ATTENTION: WMU'S GAMES AGAINST TOLEDO ARE NOW BEING PLAYED AS A DOUBLEHEADER BEGINNING AT 2 P.M. ON SATURDAY!!

Game 1 Stats
Game 2 Stats

KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Western Michigan softball improved to 5-1 in Mid-American Conference play with a pair of wins over visiting Bowling Green on Friday afternoon.  The Broncos took the Falcons, 5-2, in the first game and, 7-1, in the second.  Meghan Thomas fanned a career-best nine batters in game two, while Lexi Jager went 6-for-7 at the plate with her fifth home run of the season, 10th of her career.  Sarah Thomas tied the WMU singl-game record for doubles with three in the first game.

Jager went 3-for-3 in the first game, belting a two-out home run on the first pitch she saw in the bottom of the fifth to extend Western Michigan's to 4-2.  Jager plated two more runs in the second game.  The first came on her second triple of the season, ripping a shot down the right field line to score Samantha Vargocko who had singled up the middle with two outs in the inning.  The Kalamazoo native's third and final RBI of the day came in WMU's four-run sixth inning.  She hit a single to center field to score Gracie Barstad who reached on a fielding error with one out. 

WMU answered BGSU's first run of game one in the third inning when Vargocko legged out an infield hit to short stop to score Thomas, who doubled down the right field line.  The Broncos tacked on two more runs in the fourth when Kayla Houston doubled to right center field, scoring Chelsea Westenburg.  Thomas stroked her second double of the game to score Michelle Bendewald, pinch running for Houston.

Bowling Green plated a second run to cut the Broncos' lead to 3-2.  WMU worked its way back to a two-run lead in the bottom of the fifth on Jager's home run and added its fifth and final run in the bottom of the sixth on Thomas' record-tying third double of the game.

Meghan Thomas was in complete command in the second game, striking out a career-best nine batters and taking a no-hitter through five innings.  Thomas recorded the first seven outs of the game defensively for Western Michigan with strike outs and set a new single-game career mark with her eighth punch out of the game to end the fifth inning.

Sayres' 4-for-4 effort in the second game began with a double to center field in the second inning.  She singled up the middle in her second at bat and followed with another base hit to left field in the fifth.  She capped off her day at the plate with her second double in the sixth inning, scoring Vargocko and Jager, who reached base via a walk and a base hit, respectively.

WMU scored two runs in the third inning on Jager's triple and Houston reaching on a fielding error.  The Broncos added a third run in the fourth inning on Michelle Bendewald's double, plating M. Thomas who reached on the Falcons' second error of the game.  After Bowling Green broke up Thomas' bid for a shut out, Western Michigan broke the game open with four runs in the bottom of the sixth.

Barstad reached on an error for the second time of the day and Vargocko followed with a base on balls and Jager singled to score the first run of the frame.  She later scored on Sayres' fourth double of the season.  Pinch runner Amanda McBride scored on Meredith Whitney's sacrifice fly.  Whitney earned her eighth win of the season, striking out 12 batters, in the first game of the day.

Western Michigan will host Toledo on Saturday (2 p.m.) and Sunday (1 p.m.).  The Rockets earned their first two wins of the conference season by sweeping the previously unbeaten Northern Illinois Huskies, 4-3 and 5-2.