AVON, Ohio – The Toledo baseball team overcame tough weather conditions and a lengthy rain delay to win its first round game of the Mid-American Conference Championship tournament with a 14-12 triumph over Bowling Green at Crushers Stadium on Thursday.
 
The Rockets (29-27) battled through tough conditions at the start of the game, but scored nine times in the second inning for a 9-7 lead. A six-hour, 35-minute rain delay then halted play and sent both teams back to their respective hotels. When play resumed at 5:00 p.m., Toledo built up a 14-11 edge midway through the sixth inning and held off several rallies from Bowling Green to take the Battle of I-75 victory.
 
The Rockets won their MAC tournament opener for the first time since 2016 (Northern Illinois) and have won a game in the tournament in each of its appearances under Rob Reinstetle. Toledo has now scored double-digit runs in each of its last four games, doing so for the first time since April 9-14, 2024.
 
With the win, Toledo advances in the winners' bracket to play No. 1 seed Miami on Friday, May 23 at 10:00 a.m. at Crushers Stadium. Tomorrow's game will again be on ESPN+.
 
Quoting Head Coach Rob Reinstetle
"It took 10-and-a-half hours to win that one, but it just makes it all the bit sweeter. I'm so proud of the guys for handling everything that was thrown at them today. It's a gritty win to do what we did. So many guys contributed, and that's what you need in a tournament. We get to go back to the hotel and sleep and do it all over again against a very good Miami team."
 
Top Rocket Hitters

• Caden Konczak – 2-for-5, HR (11), 3 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB
• Luke Leto – 2-for-3, 3 RBIs, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 3B
• Cole Cahill – 2-for-4, 3 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB
• Luke Walton – 1-for-2, HR (9), 2 RBIs, 2 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP

Pitching Lines 

• Yianni Skeriotis – 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K (before rain delay)
• Nathan Leininger (W, 6-5) – 3.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 3 Ks
• Logan Jones – 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 Ks
• RJ Shunck (SAVE, 3) – 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BBs, 1 K

How It Happened

• Bowling Green scored five times in the bottom of the first without a hit for a 5-0 lead.
• Toledo took advantage of the weather conditions in the second inning, scoring nine runs to vault to a 9-5 lead. This included a run of eight-straight hitters where the Rockets were either walked or hit by a pitch.  
• The Falcons got within two runs in the second on a two-run single, before play was halted due to rain.
• Caden Konczak lined a home run to right-center to put Toledo up 10-7 in the fifth. Then, after the Rockets put runners on the corners with two outs, Luke Leto ripped a two-run triple down the right-field line to put Toledo up 12-7.
• After putting two runners on with two outs, Bowling Green scored on four-consecutive hits to cut the Toledo lead to 12-11.
• Luke Walton led off the sixth inning with a home run to right field, and Troy Sudbrook plated another with a two-out single for a 14-11 margin.
• Logan Jones escaped a pair of two-out jams to hold the lead at 14-11. He got out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth and a second-and-third situation in the seventh.
• The Falcons scored on an RBI single in the ninth and brought the winning run to the plate with two outs before RJ Shunck struck out the final batter to end the game.