KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan baseball team takes a step outside of conference play on Wednesday as it travels to East Lansing to take on Michigan State. Wednesday's game had previously been scheduled for a 6:35 pm start, but has been moved up to 4:05 pm due to forecasted weather in the East Lansing area on Wednesday evening. 

GAME INFO 
Wednesday, April 13 | 4:05 pm | WATCH LIVE | LISTEN LIVE | LIVE STATS
RHP Nick Crandell (0-2, 9.64 ERA) vs RHP Harrison Cook (0-3, 10.08)

FOLLOW ALONG: @WMUBaseball

LEADING OFF

• Western Michigan steps outside of conference play on Wednesday as it visits Michigan State
• WMU and MSU are meeting for the first time since 2019
• Wednesday's game is the first game of a home-and-home, with MSU set to make the return trip on May 11
• The Broncos are 97-77 all-time against the Spartans
• Western Michigan is coming off of a series split at Akron over the weekend
• Brenden Lovell fired nine scoreless innings over the course of Saturday's twin bill to earn a save and a win
• The senior retired nine of the 10 Zips he faced in game one to pick up a save
• Lovell then took the ball again to start game two and fired six more scoreless innings and picked up a win
• The 12-0 shutout in game two was Western Michigan's first in exactly one calendar year (4/9/21 at Miami)
• Connor Charping leads the MAC in hits (40), ranks fourth in average (.377) and ninth in OBP (.455)
• The senior is also third in runs scored (31), second in steals (14) and tied for sixth in doubles (9)
• Gavin Doyle drew seven walks against Akron to move into third in the conference with 23
• Doyle ranks eighth in the MAC in average (.368) and second in on-base percentage (.533)
• In conference play, Doyle is hitting .400 (9th in the conference) and owns a .586 on-base percentage (2nd)
• Justin McIntyre's 13 hit by pitches are the most in the Mid-American Conference

THE FIRST PITCH
Western Michigan steps outside of conference play on Wednesday evening as it travels up to East Lansing to take on Michigan State. Wednesday's contest is the first of a home-and-home against MSU, with the Spartans set to come to Kalamazoo on May 11. The Broncos own a 97-77 record against MSU, with Wednesday marking the first matchup between the two since 2019.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
Michigan State enters Wednesday having dropped two out of three last weekend against Ohio State. As a team, MSU is hitting .275, led by Trent Farquhar's .330 mark. Three other regulars are at .310 or above, in Jack Frank (.317), Mitch Jebb (.315) and Casey Mayes (.310).

LAST WEEKEND RECAP
For the second consecutive weekend, WMU earned a split of its weekend series, going 2-2 at Akron. After the Zips took Friday's opener, Western Michigan bounced back to sweep Saturday's twin bill, including the team's first shutout since April 9, 2021 at Miami. The Broncos had to settle for the split, as Akron won the finale, 4-2.

GOTTA LOVE IT
Righty Brenden Lovell turned in a pair of dominant performances in Western Michigan's sweep of Akron on Saturday. In game one, the senior retired nine of the 10 batters he faced to record the save. Lovell then took the ball to start game two, and fired a career-high six scoreless innings on the way to a win. In total, the senior worked nine scoreless innings, yielded six hits, one walk and struck out eight. 

DANE'S DOMINANCE
Dane Armbrustmacher turned in yet another strong outing for the Broncos at Akron, as the lefty gave up two runs on four hits across five innings in a no-decision. For the season, Armbrustmacher is tied for third in the conference with 52 strikeouts and ranks fifth with a 3.43 ERA.

COUNTING ON CONNOR
Connor Charping is all over the MAC leaderboards, leading the conference in hits (40), as well as ranking third in runs scored (31), fourth in average (.377), ninth in on-base percentage (.455) and tied for sixth in doubles (9). 

GAVIN GETS ON BASE
Gavin Doyle drew seven walks at Akron, moving him into third in the MAC with 23 for the season. The junior is eighth  in average (.368) and second in on-base percentage (.533).

THE FIRST TWO TO 20
Dylan Nevar knocked in a pair of runs over the weekend against the Zips to move his team-leading total to 21. Josh Swinehart plated three for the Broncos to get to 20. 

SIZZLIN' SULLY
First baseman Cade Sullivan had a big weekend at the dish for WMU, going 6-for-13 (.462) with four walks for a .588 OBP. 

EASING BACK INTO IT
Since returning to the lineup for the Broncos in the series at Eastern Michigan, Easton Sikorski has yet to allow an earned run across six innings of work. 

BRONCO BOMBS
After Ben Campos and Will Morrison went deep over the weekend, Western Michigan has blasted 24 home runs through its first 27 games. The Broncos launched 44 long balls in 2021, their highest team total since 2009. 

CAN'T CATCH THE CATCHER
After stealing a program-record 32 bases in 2021, senior catcher Connor Charping has stolen 14 bases so far in 2022, second-most in the MAC. With his 56 career steals, Charping ranks third in program history.

GETTING ON THE PAINFUL WAY
Justin McIntyre leads the conference in hit by pitches with 13 this season. The senior has been hit 36 times in his career, third-most in Western Michigan program history.