Baseball falls at Western Michigan in first of three game series
Junior pitcher Jack Collins throws the ball during the game against Northwestern at Theunissen Stadium on March 16.
Following a full week of cancelled games due to weather, the Central Michigan baseball team was finally able to play in favorable conditions in Kalamazoo as they dropped game one of the three game weekend series against Western Michigan, 8-2.
Despite out-hitting WMU 11-6, CMU allowed 11 runners to be stranded and finished with just two RBIs as a team. CMU falls to 13-22-1 overall on the season and 7-6 in the Mid-American Conference with the loss.
Starting right-handed pitcher Pat Leatherman pitched three scoreless innings to open the afternoon before giving up one run in the bottom of the fourth and sixth innings. Leatherman (2-5) took the loss, pitching 5.2 innings before being relieved by freshman left-hander Brandon Reed, recording seven strikeouts and allowing four hits.
Four Chippewa batters recorded two or more hits against WMU, junior Jason Sullivan and sophomores Zach Gilles Kratt and Zach Heeke each contributed two hits while freshman Griffin Lockwood-Powell led CMU with three hits. in addition, Lockwood-Powell scored the lone two runs of the game.
CMU returns to action at 1 p.m Saturday in Kalamazoo for the second game of the series against Western Michigan.
