KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan baseball team tallied five runs in the third inning, four of which came on a Gavin Doyle grand slam, on the way to a 6-4 win over Bowling Green in the opener of a three-game MAC series on Friday afternoon.
 
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 6, Bowling Green 4
LOCATION: Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Hyames Field (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (11-24, 8-7 MAC) | Bowling Green (14-20, 8-11)
W: Brady Miller (4-3) | L: Gage Schenk (2-5) | Save: Hayden Berg (1)
 
Bowling Green notched the afternoon's first run in the top of the third.
 
WMU came right back in the bottom of the frame, loading the bases with two outs for Doyle, who launched a grand slam to right center. The long ball was the senior's fourth of the season. The Broncos followed the home run with three consecutive singles, with Jimmy Allen's base hit bringing Dylan Nevar home to cap the five-run frame.
 
The Falcons tallied three in the fifth to shrink the margin to 5-4.
 
Following BGSU's three-run fifth, WMU starter Brady Miller bounced back to set the Falcons down in order in the sixth, his final inning of the contest. Miller surrendered four runs across his six innings of work and racked up six strikeouts to pick up his fourth win of the campaign.
 
In the seventh inning, Western Michigan turned to Hayden Berg. The junior faced the minimum over his first two innings of work, keeping the Broncos ahead by one.
 
WMU picked up an insurance tally in the home half of the eighth, as Josh Swinehart swatted a solo home run, his fifth of the season, to make it 6-4.
 
BGSU put the tying runs on base in the ninth, but Berg retired the final two Falcons he faced to seal the Western Michigan victory. In all, the righty fired three scoreless frames and registered three strikeouts to pick up his first save of 2023.
 
The Broncos and Falcons continue their three-game weekend series on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is slated for 1:05 pm from Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Hyames Field.