KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Western Michigan sophomore first baseman Cade Sullivan tied his career high with four hits in a 17-9 loss to Kent State on Friday in the opener of the two teams' four-game Mid-American Conference series.
 
FINAL SCORE: Kent State 17, Western Michigan 9
LOCATION: Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Hyames Field (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (16-31, 13-19 MAC) | Kent State (19-26, 14-17 MAC)
W: Eric Chalus (3-2) | L: Nick Crandell (2-5)
 
To go with his four knocks, Sullivan drove in three runs and scored twice for the Broncos. Connor Charping, Gavin Doyle and Dylan Nevar tallied a pair of hits apiece, while Jimmy Allen, Justin McIntyre and Doyle also each scored two runs.
 
After Nick Crandell retired Kent State in order in the top of the first, Allen led off the bottom of the inning with a home run to give WMU the early advantage. The long ball was Allen's third of the campaign, extended his hitting streak to 13 straight games, and pushed his on-base streak to 20 in a row, the longest by a Bronco this season.
 
Two outs later, Doyle doubled to extend his on-base streak to 17 in a row. Sullivan brought him in with a single to put Western Michigan in front 2-0 after one.
 
Kent State answered with one in the second and five in the third to grab a 6-2 advantage.
 
WMU pulled one back in the third on a Nevar RBI single, and then drew within one, 6-5, in the bottom of the fourth when McIntyre slammed a two-run shot off of the foul pole in left.
 
A six-run fifth inning by the Golden Flashes pushed the visitors' lead back out to 12-5.
 
Sullivan's third hit of the day was an RBI double in the fifth. The sophomore was brought home later in the inning by Josh Swinehart, trimming the deficit to 12-7 at the end of five.
 
Kent State responded with two in the sixth, then plated three more in the top of the ninth.
 
The Broncos tallied two in the bottom of the ninth, with McIntyre coming in on a wild pitch and Sullivan driving in a run in his final at-bat of the contest with a ground ball.
 
Western Michigan and Kent State continue their four-game series on Saturday with a doubleheader. First pitch for game one has been moved up from its original start time to 11:05 am. Game one will be available on the Bronco Media Network, and both contests will be streamed on Bronco All-Access.