KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan baseball team concludes its trip through the Carolinas on Tuesday as it heads to Clinton, S.C., to take on Presbyterian.
GAME INFO
Matchup: Western Michigan (3-7) at Presbyterian (6-5)
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 7 – 4 pm
Site: PC Baseball Complex (Clinton, S.C.)
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
FOLLOW ALONG: @WMUBaseball
LEADING OFF
- Western Michigan concludes its trip through the Carolinas on Tuesday as it visits Presbyterian
- Tuesday's game marks the first-ever meeting between the Broncos and the Blue Hose
- WMU is riding a three-game winning streak after taking three out of four over the weekend
- The Broncos fell victim to a late North Carolina A&T rally in Friday's weekend opener, but followed that up with back-to-back wins over Bucknell and a 10-1 win over A&T to wrap up the weekend
- Western Michigan was led all weekend by its offense, which totaled 41 runs over the four games
- Cade Sullivan went 10-for-21 (.476) for the weekend with three home runs and 12 RBIs
- Sullivan's efforts earned him MAC Player of the Week, WMU's first Player of the Week award this season
- The junior enters the week tied for third in the conference in both home runs (4) and RBIs (14)
- Will Morrison had a big weekend of his own, going 10-for-17 (.588) with a .619 on-base percentage
- The redshirt junior had two doubles, scored eight runs and added seven RBIs
- Morrison has six straight multi-hit games to boost his average to .432, third-best in the MAC
- Dane Armbrustmacher continued to pile up the strikeouts, as he picked up six in 6.2 innings on Saturday
- The lefty is atop the league in innings pitched (17.1) and is fifth in the conference in strikeouts (20)
- Tuesday is Western Michigan's final tuneup before MAC play begins this weekend at Ball State
CAROLINA CONCLUSION
Western Michigan concludes its journey through the Carolinas on Tuesday with its first-ever game against Presbyterian. The Broncos are in the midst of 14 straight games away from home to start the season. The final leg of WMU's journey is this weekend, as it visits preseason MAC favorite Ball State for a three-game series to begin conference play.
LAST TIME OUT
Western Michigan fell victim to a North Carolina A&T rally on Friday, but bounced back to win its final three games last weekend. WMU registered back-to-back wins over Bucknell, then closed out the weekend with a 10-1 win over weekend host North Carolina A&T.
SULLIVAN NAMED MAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Cade Sullivan was named MAC Player of the Week on Monday after going 10-for-21 (.476) over the weekend with three home runs, two doubles, five runs scored and 12 RBIs. The junior first baseman had a pair of multi-hit games, including a multi-homer game in Saturday's win over Bucknell, during which he set career highs in hits (5) and RBIs (6). Sullivan enters the week tied for third in the conference in both home runs (4) and RBIs (14).
MASHING MORRISON
Will Morrison had a huge weekend as well for the Broncos, as he went 10-for-17 (.588) with a .619 on-base percentage. The redshirt junior had multiple hits in all four games, making it six games in a row he's had at least two knocks for Western Michigan. In Sunday's doubleheader sweep of Bucknell and North Carolina A&T, Morrison totaled six hits, scored five times and had five RBIs. In the weekend finale against A&T, he tied his career highs in hits (4) and runs scored (3). For the season, Morrison ranks third in the MAC in batting average (.432), fourth in hits (16), tied for sixth in OBP (.500) and is tied for eighth in runs scored (10).
ARMBRUSTMACHER CONTINUES TO RACK UP K'S
Dane Armbrustmacher registered six more strikeouts in Saturday's win over Bucknell, giving him five or more strikeouts in 12 of his 20 career starts at Western Michigan. The lefty got off to a bumpy start against the Bison, but he bounced back to retire 11 batters in a row at one point. Armbrustmacher went 6.2 innings for the afternoon and earned his first win of 2023 for his efforts. The senior enters the week atop the conference in innings pitched (17.1) and is fifth in the league with 20 strikeouts.
HOMERIN' HARRITY
Brendan Harrity became the first Bronco to notch a multi-homer game this season, as he launched a pair in Friday's game against North Carolina A&T. It was the first multi-homer game of his college career.
BRONCO BOMBS
WMU hit seven home runs over the weekend, bringing their season total to 12 in 10 games. Four different Broncos already have multiple home runs, as
Cade Sullivan has four, and the trio of
Gavin Doyle,
Brendan Harrity and
Josh Swinehart have two apiece. Western Michigan hit 57 homers a year ago, its most since 2008.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
The Western Michigan defense turned six double plays over the course of the weekend. The Broncos have 11 twin killings thus far this season, second-most in the MAC and tied for 20th-most in the nation.
WHAT A RELIEF
The WMU bullpen was dominant in its three wins to wrap up the weekend. In 11.0 innings, Bronco relievers combined to yield just one earned run on six hits with three walks. Western Michigan's relief corps also racked up eight strikeouts in those games, highlighted by freshman
DJ Thompson's three in three scoreless frames on Sunday.
