PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla.- Western Michigan came out swinging in
the first, scoring seven runs on six hits, and stayed the course for a 7-3
victory.
Junior Patrick Borlik tossed five and two thirds innings to
get the win for the Broncos.
Sophomore shortstop Andrew Sohn went 3-for-5 on the day,
while senior left fielder Patrick Duncan went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs.
The Broncos big first inning began with a one out walk by
sophomore Jared Kujawa, which was followed up with back-to-back doubles by Sohn
and Duncan. Freshman Hunter Prince then singled to right field and sophomore
Caleb Caton followed with a walk to load the bases. The next two batters,
freshman Kurt Hoekstra and junior Brooks Beilke, both singled and chased Maine's
starting pitcher from the game with only one out in the first.
After trailing by seven after one inning of play, Maine
showed some fight in an attempt to get back into the game. The Black Bears
scored one run in the second inning and two runs in the third but were unable
to match the strong start by Broncos.
Borlik threw five and two thirds solid innings for Western
Michigan before being relieved by freshman Pat Haynes. Haynes entered the game with two outs
in the sixth inning and finished the game by only allowing one hit, earning the
save.
Five Broncos had multi-hit games including junior Theo
Piccirilli, Sohn, Duncan, Hoekstra, and Beilke.
"I felt like we showed resilience and grit and it allowed us
to beat a good team," commented WMU head coach Billy Gernon.
"We played solid
defense tonight and got strong pitching from Borlik and Haynes. The big hit has
been elusive thus far this season, but not tonight. It is imperative that we
keep our eyes on the prize and keep getting better every day."
Next up for Western Michigan is Florida Gulf Coast, the No.
29 ranked team according to NCAA.com. The two teams will square up in Fort Myers,
Fla. for a three game series beginning on Friday, March 8, at 6:30 p.m.
