KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan baseball team got 8.0 innings from starter Ricky Kidd and scored all six of its runs in the sixth inning to claim a 6-3 win over Toledo on Sunday afternoon to secure the weekend series victory over the Rockets.
 
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 6, Toledo 3
LOCATION: Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Hyames Field (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (17-15, 12-6 MAC) | Toledo (16-19, 12-6)
W: Ricky Kidd (4-1) | L: Nate Langbehn (1-1)
 
After Toledo notched a run in the top of the first, Kidd settled in for the Broncos, blanking the visitors over the next seven innings. The right-hander's 8.0 innings of work established a new career high and included three strikeouts on the way to his team-leading fourth win of the campaign.
 
The Rockets loaded the bases with one out against Kidd in the sixth, but the graduate student induced an infield pop up and then Tanner Mally tracked one down in the right-center field gap to keep WMU within a run.
 
The Western Michigan offense had its opportunities in the early going, but did not break through until the sixth. Avery Thielman, who reached in all four of his trips to the plate, got the Brown and Gold started with a base hit up the middle. With one out, Mason Pilarski flipped a single the other way, and an error on the play allowed Thielman to come all the way around from first to tie the score at 1-1.
 
Following a walk to Nolan Zajac, Mally hit a ground ball to the left side of the diamond which scooted right under the glove of the Toledo shortstop to bring Pilarski in and put the Broncos on top. Cooper Hums followed with a two-run single and then scored on a Drew Howard triple. Howard then raced home on a wild pitch to cap WMU's six-run outburst.  
 
Kidd went back to work with the five-run cushion and kept Toledo off of the scoreboard in the seventh and eighth frames.
 
The Rockets plated a pair in the ninth and brought the tying run to the plate with two outs, but DJ Thompson induced a weak ground ball right to Thielman, who stepped on first to secure the game and series victory for the Brown and Gold.
 
Western Michigan takes a break from conference play this week as it heads up to Grand Rapids on Wednesday evening to take on Michigan State at LMCU Ballpark. For tickets, visit wmubroncos.com/lmcugame.