KALAMAZOO, Mich.- Northern Illinois evened this weekend's Mid-American Conference baseball series with a 2-0 victory over Western Michigan in game two Saturday at Homer Stryker Field. The two sides combined for eight hits, each collecting four.

The afternoon was a duel on the mound between Western Michigan junior RHP Chad Mayle and Northern Illinois senior RHP Eli Anderson. The game was scoreless through the first five innings, over which both starting pitchers gave up just two hits.

Mayle also did not allow a walk through the first five frames but ran into problems in the sixth, walking three to load the bases with one out. Huskie second baseman Justin Fletcher slapped a single through the right side to put the game's first run on the board. Mayle regained his composure and worked out of the inning with a strikeout and popout to third, leaving the bags full.

While Western Michigan had just two hits through five innings, the Broncos put six more on base with an error and five walks, however could not advance a runner past second.

Mayle returned in the seventh and retired the Huskies in order. He took the mound again in the eighth and turned the game over to LHP Derek Schneider with a runner on second and one out. Schneider was able to get a groundout before walking a batter and then was replaced by RHP Monty Porter. With runners at the corners and two outs, Porter caught Fletcher leaning at first. As the Broncos attempted to run down Fletcher, NIU's Johnny Zubek took off from third to home. Bronco shortstop Andrew Sohn fired to the plate and catcher Brett Sunde was able to apply the tag for the third out.

Sohn singled for the Broncos with two outs in the eighth, but Anderson again came away unscathed.

In the top of the ninth Northern Illinois' Micah McCulloch hit a leadoff home run to left for the series' first extra base hit, giving the Huskies a 2-0 cushion. LHP Ben Neumann relieved Anderson in the bottom of ninth and struck out two of the three batters he faced to earn the save.

Sohn, Sunde, Kurt Hoekstra and Caleb Caton each had a hit for Western Michigan. Sunde extended his on-base streak to 15 games. Hoekstra swiped a bag in the fifth for his third stolen base of the season. Defensively, Sunde flashed his arm from behind the plate in the third, throwing out two runners attempting to steal second.

Mayle's record dropped to 4-4 with the loss. He gave up one run and three hits, walking four and striking out three over 7.1 innings. Anderson (2-5) fanned three for NIU over eight scoreless innings.

Western Michigan (15-22, 6-11 MAC) and Northern Illinois (12-29-1, 7-10 MAC) return to Homer Stryker Field tomorrow for the series finale at 1 p.m.