BOWLING GREEN, Ohio — For Bowling Green State University's baseball program, it'd be hard to ask for a better start to the conference season. The Falcons are off to a perfect, program-best 9-0 in league play, which puts them in first place in the MAC.
The last time BGSU won this many league games in a row was back in 2010.
"The cohesiveness of the collection of talent we've got becoming a team was the separator for me to understand that we have a team and that we are a pretty talented team," said Head Coach Kyle Hallock.
The Falcons have done it by sweeping their first three league opponents: Miami, Ball State (which included a historic 34-8 drubbing of the Cardinals) and Akron. BGSU wants to make it four straight sweeps against Northern Illinois this weekend.
Hallock says the team chemistry is what makes the Falcons so successful in conference play.
"It starts with the recruiting process," Hallock said. "We recruit similar families, similar players from similar upbringings. A lot of local guys. A lot of guys on the roster from inside three hours of campus. We felt like we've been winning recruiting battles in the '21, '22, and '23 classes."
Team chemistry and motivation aren't difficult when local talent dots the roster. One out of every three team members is from northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan.
"It's funny, you play those guys in high school, you hate them, and then you go to teammates and you're cheering on each other and you're each other's biggest fans, so it's pretty cool," said DJ Newman, a pitcher and outfielder from Archbold.
It'd be easy for fans to look ahead to the MAC Tournament and beyond, but right now, players are just focused on the upcoming weekend.
"It's a good feeling but it's just a start," said TJ Takats, a pitcher and first baseman from Perrysburg. "At the end of the day, there are 30 games in the MAC, we got 21 left. We've just got to keep doing what we're doing."
Hallock and his players have emphasized getting better every day in order to go from a hot team to a great one.
"We just want to be playing (our best) baseball at the right time, and right now we are," said Luke Krouse, a pitcher from Antwerp. "We need to be able to maintain that and keep doing what we're doing."
The Falcons' first game of the weekend series with Northern Illinois begins Friday at 4 p.m. in DeKalb.