KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan softball team split its Senior Day doubleheader against the Toledo Rockets Friday afternoon with a 1-0 loss in game one and a 7-6 come-from-behind victory in game two. During the opening contest, junior Payton Kelly produced a game-high two hits and tacked on a stolen base for the Broncos. In the Brown and Gold's game two victory, senior Taylor Garey recorded a team-high two hits and two RBI (including the game-winning RBI single) to lead the Broncos to their comeback win.  

Senior Day 

The WMU softball team honored graduate student Megan Welsh and seniors Garey, Addison Hudson, Cassidy Brendtke, Haley Boxwell, Rissa Bajusz, and Jensen Gremillion for their Senior Day ceremony between games one and two Friday. 

Game One 

The senior pitcher Bajusz limited the Rockets to two hits and saw two strikeouts in the 1-0 game one loss. In the top of the first inning, Toledo would score the game's only run after a two-out hit.
 
In the bottom of the first inning, Kelly responded with a leadoff single to left field to kickstart the Bronco offense. After consecutive outs from WMU, Kelly stole second and advanced to third base after a Toledo catching error. Despite Kelly at third, the Broncos could not score the junior before recording three outs in the inning. 

Later in the bottom of the third inning, Addison Hudson singled to right center field with one out and Kelly singled to left center field to put two on and one out. Before the Brown and Gold had the opportunity to score the two base runners, WMU had tallied three outs to end the inning. 

WMU would later string together base runners in the bottom of the sixth after Riley Dittmar singled to center field with one out and Boxwell singled with two outs. Before the Broncos could score their first run of the game, they had recorded three outs and transitioned to the top of the seventh inning. In the seventh and final inning, the Brown and Gold saw three straight outs to conclude game one. 
 
Game Two 

The Broncos bounced back in game two and tied the series with Toledo at 1-1 after overcoming a five-run Rocket deficit at Ebert Field Friday. Toledo scored their first two runs in the top of the first inning and would later take a commanding 4-0 lead in the top of the third inning after capitalizing on a home run. After Toledo scored another run in the top of the fourth, the Brown and Gold began to chip away at the Rocket lead in the bottom half of the inning. With two outs in the inning, Garey crushed her second home run of the season to put the Broncos on the board. During the following inning, Toledo extended their lead by adding a run in the top of the fifth. 

Down five in the bottom of the fifth, the WMU softball team remained composed and built their comeback brick by brick in the inning. Elliott Sanders walked as a pinch hitter to start the inning and Kelly walked later to put two on and one out for Gabbie Evans. With Evans at the plate, she would drive a double to left center and score pinch runner Emily Yacapraro. Maintaining their momentum, Dittmar walked and Boxwell singled to score Kelly with one out. After Toledo fought back and forced WMU to their second out, Garey reached base on a defensive error by Toledo, which in turn scored Boxwell and Dittmar. At the end of the fifth, both teams were knotted up at six all.  

After limiting Toledo to only two hits over the remaining two innings, the Brown and Gold entered the bottom of the seventh with an opportunity to close out the game. Dittmar would begin the inning by reaching base after a Toledo defensive error. Later in the inning with Garey at the plate, Dittmar eventually stole second base with two outs. Facing a 1-2 count, Garey launched a clutch single into the outfield, which scored Dittmar to complete the seven-run comeback victory.

Historical Notes 

After drawing a walk in game two, Dittmar now owns the seventh most walks in a single season for the Brown and Gold with 21 and counting. 

Bajusz is now four strikeouts from passing Bonnie Kinnie (1984) and five away from passing Bronco Meredith Whitney (2009) for the sixth and fifth most strikeouts created in a single season. 

After her three combined hits in games one and two, Kelly needs three hits to pass head coach Marlee Wilson for the 10th most hits recorded in a single season for the Brown and Gold. 

With WMU's game two win, Wilson became the first head coach in program history to clinch a winning record in their first season at the helm. Wilson has led the Broncos to 24 victories this year, which is tied for the 10th most wins in a single campaign. 

Up Next 

The Brown and Gold will conclude their weekend series versus Toledo with Alumnae Day at 1:00 PM at Ebert Field.