Senior Marty Bechina swings at a pitch against Central Michigan. The Spartans lost to the Chippewas, 6-8, at McLane Baseball Stadium on April 3, 2019.
—The Michigan State Spartans (5-21, 0-5 Big Ten) fell 8-6 to Central Michigan (21-7, 5-1 MAC) on April 3.
“We didn’t play well enough to win,” MSU coach Jake Boss said. “They had some chances but (I’m) disappointed in some of the things we did that did not allow us to win. We need to play better fundamental baseball, just take care of the basics and do the little things the right way.”
CMU was able to start off strong against MSU finishing the first inning with two hits and two runs.
The Spartans were down 5-0 in the top of the second before sophomore catcher Adam Proctor was able to score, setting the Spartans on a streak. Sophomore third baseman Zach Iverson hit a triple, sending freshman right fielder Zaid Walker in for the second score of the night for the Spartans.
Freshman Reese Trahey singled out to left center sending Iverson and junior left fielder Bryce Kelley in for a pair of runs. Senior designated hitter Marty Bechina hit a single to center field sending Trahey home for another run.
“We had a little bit of momentum there, we then seem to give up some runs, which loses momentum,” Boss said about the inconsistent plays. “They’re going to make some pitches and we didn’t execute.”
Both teams were unable to convert in the fourth and fifth innings before CMU added two more runs in the sixth.
CMU went scoreless for the last three innings while Walker scored on an Iverson single but was able to advanced to second after a CMU catching error.
Central was able to seal the deal after a junior infielder Justin Antoncic hit resulted in the third out of the inning.
The Spartans finished with nine hits and six runs, lead by Walker’s pair of runs to lead the Spartans.
“Yeah he’s a good player,” Boss said about Walker and the talent the underclassman showed in the loss. “He’s starting to settle into it, … he’s an extremely talented kid that’s still kind of feeling his way.” (0:26)
The Chippewas finished with eight hits and eight runs and were led by sophomore shortstop Zavier Warren’s three.
The Spartans will host Indiana State on April 5 in the first night game in the programs’ history. First pitch will be at 6:35 p.m.
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