By Sedric Granger<\/b><\/p>\n
Battle Creek, MI – On one of the biggest themed nights of the year in which the Growlers donned Mac Daddy jerseys and the Battle Jacks donned Doughnut jerseys, Kalamazoo (18-13) defeated the Battle Creek (9-22), 12-1, to recapture momentum in the series.<\/span><\/p>\n This matchup at MCCU field was game five of the series. The Growlers swept the first series while the Battle Jacks swept the second series. As a result, this game had a lot at stake in determining which team would have the early advantage in the rivalry.<\/span><\/p>\n The Battle Creek Doughnuts started the game off strong. Offensively, Charlie Rhee (San Diego State) drove in Blake McRae (Eastern Michigan) to give the home team the advantage, 1-0. Tyler McKinstry (Davenport University) built off of that run support with a terrific start, yielding only one earned run in five innings pitched.<\/span><\/p>\n Although the game was a low scoring pitcher’s duel going into the 7th inning, Kalamazoo turned the tides in their favor late in the game. After putting up a five-run 8th inning to clinch a win in game one of the season series between Kalamazoo and Battle Creek, the Growlers scored five-runs in both the 7th and the 8th inning to create separation. Since the Battle Jacks walked 13 batters, Kalamazoo was able to take advantage of Battle Creek\u2019s inability to find the strike zone to stack runs.<\/span><\/p>\n