Kent State Scores 3 in the 8th to Surge Past Chippewas

Friday, April 4

Mount Pleasant, Mich.

3 p.m.

Central Michigan University

11-19, 5-5

Kent State

17-11, 8-2

Kent State

Central Michigan

Chippewa third baseman Cole Kwiatkowski (left) comes up throwing on a bunt Friday on Keilitz Field at Theunissen Stadium.

Photo by: Jasper Warner '25 - @jasperwarnermedia

4/4/2025 7:34:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Andy Sneddon

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – One strike, one out, one big hit away.

Kent State scored three eighth-inning runs, all with two out, on Friday in handing Central Michigan a 6-4 loss in the opener of a three-game Mid-American Conference baseball series on Keilitz Field at Theunissen Stadium.

The teams play game two on Saturday (1 p.m.) and then are scheduled to conclude the series on Sunday (1 p.m.).

Friday's loss was the Chippewas' fourth straight in MAC play as they slipped to 11-19, 5-5 league. All four of those losses have come by two runs or fewer.

Kent State improved to 17-11, 8-2.

"That's the message, we have to be ready to go tomorrow," CMU coach Jake Sabol said. "We work so hard to put ourselves in positions to win a game late and we just don't make enough plays right now.

"I think we're doing some good things and I'm happy with that, but there's nine innings for a reason. We've got to find ways late in the game to make those plays when they're presented to us. There's so many dimensions to this game that you've got to be good at and we just weren't very good at a lot of them today."

The Chippewas led, 4-3, with two out and a runner at second in the eighth inning when Ripken Reese tripled down the right field line to tie the game. Luke Matthews followed with a seeing-eye single up the middle that scooted under the glove of shortstop Cayden Smith to give the Golden Flashes a 5-4 lead, and then Hayden Jatczak doubled to drive in another run.

All three hits in the inning came with two strikes. Reese's triple was a hard smash that eluded Chippewa first baseman Brady Krzciok.

"That's the importance of flushing and moving on," Sabol said. "We were all kind of feeling sorry for ourselves there that that ball got past (Krzciok). Whether it's on the mound or defensively, you've got to be the guy to step up and say 'I'm going to end it here and get us back in there' and give us a chance in the eighth.

"We can talk about those plays and tell the guys that we're a play away from being on the right side of the scoreboard in some of these games. Good teams make those plays and we're still figuring out that kind of stuff on our end and how good we can be and are we going to make those plays when it really matters."

Nate Ross (1-1), who surrendered all three runs in the eighth, took the loss. He went 2 2/3 innings in relief of starter Alejandro Espinoza, who surrendered three runs on five hits.

Espinoza overcame a sluggish start, holding the Golden Flashes to just one run in the first and stranding three in the frame. He stranded two in the second and left with a 3-2 lead after walking the leadoff man in the sixth.

"He battled," Sabol said of Espinoza, who allowed seven runs and didn't make it out of the third in his last start, a week ago against Bowling Green. "I know coming off last weekend he wanted to come out here and compete and give us a chance.

"He wasn't as clean as he normally is; he was behind a lot and put five guys on by the walk and hit one. In five innings, to put five, six, guys on. All those things add up and matter at the end of the day.

"If we're going to be any good, he's going to have to be a big part of it. Him battling through five (innings) was fun and after struggling there early to find the zone and putting a few guys on, it was good to see him settle in and give us a chance."

The Chippewas broke through in the second with back-to-back doubles by Rees Campanale and Aydin Wright to tie the game, 1-1.

They went up, 3-2, on Mikey Murphy's two-run triple in the fifth and then broke a 3-3 tie in the sixth when Krzciok hit a one-out grounder to short with the bases loaded and Smith scored on an error.