Michigan State University Athletics
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Western Michigan
MSU Baseball Falls At Western Michigan, 13-9
5/12/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 12, 2004
KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Michigan State baseball team saw its five-game winning streak come to a close with a 13-9 nonconference loss Wednesday at Western Michigan. Michigan State (27-21) collected 12 hits, including four for extra bases, but couldn't shut down Western Michigan (18-28), which pounded out 15 hits.
Alan Cattryse (Chatham, Ontario) was 3-for-4 with a home run and three runs scored to lead MSU, while Oliver Wolcott (Plymouth, Mich.) had three RBI for the Spartans. But after scoring seven runs in the first three innings, Michigan State's offense was quiet, scoring just two runs in the last six innings, and none after the sixth inning as Western Michigan came from behind to win.
Michigan State jumped on top with a four-run second inning. David Miller (Whitehall, Mich.) led off with a single and moved to third one out later when Cattrysse singled to right center, extending his hitting streak to 10 games. Miller was caught off third when Troy Krider (Coldwater, Mich.) grounded back to the pitcher, but Erik Morris (Orchard Lake, Mich.) delivered a clutch two-out hit to right to score Cattrysse with the first run. Wolcott followed with a two-run triple high off the rightfield wall, and scored when a grounder to third by Travis Gulick (East Lansing, Mich.) was thrown away.
The lead quickly vanished when Western Michigan scored five times in the bottom of the second. MSU starter Jeff Gerbe (Shelby Twp., Mich.) retired the first two hitters, but then walked the next three hitters and hit the following batter, forcing in a run. Jeremy Dow (Sunfield, Mich.) relieved Gerbe, and gave up a bases clearing double, followed by another double before getting out of the inning. Gerbe was charged with four runs allowed in his 1.2 innings pitched.
MSU answered with three in the top of the third. Sean Walker (Round Lake, Ill.) walked and stole second, and scored on a single by Ryan Basham (Lowell, Ind.). After two wild pitches and a walk to Cattrysse, Krider singled to right to plate Basham. Morris singled to load the bases, and Wolcott delivered a sacrifice fly to push the lead to 7-5.
Cattrysse extended the lead to 8-5 in the top of the fifth when he led off by lining his sixth home run of the season and third in the last five games over the leftfield wall.
Western Michigan scored twice in a fifth inning that was similar to the Bronco second. Dow retired the first two hitters, then walked the next two batters and hit a third. Ryan Kurtz (Toledo, Ohio) came in to relieve Dow and gave up a bloop single to center, scoring two runs to trim the lead to 8-7, before retiring the side.
MSU pushed across a run in the top of the sixth inning to make it 9-7. Gulick led off by ripping a double down the leftfield line, and one out later, scored when Walker laced a double into the gap in left center.
But Western Michigan took control in the bottom of the sixth, turning a walk, five singles and a double into six runs to take a 13-9 lead. From there, pitching took over as neither team managed another run.
Kurtz (2-1) was saddled with the loss after giving up five runs in one inning on the mound. Six Spartan pitchers combined to allow 13 earned runs on 15 hits, six walks, three hit batters and two wild pitches.
Krider and Morris had two hits each for the Spartans, as eight different players collected at least one hit each.
Michigan State will visit Penn State for a four-game series Friday-Sunday (May 14-16) The series opener will begin Friday at 2 p.m.
