JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – Fighting Leatherneck baseball saw an offensive explosion in its 11-2 victory over Butler Friday (Mar. 21) at Lenz Field in Jacksonville. The Leathernecks (2-13) recorded 14 hits in their second win of the season with two home runs. Western pitchers held the Bulldogs (7-13) to just six hits in the first meeting between the two teams.

Aaron Michel (1-3) got the start and notched his first win of the season after throwing 6.2 innings with one run allowed and three strikeouts. Nick Milligan and Preston Church combined to throw the final 2.1 innings for the Purple & Gold to close out the game.  

“I was very happy with Aaron. He was back to his old form even though he wasn't feeling great,” said head coach Ryan Brownlee. “He always gives everything he's got and that's why he's our number one. I was really happy with Nick as well. He's a guy who was hurt last year and it was tough not having him so having him healthy is big. I also give Preston credit for going in when he did, he didn't expect to go in when he did but he got it going and was able to finish the game for us.”

At the plate true-freshmen Chris Tschida and Adam McGinnis each hit their first career home runs for the Leathernecks. Tschida ended the game with a season-best three RBIs and two runs scored, while McGinnis notched a pair of RBIs to go along with his run.

Brent Turner matched his career-high with three hits, while Jameson Henning matched his season-high with three hits. Turner, Henning and Jake Moore all crossed the plate twice for the Purple & Gold.

Western struck first in the third inning. Zack Burling singled through the left side and scored his sixth run of the season on a Tanner Glore sacrifice fly. In the fourth Turner hit a one-out triple to the wall in right center field and later scored on a Tschida sacrifice fly. The triple is the second of the season for Turner. 

After a scoreless fifth the Leathernecks added two in the sixth on Tschida's two-run shot over the left field wall. Butler put across their first run in the top half of the seventh to make the score 4-1.

The Leatherneck offense then exploded in the seventh inning for four runs on three hits. Western capitalized on a pair of Bulldog errors to extend their lead to 8-1.

The eighth inning saw three more hits for WIU, including McGinnis' two-run home run over the left field wall. BU added one more in the top half of the ninth but the Leathernecks were able to end the game with a double play to earn the victory.

Butler starter Eric Stout (1-5) was handed the loss after throwing 6.0 innings with 10 hits allowed and six earned runs. 

On the basepaths Travis Stafford stole a career-high two bases, while Burling and Glore also notched stolen bases for WIU.

“I'm really happy for our guys. That was a huge win for us because you get feeling good and get your confidence up,” said Brownlee. “Baseball is such a mental game, it's a game of confidence. Hopefully this win gives us some confidence for Sunday. It'll be a good day of practice tomorrow and looking forward to camp with the kids and coaches then we'll come back out on Sunday and get after it again.” 

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