Ohio Valley Conference

• OVC Baseball Report – May 24 (PDF)
 
This Week’s Schedule

2021 Ohio Valley Conference Baseball Championship
The Ballpark at Jackson - Jackson, Tennessee
All Games Air Live on ESPN+

Thursday, May 27
Game 1 - #1 Southeast Missouri vs. #4 Austin Peay, 2 p.m.
Game 2 - #2 Murray State vs. #3 Morehead State, 6 p.m.

Friday, May 28
Game 3 - Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 11 a.m.
Game 4 - Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, 3 p.m.
Game 5 - Winner Game 4 vs. Loser Game 3, 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 29
Game 6 - Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5, 12 p.m.
Game 7 - Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6, 4 p.m. (if necessary)
 

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OVC Players of the Week
 
PLAYER
Cody Littlejohn, OF • 6-3, 185, Sr. • Decatur, Ala. • Tennessee Tech
In four games, Littlejohn hit .556 (10-for-18) with seven runs, two doubles, a triple, three home runs, eight RBI, a 1.278 slugging percentage and .556 on-base percentage. He had two hits and stole a base in the team's midweek game at Kentucky. In the first game against SIUE, he was 2-for-5 with two runs scored and a RBI. Littlejohn followed that with two doubles, two runs scored and two RBI against the Cougars. He concluded the regular season by tying the Tennessee Tech record with three home runs and 15 total bases in a 13-12 victory.  He also added a triple, scored three runs and drove in five runs. Three of his RBI came in the bottom of the ninth inning and pulled the Golden Eagles to within a run, as the team scored five total runs to win 13-12. Littlejohn ranks second in the OVC in home runs (0.30/game), third in slugging (.635), fourth in triples (0.06/game) and fifth in total bases (2.30/game).
 
Others Nominated: Jack Alexander, Austin Peay; Logan Eickhoff, Eastern Illinois; Kendal Ewell, Eastern Kentucky; Lincoln Andrews, Southeast Missouri; Blake Daniels, UT Martin.
 
PITCHER
Sam Folks, LHP • 5-11, 190, Sr. • Franklin, Tenn. • UT Martin
Folks appeared in two games last week, helping lead the team to victories over No. 11 Ole Miss and OVC regular season champion Southeast Missouri. In total he pitched nine innings, allowing six singles and two walks while striking out nine. Against nationally-ranked Ole Miss, the senior entered the game in the fifth inning, limiting the damage after entering with the bases loaded and no outs. The Skyhawks would take the lead in the eighth in netting its second win over a Top 25 opponent in 2021. Three days later he started against SEMO, allowing five hits and two runs over seven innings while striking out a season-best eight batters (with only one walk).  Folks finished the year second in the OVC in games started (13).
 
Others Nominated: Luke Brown, Austin Peay; Cameron Doherty, Eastern Illinois; Darren Williams, Eastern Kentucky; Jason Goe, Morehead State; Dylan Dodd, Southeast Missouri; Ty Fisher, Tennessee Tech.
 
 
OVC Tournament Team Specific Notes
 
GENERAL TOURNAMENT NOTES
This year marks the 42nd OVC Baseball Tournament; the first elimination style event was held in 1979 (prior to that the winner of each division matched up in a three-game series to be crowned league champion)...Since 2001 the event has been played at a neutral site, first Paducah, Kentucky (2001-09), then Jackson, Tennessee (2010-16) and Oxford, Alabama (2017-18) and Marion, Illinois (2019)...No event was held last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic...This year marks the 20th at a neutral site...This will mark the eighth tournament in Jackson, one behind Paducah (which hosted nine tournaments)...Due to cost containment issues associated with the pandemic, this year's bracket is set at four teams for this year only...Since the tournament went to a neutral site, the No. 1 seed has won seven titles, the No. 2 seed has won five titles, the No. 3 seed has won four titles, the No. 4 has won twice and No. 5 seed has claimed one championship...Over the past seven tournaments there have been five different teams win the OVC Tournament (Austin Peay, Jacksonville State, Morehead State, Southeast Missouri and Tennessee Tech); only Morehead State and Jacksonville State have two titles over that time period.
 
AUSTIN PEAY
Appearances: 28
Titles: 6 (1996, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013)
All-Time Record: 45-43
Austin Peay is making its 28th OVC Tournament appearance, the second most among all OVC programs...It’s the team’s fifth-straight trip to the event under sixth-year head coach Travis Janssen......APSU won three-straight OVC titles from 2011-13 (all at The Ballpark at Jackson)...The Govs were 2-2 in the 2019 Tournament...Austin Peay won 4 of its final 6 OVC games to make the tournament field, including winning series against Jacksonville State (which gave them the tiebreaker to make the field) and Murray State...The Govs were 1-2 at neutral sites this season...APSU played five extra innings game in 2021, going 4-1...The Govs are 4-9 all-time against Southeast Missouri in the tournament (2-7 at neutral sites), 5-3 against Murray State (2-0 neutral sites) and 3-4 against Morehead State (0-2 neutral sites).
 
