TOLEDO – The Bowling Green State University baseball team closed out the 2023 campaign with a doubleheader at Fifth Third Field on Saturday, splitting the day with the Toledo Rockets in the Battle of I-75. Winning the second game of the doubleheader, the Falcons took the weekend series and split the season series with Toledo.
On the day, the two teams combined to score 47 runs across 18 innings of baseball. Toledo took the first game 19-7, including a seven-run bottom of the eighth, but the Falcons came roaring back in game two. Both teams tallied a run in the first inning of the second game, but Bowling Green added five in the second and seven in the third for a 13-4 lead through three innings. The momentum carried through the game as BGSU captured a 16-5 win in the series and season finale.
HOW IT HAPPENED, GAME 1
The Falcons struck early in the game, hanging a crooked number in the first inning. Sam Seidel poked a payoff pitch into right field for the first hit of the game in the top of the first. Seidel took second on a wild pitch before Kyle Gurney singled to give BGSU runners at the corners. Tyler Ross followed with a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Seidel for the first run of the game.
In the next at-bat, Nathan Archer hit a soft dribbler down the third base line for a single to put two on for Nathan Rose. Rose crushed a home run over the tall left field wall and onto the Mike Hessman Home Run Alley at Fifth Third Field, a three-run shot to push the Bowling Green lead to 4-0.
Toledo answered with a pair of home runs, one solo shot and a two-run home run, to make it a 4-3 game after one played.
The Falcons added to their lead in the top of the second. Justin Fugitt slapped an opposite field single to beat the shift. He advanced to third on a DJ Newman hit and run, plus a throwing error, before scoring on a wild pitch to push the score to 5-3.
A three-run Toledo home run in the bottom of the second pushed the Rockets in front 6-5.
A solo home run in the fourth for the Rockets plus another two runs later in the inning made it a 9-5 score.
A two-run home run in the fifth extended Toledo’s advantage to 11-5.
Adam Fallon began the sixth inning with a single to left field. Mason Montgomery doubled down the left field line to put two in scoring position for Fugitt who shot a single up the middle to score both runners, cutting the lead to 11-7.
A solo home run in the bottom of the seventh for Toledo made it a 12-7 score.
Toledo added seven runs in the bottom of eighth to push the score to 19-7.
STAT LEADERS, GAME 1
Nathan Archer: 3-for-4, 1 R
Justin Fugitt: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 1 R
Kyle Gurney: 2-for-4, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 BB
Nathan Rose: 1-for-3, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Mason Montgomery: 1-for-3, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 BB
Sam Seidel: 1-for-4, 1 R
Adam Fallon: 1-for-4, 1 R
DJ Newman: 1-for-4
HOW IT HAPPENED, GAME 2
With two outs in the first inning, Kyle Gurney drew a walk to start a trend. Tyler Ross was hit by a pitch before eight straight balls to Nathan Archer and Nathan Rose pushed across the first BGSU run of the game, leading 1-0.
The Rockets responded with an RBI single in the bottom half to tie it up at 1-1 after one.
Mason Montgomery started the second inning with a single to shallow center. DJ Newman singled through the left side and Sam Seidel drew a walk to load the bases. With the bases loaded, Gurney was able to drop a single into shallow center field to score Montgomery.
In the next at-bat, Ross blasted a grand slam to left center, making it a five-run inning for the Falcons to push them in front 6-1.
Toledo answered with a pair in the bottom of the second to trim the lead to 6-3.
The third inning began with a walk to Adam Fallon. Montgomery put a single just over the glove of the leaping shortstop with Fallon taking third. With runners at the corners, Justin Fugitt laced a line drive into center, scoring Fallon to make it 7-3 BGSU.
The rally continued in the next at-bat with Newman finding a hole in the left side of the infield for a single to bring home Montgomery and extend the lead to 8-3.
Seidel drew a walk before a bases loaded fielder’s choice off the bat of Gurney recorded the inning’s first out. Ross continued the scoring, though, with a single through the right side of the infield to bring home both Newman and Seidel.
The scoring carried on with Nathan Archer blasting a home run off the light post in right field, a two-run shot to give BGSU a 13-3 advantage, including a seven-run third inning.
A double and single to start the bottom of the third plated a run for Toledo, 13-4.
After a couple scoreless innings, the Falcons added a notch in the sixth inning. With two outs, Newman walked followed by a Seidel single up the middle to put runners at the corners. Gurney singled through the left side to score Newman and push the BGSU advantage to 14-4.
A solo home run in the bottom of the sixth cut into the lead at 14-5.
The Rockets had the bases loaded later in the inning, but Mason Montgomery made a leaping catch, snagging a line drive to end the inning.
In the ninth, Rose had a fly ball drop in the outfield for a double, his 17th of the season. Later in the inning, Fugitt traded places with Rose on an RBI double down the right field line. Anthony Toma followed with an RBI single through the right side of the infield, scoring Fugitt, to make it a 16-5 BGSU advantage.
STAT LEADERS, GAME 2
Landon Willeman: W, 3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R/ER
Nic Good: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R/ER, 1 K
Jacob Turner: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R/ER, 1 K
DJ Newman: 3-for-4, 1 2B, 3 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 SB
Tyler Ross: 2-for-4, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 2 R
Nathan Archer: 1-for-3, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 R, 2 BB
Justin Fugitt: 2-for-6, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 R
Nathan Rose: 1-for-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB
Kyle Gurney: 2-for-6, 3 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB
Mason Montgomery: 2-for-5, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 SB
Anthony Toma: 1-for-1, 1 RBI, 1 BB
Adam Fallon: 1-for-3, 1 R, 1 BB
Sam Seidel: 1-for-5, 2 R, 2 BB
FALCON STAT FACTS
Winning the second game of the doubleheader, the Falcons became the first road team to win at Fifth Third Field during the Battle of I-75 series that started in 2021. All-time BGSU has 135 wins in 235 meetings against the Rockets.
Nathan Rose tallied a double in the second game of the doubleheader, his 17th of the season. The mark ties Rose for sixth all-time in program history for doubles in a single season.
Tyler Ross tallied a season-high six RBI for the Falcons, including a grand slam in the second game of the doubleheader. Ross hit four home runs this season with three of them coming against Toledo.
Landon Willeman picked up the win for the Falcons on the mound, pitching three-and-a-third scoreless innings out of the bullpen. Willeman finished the season with five straight scoreless relief outings, spanning 9.1 innings of work.
Adam Fallon closed out the season with a six-game hitting streak and a seven-game on-base streak. Over the last six games of the season, Fallon hit .600 (12-for-20), including three three-hit games. He also scored at least once in each game, totaling eight runs scored over the stretch. Fallon completed his stat line with seven RBI, a double, two triples and two home runs.
DJ Newman finished the season with an eight-game hitting streak and registered a hit in 15 of the last 16 games where he logged an at-bat. Over the course of the season, Newman led the team in batting average (.383) and on-base percentage (.481) while finishing second in slugging percentage (.495).
Nathan Archer logged a hit in each game of the series against Toledo, including going 4-for-7 in the doubleheader with a home run, two runs scored and three RBI.
Across the doubleheader, Justin Fugitt hit .400 (4-for-10) with four RBI, two runs scored and a double.
