Spartans Clipped By Wolverines Saturday

Saturday, April 11

3:32 PM

Michigan State University

11-21, 5-12

(RV) Michigan

19-14, 7-7

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Michigan	0	0	5	1	0	0	0	0	0	6	14	2
Michigan State	0	1	0	0	0	1	1	1	0	4	9	0

Photo by: Erin Grady/MSU Athletic Communications

4/11/2026 8:21:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score UM 6, MSU 4 Box Score

MSU comeback falls short.

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State baseball was downed by Michigan, 6-4, Saturday afternoon at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium, in game two of the Big Ten Conference three-game weekend series, as the Spartans' late comeback fell short.

Saturday afternoon was the third meeting this season between the Spartans and Wolverines, and all three have been decided by two runs, including Friday night's series opener, 4-2, along with last month's non-conference midweek contest with a 2-0 final.

Overall, it was Michigan State's fifth-straight game that was decided by three runs or less, including a 10-9 loss and an 8-6 loss at Northwestern last weekend, along with a 7-4 win at Notre Dame on Wednesday night and Friday's night's 4-2 series-opening score.

"That was a tough one to lose," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. We dug ourselves a hole early and unfortunately it was too much. But our guys did a nice job of clawing themselves back into the game. We keep playing hard and give ourselves a chance. We have an opportunity to salvage one tomorrow and that's the goal. That's the focus now."

Michigan State and Michigan wrap up the three-game B1G weekend series on Sunday at 1:02 p.m. at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium.

With Saturday's result, the Spartans are 11-21 on the year and 5-12 in B1G play, while the Wolverines are now 20-14 overall and 7-7 in conference competition.

For the second time in as many games of the weekend, MSU was the first team on the scoreboard, plating a run in the second stanza for an early 1-0 advantage. UM plated five runs in the third and one more in the fourth frame to open a 6-1 lead, but the Spartans scratched and clawed back, with a run in the sixth, seventh and eighth inning, before coming up short in the end.

"You try to remind them that there's a long way to go," Boss said about getting down early. "You can't try to get them all back at one time. You just try to put a good at-bat together and then follow that up with another one and fortunately in baseball there's no clock. So you have to get 27 guys out in order to win and we're going to keep fighting until that 27th out is made. You just try to chip away at it, get one here, get one there, and get yourself within striking distance, where maybe one swing can tie it."

The Spartans finished Saturday's game with four runs on nine hits with no errors, while the Wolverines scored six runs on 14 hits and had two errors.

Graduate designated hitter Noah Bright and sophomore outfielder Khamaree Thomas were both 2-for-4, and both scored a run. Senior infielder Randy Seymour and junior infielder Ryan McKay had matching lines of 1-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Senior outfielder Nick Williams was 1-for-3 with an RBI and a walk, while junior pinch hitter Parker Picot had an RBI double in the seventh.

On the mound, senior starter Carter Monke went 3.0 IP, scattering nine hits and five runs, while chalking up four Ks and yielding one walk.

Junior reliever Gannon Grundman fired a season-best four strikeouts, tying a career-high, in 3.0 IP with two hits, one run and one walk.

"I thought Gannon did a nice job. We certainly needed him," Boss said. "I thought the bullpen did a nice job. All of those guys today, I thought they all threw well. Just hold it right there and give the offense an opportunity. It was a good day for those guys and unfortunately when we went to them, the hole was too deep early."

Freshman reliever Bobby Crane went 2.0 IP with two hits and two Ks, while senior reliever Nolan Higgins went 1.0 IP with one hit and one walk.

The Spartans got on the board in the second stanza, when Seymour sparked the rally with a single up the middle. McKay reached on a fielder's choice that erased Seymour from the basepaths, but made it to second on an UM throwing error on the play, and later moved up to third on a wild pitch. Williams then laced a single to the gap in right center to plate McKay and put MSU ahead, 1-0.

Similar to Friday night, the Spartan lead was short-lived as the Wolverines quickly countered with five runs on seven hits in the third, with the big blow coming on a three-run home run by Greg Pace Jr. UM added another urn in the fourth for a 6-1 lead.

The Spartans started their comeback in the sixth, when Bright started the frame off with a single, and two batters later, Sturgess singled to advance Bright to third. Seymour drove Bright in on another fielder's choice play to pull MSU within, 6-2.

Thomas ignited the MSU rally in the seventh with a one-out double off the hill in right center. Two batters later, Picot pinch hit and smacked a double off the wall down the right field line and Thomas darted in to score, closing the Spartans to 6-3.

In the eighth, Seymour reached on another fielder's choice, and McKay followed with a double to right and Seymour scampered all the way around the bases to score from first, sliding in just ahead of the tag. However, that would be the end of MSU's scoring, going down in order in the ninth and the game ended with the 6-4 final score.

MSU and UM wrap up their three-game B1G weekend series with Sunday's series finale slated for 1:02 p.m. start time.

The Spartans host Oakland on Tuesday, April 14 at 6:02 p.m. at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium. The next day, MSU is the host for a match-up with Western Michigan on Wednesday, April 15 at LMCU Ballpark in Comstock Park, Michigan, home of the West Michigan Whitecaps, the High-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers.

Michigan State then heads to the Pacific Northwest to play at Washington on Friday-Sunday, April 17-19, in the Spartans' first-ever trip to Seattle. MSU and UW have played four times before, but all on neutral fields, never before on campus. The Spartans and Huskies first met in 1992 in El Paso, Texas, then played in Surprise, Arizona in 2014 and in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2018.

The Spartans' schedule is subject to change, fans can stay tuned to MSUSpartans.com and @MSUBaseball on Twitter for schedule updates, along with follow action with "Watch Live," "Listen Live" and "Live Stats" links where available.

The Michigan State baseball season ticket package, which includes 24 home games at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium, and also single game tickets, are available online, at msuspartans.evenue.net, by contacting the Spartan Ticket Office at 517-355-1610 or by email at tickets@msu.edu for questions or more information, or fans can visit the MSU Ticket Office in person, located in 1855 Place.