MOREHEAD STATE
Appearances: 25
Titles: 4 (1983, 1993, 2015, 2018)
All-Time Record: 35-42
Morehead State is in the OVC Tournament field for the seventh-straight tournament, the longest stretch in program history...MSU has won two of the past five tournaments held...In 2019 the team fell in the Championship Round to Jacksonville State...The Eagles earned a berth by winning its final game of the regular season, snapping a five-game losing streak (its longest of the year)...The team won 15 of 21 games overall from March 6 through April 16...The team was 12-6 in OVC play after a win on May 2...Due to a cancellation due to COVID-19 protocols, MSU and SEMO did not play this season...MSU won the season series from Austin Peay and Murray State...Morehead State is 5-6 all-time against Murray State in the OVC Tournament (2-1 neutral sites), 4-3 against Austin Peay (2-0 neutral sites) and 5-4 against Southeast Missouri (4-2 neutral sites).

MURRAY STATE
Appearances: 24
Titles: 2 (1979, 2003)
All-Time Record: 31-40
Murray State is back in the tournament field for the fourth-straight event and in search of its first tournament crown since 2003...Although they just missed out on the regular season title, the program earned its highest tournament seed since also being the No. 2 seed in 2009...The Racers have won 8 of its last 11 games entering the postseason and reached the 30-win plateau for the first time since 2009, which was also the last time the team had a winning record in a full season...The team's 18 OVC wins this year is the most in program history...The Racers did not win the season series against any of the three other teams in this year's tournament field...Murray State is 6-5 all-time against Morehead State in the OVC Tournament (1-2 at neutral sites), 3-5 all-time against Austin Peay (0-2 at neutral sites) and 5-2 against Southeast Missouri (all coming at neutral sites).

SOUTHEAST MISSOURI
Appearances: 26
Titles: 3 (1998, 2002, 2016)
All-Time Record: 42-46
Southeast Missouri saw its streak of 24-straight OVC Tournament appearances come to an end in 2019, but bounced back this year to qualify for its 26th overall tournament...The Redhawks claimed its fifth regular season championship, joining crowns won in 2002, 2014, 2015 and 2016...The team is in pursuit of its fourth OVC Tournament crown (1998, 2002, 2016), the most recent coming in the last OVC Tournament held in Jackson...This year marks the fifth time in the past seven tournament that the Redhawks have been a top two seed at the event...SEMO won eight of its nine Conference series this year (its series with Morehead State was canceled due to COVID protocols)...The team has won 15 of its last 21 games overall and has not lost back-to-back games since late March...Southeast Missouri is 9-4 all-time against Austin Peay in the OVC Tournament (7-2 at neutral sites), 4-5 against Morehead State (2-4 at neutral sites) and 2-5 against Murray State (all coming at neutral sites).
 
 
Notes From Around the League
 
2021 OVC Tournament Championship: The 2021 OVC Baseball Championship will be held at The Ballpark at Jackson in Jackson, Tennessee. The event was previously held there from 2010 through 2016. The event will be held May 27-29 and feature the top four teams in the final regular season standings. The event was reduced from eight to four teams in a one-year only cost savings measure across all OVC bracketed team sports.
 
Seeding Success: Since the OVC Tournament switched to a neutral site in 2001 (19 total tournaments), the No. 1 seed has won seven championships, the No. 2 seed has five titles, the No. 3 seed has won four times, the No. 4 seed has won twice and the 5 seed has claimed one title (Tennessee Tech in 2009).
 
Southeast Missouri Wins 2021 Regular Season Championship: Southeast Missouri claimed the 2021 OVC Baseball Regular Season Championship, finishing the year with a 17-10 record. It is the team's fifth regular season crown (2002, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2021).
 
Ranked Wins: Here is a look at OVC teams with wins over nationally-ranked teams this season. From 2018 to the present OVC teams have 20 wins over nationally-ranked non-conference opponents.
            Feb. 20 - Eastern Kentucky 9 at #15 Georgia Tech 6
            Feb. 24 - UT Martin 9, #22 Alabama 4
            March 2 - Morehead State 5, #1 Louisville 2
            March 16 - Eastern Kentucky 6, #7 Louisville 3
            May 18 - UT Martin 9, #11 Ole Miss 7
 
Wins Over No. 1 Ranked Teams: Morehead State knocked off No. 1 Louisville on March 2, marking its first-ever win over a Top 10 opponent. It marks the third win by an OVC team over a No. 1 ranked foe since 2009.
            Morehead State 5, #1 Louisville 2 (March 2, 2021)
            Austin Peay 7, #1 Vanderbilt 6 (February 27, 2019)
            Jacksonville State 9, #1 Georgia 7 (April 22, 2009)
 
