KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan baseball continues its stretch of 14 straight away from home to start the 2023 season this weekend as it travels down to Highland Heights, Ky., for a three-game series at Northern Kentucky. 

SERIES INFO
Game One: Friday, Feb. 24 | 2 pm | LIVE STATS
RHP Brady Miller (0-1, 9.00 ERA) vs LHP Ben Gerl (1-0, 1.80 ERA)
Game Two: Saturday, Feb. 25 | 1 pm | LIVE STATS
LHP Dane Armbrustmacher (0-1, 7.71 ERA) vs RHP Kaden Echeman (0-0, 4.15 ERA)
Game Three: Sunday, Feb. 25 | 12 pm | LIVE STATS
TBA vs TBA

FOLLOW ALONG: @WMUBaseball

LEADING OFF

• Western Michigan heads to Highland Heights, Ky., this weekend for a three-game set at Northern Kentucky
• This marks the first-ever meeting between the Broncos and the Norse
• NKU is Western Michigan's first Horizon League opponent since it played at Oakland in 2017
• WMU opened its 2023 season last weekend with a three-game series at #1 LSU
• The Broncos launched two Opening Weekend home runs, both of which came in the ninth inning
• After hitting 10 long balls last season, Cade Sullivan hit WMU's first of the season on Saturday 
• In his first at-bat of the season, Ben Campos hit a pinch-hit homer in the ninth inning on Sunday
• Defensively, the Broncos turned five double plays over the weekend against LSU
• The five double plays were the most turned by any MAC team on Opening Weekend
• Brady Miller returned to the mound for the Broncos for the first time since 2021 as the Friday night starter
• Miller yielded four hits over five-plus innings and struck out three against the top-ranked Tigers
• Dane Armbrustmacher racked up six strikeouts in 4.2 innings for the Broncos on Saturday
• Ethan Houghtaling took the ball on Sunday and gave up one run on three hits in four innings
• Three different players made their WMU debut over the weekend, with JUCO transfer Jackson Kitchen and true freshmen Grady Mee and DJ Thompson seeing the field for the first time as Broncos

ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Western Michigan continues its stretch of 14 straight games away from home to start the season this weekend with a three-game series at Northern Kentucky. 

A NEW HORIZON
This weekend's series will mark the first all-time meetings on the diamond between the Broncos and the Norse. Western Michigan has not played a team from the Horizon League since a 3-0 loss at Oakland University on May 10, 2017. WMU's last win over a Horizon League opponent came on April 14, 2015, when it beat then league member Valparaiso, 6-1, in Kalamazoo.

LAST TIME OUT
Western Michigan opened up its 2023 season last weekend with a three-game series at #1 LSU. The Broncos dropped the series opener 10-0, were clipped 5-3 on Saturday, and were even with the Tigers 1-1 into the fifth inning of the series finale before the hosts pulled away to win, 9-2.

BRONCO BOMBS
The Broncos hit 57 home runs in 2022, their most in a season since blasting 59 in 2008. Western Michigan picked up where it left off during Opening Week, hitting a pair of home runs in its series at #1 LSU. Cade Sullivan got the ball rolling with a ninth-inning home run on Saturday, while Ben Campos came off the bench to blast a pinch-hit solo shot in his first at-bat of the season in the ninth inning of Sunday's series finale against the Tigers. 

BRADY'S BACK
After missing the 2022 campaign due to injury, redshirt junior right-hander Brady Miller returned to Western Michigan's rotation and served as the Opening Day starter for the Broncos on Friday at #1 LSU. In Miller's first start since May 23, 2021, he fired five-plus innings and allowed four hits while collecting four strikeouts. 

ARMBRUSTMACHER CONTINUES TO RACK UP K'S
After finishing 11th in the MAC in strikeouts a season ago, Dane Armbrustmacher racked up six strikeouts in 4.2 innings in his first start of the season on Saturday. The left-hander has registered five or more strikeouts in 10 of his 18 career starts for Western Michigan. 

HOUGHTALING ON THE HILL
Sophomore Ethan Houghtaling took the mound for the Broncos in Sunday's series finale at #1 LSU. The right-hander went four innings, and limited the Tiger offense to one on four hits in a no decision. 

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Western Michigan turned five double plays in the series against #1 LSU, the most in the MAC. For the weekend, the Broncos posted a .980 fielding percentage, the second-highest mark in the conference.

WALK THIS WAY
Josh Swinehart led the Western Michigan offense in walks over the weekend, as the junior drew three free passes against #1 LSU.

FRESH FACES
Three different players made their WMU debuts during the Opening Weekend series at #1 LSU, as Kellogg CC transfer Jackson Kitchen and true freshmen Grady Mee and DJ Thompson all saw the field for the first time as Broncos. Thompson came out of the bullpen on Friday and retired two of thre three batters he faced. Kitchen started at DH on Saturday and Mee came on to pinch hit in the eighth inning on Sunday.

ON TO THE PROS
Western Michigan had to replace a pair of players who joined Major League organizations following the 2022 campaign. Junior right-hander Easton Sikorski was selected in the 17th round round of the 2022 MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds. Following his senior season, two-time First Team All-MAC catcher Connor Charping signed with the Seattle Mariners as an undrafted free agent.