EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Western Michigan baseball team got a 3-for-3 performance and a home run from designated hitter
Lucas Rick in an 8-3 loss at Michigan State on Tuesday evening.
FINAL SCORE: Michigan State 8, Western Michigan 3
LOCATION: Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium (East Lansing, Mich.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (22-21) | Michigan State (18-28)
W: Andrew Siler (1-0) |
L: Matt Hoover (1-3)
Western Michigan struck first with a run in the top of the second.
Drew Howard ripped a double down the left field line, and Rick brought him home with a base hit to give the Brown and Gold the early 1-0 lead.
Michigan State answered with one in the home half of the second, and then tallied a pair in the third to grab a 3-1 edge.
The Broncos loaded the bases in the fourth, but were unable to push across any runs. MSU plated three in the home half, and then picked up a pair in the fifth to extend the margin to 8-1.
Rick led off the sixth inning with a solo shot for the Broncos, his second long ball of the season. The redshirt senior went 3-for-3 for the evening and reached base in all four of his trips to the plate.
The duo of
Ty Tomlinson (2.0 IP) and
DJ Thompson (1.0) combined to shut the Spartans out over the final three frames to keep WMU within striking distance.
The Broncos picked up one run in the ninth, with
Michael Maloney bringing
Jacob Rowold around for his team-leading 51st RBI of the season, but the visitors drew no closer.
Western Michigan visits Bowling Green this weekend for its final road series of the regular season. Friday's series opener is slated for 6 pm on
ESPN+.