Four Players Named to NCBWA's Stopper of the Year Watch List: Four OVC baseball players are among the 65 nationally named to the Midseason Watch List for the 16th annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award. The OVC picks included Eastern Kentucky sophomore Will Brian, Murray State junior Connor Holden, UT Martin senior David Hussey and Jacksonville State senior Corley Woods. There are 25 conferences represented on the list with the SEC leading the way with eight relief pitchers. The ACC stands second with seven followed by the Southland and Big 12 with five each, while the OVC and Pac-12 each have four. The NCBWA will announce the finalists on Wednesday, June 9 with the winner being named on Saturday, June 19 at the 2021 College World Series.
 
No-Hitter: A trio of Jacksonville State pitchers in junior Colin Casey, junior Jackson Tavel and senior Corley Woods combined for a no-hitter against Tennessee Tech on March 27. Casey went 7 innings, Tavel pitched 0.2 innings and Woods went the final 1.1 innings. It was the first no-hitter by an OVC team since 2018, when a trio of JSU players (Colton Pate, Grant Chandler and Trent Simpson) had one against Radford.  It was the first no-hitter Conference play since April 5, 2014 when Belmont's James Buckelew (8.2 innings) and Greg Brody (0.1) combined for one against UT Martin. There have now been seven no-hitters in Division I baseball and this season and JSU's was just the third nine inning one, joining  Vanderbilt (3/20 - vs. South Carolina) and Mississippi State (3/7 vs. Kent State).
 
Conference Schedule Looks Different: In a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the OVC schedule looks different this year.  OVC teams will still play a three-game series, but do so over two days, with a doubleheader scheduled for one of those games.  The games are scheduled for Friday/Saturday, but can be moved due to weather prior to the series beginning. All the games will be nine innings and there is a 10-run rule in effect (after 7 innings) for the final game of the series.

Three OVC Shortstops Named to Brooks Wallace Award Semifinalists: Three OVC baseball players were among the 30 players nationally named semifinalists to the 2021 Brooks Wallace Award Watch List by the College Baseball Foundation. The OVC players on the list included Eastern Illinois sophomore Trey Sweeney, Tennessee Tech sophomore Ed Johnson and Southeast Missouri junior Tyler Wilber. The award, sponsored by Mizuno, honors the nation's top shortstop and is named for former Texas Tech shortstop Brooks Wallace, who played for the Red Raiders from 1977 to 1980. Wallace died of leukemia at the age of 27. The award rewards outstanding defensive play as much as it does production at the plate, which opens the watch list to all kinds of players at the position.
 
Sweeney Named Midseason All-American by Perfect Game: Eastern Illinois shortstop Trey Sweeney was named a First-Team Midseason All-American by Perfect Game. At the midway point of the season Sweeney was hitting .406 with 8 home runs, 39 RBI and a .743 slugging percentage.
 
Sweeney Named Semifinalist for Dick Howser Trophy: Trey Sweeney from Eastern Illinois baseball has been named as semifinalists for the Dick Howser Trophy, awarded the top player in collegiate baseball by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. Sweeney wrapped up the 2021 season by hitting .382 with an OVC leading 58 RBI, a total that ranked in the top three in the NCAA in this season. This is the 34th year of the Dick Howser Trophy. The finalists will be announced on Thursday, June 10.
 
Littlejohn and Cannon Named National Players of the Week by Collegiate Baseball (May 24): Tennessee Tech outfielder Cody Littlejohn and UT Martin pitcher Winston Cannon were named National Players of the Week by Collegiate Baseball following their performances the final week of the regular season. Littlejohn went 10-for-18 at the plate with 3 homers (in the final game of the year, tying the TTU single-game record), 2 doubles, a triple, 7 runs scored and 8 RBI over four games last week. Cannon fanned a career-high 11 Southeast Missouri batters over 5.2 innings and became the first Skyhawk to pile up at least 11 strikeouts since the 2017 season.
 
Knernschield Selected As A Senior CLASS Award Candidate: Thirty NCAA baseball student-athletes who excel both on and off the field were selected as candidates today for the 2021 Senior CLASS Award®. Among the 30 individuals is Eastern Illinois catcher Ryan Knernschield. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character, and competition. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. Knernschield, a five-year member of the program, is a leader for Eastern Illinois. He has gained the respect of his teammates and coaches through hard work and a steadfast personality. He was named to the Commissioner's Honor Roll in 2019-20, and has been the definition of consistent for the Panthers on the field. The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists in May, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot.
 
