DeKALB, IL - The Northern Illinois University baseball team held on for a 5-4 win over the Eastern Michigan Eagles at Ralph McKinzie Field at Walt and Janice Owens Park on Thursday to take the series opener Thursday afternoon.

"It's been awhile since we won a series opener," said head coach Ryan Copeland. "We found a way to win. It's always a good feeling to come to the ballpark tomorrow knowing we can take the series on day two."

The game started out as a pitcher's duel between NIU's Ty Brachbill (Shelbyville, Ill./Shelbyville) and Eastern Michigan's Bobby Jones. Brachbill stranded two runners on base in the top of the first and got out of a bases loaded jam in the third. With a runner on second and two out, Brachbill hit Blake McRae with a pitch and allowed an infield single to Lucas Johnson. Giano Zuccaro hit into a 6-3 double play to keep the game scoreless.

NIU (19-33, 12-16 MAC) got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth. Colin Summerhill (Chicago, Ill./Troy) drew a walk with one out, getting to third base on a CJ Cepicky (St. Louis, Mo./Missouri) double. Charlie Parcell (Des Plaines, Ill./Maine West) then hit a ground ball to Johnson at first base, who waited and eventually threw home to try and put out Summerhill but was too late as the Huskies went up 1-0. Cooper Cohn (McHenry, Ill./McHenry) followed with a grounder to Glenn Miller at third base, who got Cepicky caught up in a rundown. Miller, however, dropped the ball in the rundown as Cepicky was able to score NIU's second run.

After a strikeout, Mason Kelley delivered a run-scoring single through the left side to put the Huskies up 3-0. Spencer Bartel (Sun Prairie, Wis./Madison College) drew a walk to load the bases for Eric Erato (Sussex, Wis./Sussex Hamilton), who also drew a walk off Jones to bring home Cohn and make the score 4-0.

"It doesn't happen too often at this level where you can capitalize on mistakes like that," Copeland said. "They threw the ball around a little bit and we took advantage of it. That's what the game is about sometimes, just taking what they give you, and that's how we put that four-spot on the board."

Eastern Michigan (14-36, 9-19 MAC) threatened to tie the game in the top of the fifth. The Eagles loaded the bases on a Logan Hugo double, Cooper Vance single and a walk to Miller. Sam Pederson (Verona, Wis./McHenry CC) then entered the game from the bullpen. A groundball up the middle was turned into a fielder's choice that allowed Hugo to score and make the score 4-1. Pederson held EMU to just the one run, getting a popout and a strikeout to end the inning.

Cepicky put NIU back up by four in the bottom of the fifth. His solo home run over the left field wall put the Huskies up 5-1. Pederson threw a scoreless sixth and allowed a run in the seventh to make the score 5-2.

"We haven't extended Sam like that this season, and we were just riding the hot hand. We want to make sure we have the ball in the hands of guys we can trust. We trust Sam a lot, and he did a good job to minimize that to one run. It picked up Ty and he found a way to fight through two more innings."

The Eagles put another run on the board in the top of the eighth when a Brendan Kleiman home run got Eastern Michigan within two, 5-3. Dominic Hann (Washington, Mich./Michigan State) entered the game with two outs in the eighth and struck out designated hitter Kyle Schroedle to get NIU out of the inning.

EMU threatened to tie the game in the ninth. With runners at second and third and one out, an error loaded the bases. Hann got Johnson to ground out to Erato at second base for the second out, allowing Hugo to score and get the Eagles within a run at 5-4. That was as close as Eastern Michigan would get as Hann struck out pinch-hitter Logan Milene to end the ballgame and slam the door on the Eagles.

Pederson earned his second win of the season, allowing just one run in three innings of relief. Hann recorded his fourth save of the year. Cepicky was 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Kelley also had two hits.

NIU and Eastern Michigan play the second game of this weekend's series on Friday, May 17 at 2 p.m. CT.

—NIU—