoon's scoring.
Stines (2-4) was charged with the loss as he allowed eight earned runs in 3.0 innings of work. Stroud (2-7) picked up the victory despite allowing seven runs on nine hits in 5.0 innings. Casey Webber tallied his first save as he worked 4.0 innings and held the Cardinals to three runs while striking out seven batters.
The Cardinals and the Broncos will wrap up the three-game series Sunday afternoon. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. at Ball Diamond with Vitek set to take the hill for the Cardinals.
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