Campbell Named to Buster Posey Award Watch List: Belmont catcher Jackson Campbell has been named to the Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Watch List by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission. The award is given annually to the top catcher in NCAA Division I Baseball, with Campbell being one of 69 catchers to be named to the list. Campbell is the only catcher representing the Ohio Valley Conference, marking the second time in his career being named to the watch list.
 
Four OVC Players Named to Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award Watch List:  Four OVC Baseball players have been named to the 2021 Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award Watch List Nationally they are among 48 players representing 17 conferences around the country on the list. The OVC picks were Belmont junior catcher Jackson Campbell and junior infielder Logan Jarvis, Eastern Kentucky junior second baseman Daniel Harris IV and Tennessee Tech junior outfielder Jason Hinchman. The award, created by the Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation, was open to nominations from all Division I baseball programs in the country. The BBCSA is based on performance at the plate, academics and personal integrity.
 
Case Moves Into Fourth Place on OVC Career Victories Chart: Jacksonville State head coach Jim Case currently has 562 victories since the Gamecocks joined the OVC in 2004. That currently ranks him fourth in OVC history. Former Austin Peay coach Gary McClure is the OVC's all-time winningest coach (847 wins from 1988-2015).
 
Six OVC Players Named Preseason All-Americans: Six OVC players were named 2021 Preseason All-Americans. The selections were Belmont pitcher Kyle Brennan, Eastern Illinois infielder Trey Sweeney, Eastern Kentucky second baseman Daniel Harris IV, Belmont catcher Jackson Campbell, Murray State second baseman Jordan Cozart and Tennessee Tech outfielder Jason Hinchman.
 
OVC Professional Success: Former OVC baseball players found professional success at the Major League level in 2020. Former UT Martin pitcher Alec Mills tossed the 16th no-hitter in Chicago Cubs history (and 305th in MLB history) against the Milwaukee Brewers on September 13. Former Belmont standout Matt Beaty was a member of the 28-man playoff roster for the Los Angeles Dodgers, who defeated the Tampa Bay Rays four games to two to win the World Series. Since the OVC was formed in 1948, he is the first former OVC player to be on the active roster of a World Series Champion (most recently former SIUE pitcher Spencer Patton was a member of the 2016 Chicago Cubs championship team, but was not active for the World Series). This season there were five former active OVC players on MLB Opening Day roster. The active players include Mills and Beaty, former Austin Peay pitchers Tyler Rogers (San Francisco Giants) and Ryne Harper (Washington Nationals) and former Southeast Missouri State pitcher Joey Lucchesi (New York Mets).
 
Belmont Picked as 2021 OVC Preseason Favorite: For the first time since joining the league, Belmont was picked as the 2021 OVC preseason baseball favorite in a vote of OVC head baseball coaches and communications directors. Belmont picked up 14 of the 22 first-place votes to tally 188 points. Jacksonville State received seven first-place votes and was tabbed second (176) and followed by Murray State (136) and Austin Peay (132). Southeast Missouri picked up the other first-place vote (and 131 total points) in being picked fifth.  Eastern Kentucky (117) was tabbed sixth and followed by SIUE (78), Eastern Illinois (73), Morehead State (67), Tennessee Tech (66) and UT Martin (45).
 
Tennessee Tech's Hinchman and Belmont's South Earn Preseason OVC Player/Pitcher of the Year Honors: Tennessee Tech junior outfielder Jason Hinchman was named OVC Preseason Player of the Year while Belmont junior pitcher Joshua South was tabbed OVC Preseason Pitcher of the Year for the second-straight season. In all 16 players were selected to the Preseason All-OVC team. The 16 players represented 10 of the 11 teams who will compete for the OVC championship this season. Murray State led the way with three selections apiece.
 
OVC Put Two Teams in NCAA Baseball Championship, Advances Team to Super Regional For First Time in 2018: In 2018, for the first time the OVC sent two teams to the NCAA Baseball Championship. In addition to Morehead State, who won the OVC Tournament and received the league's automatic bid, Tennessee Tech became the first OVC team to receive an at-large bid. After winning an OVC record 27 Conference games during the regular season, TTU had a RPI of 23 to secure the at-large bid and a No. 2 seed in the Oxford Regional. The Golden Eagles were the second OVC team to earn a No. 2 seed, joining the 2013 Austin Peay team. TTU would win back-to-back games against No. 4 national seed Ole Miss to become the first team to advance to a Super Regional (which began in 1999). Tennessee Tech beat Texas in game one of the Super Regional before falling in the final two games.
 
ESPN+: The OVC is in year three with ESPN+, the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment, being the exclusive home of regular season and OVC Championship broadcasts. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for $5.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) or as part of a bundle with Disney+ and ad-supported Hulu ($12.99/month). ESPN+ is an integrated part of the ESPN App and (on mobile and connected devices) and ESPN.com. More information can be found at www.OVCSports.com/ESPN.