Ohio Valley Conference

• OVC Baseball Report – May 20 (PDF)
 
This Week’s Schedule
 
2024 OVC Baseball Championship presented by SERVPRO
Mtn Dew Park - Marion, Illinois
All Games Air on ESPN+

Wednesday, May 22
Game 1: #5 Tennessee Tech vs. #8 UT Martin, 9:00 a.m.
Game 2: #6 Eastern Illinois vs. #7 SIUE, 12:30 p.m.
Game 3: #4 Southern Indiana vs. Winner of Game 1, 4:00 p.m.
Game 4: #3 Morehead State vs. Winner of Game 2, 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, May 23
Game 5: #1 Little Rock vs. Winner of Game 3, 11:00 a.m.
Game 6: #2 Southeast Missouri vs. Winner Game 4, 3:00 p.m.
Game 7: Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6, 7:00 p.m.

Friday, May 24
Game 8: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 2:00 p.m.
Game 9: Winner Game 7 vs. Loser Game 8, 6:00 p.m.

Saturday, May 25
Game 10: Winner Game 8 vs. Winner Game 9, 12:00 p.m.
Game 11: Repeated Pairing (if necessary), 60 minutes after Game 10

NOTE: The first four games are single elimination; All Times Central
 

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OVC Players of the Week
 
CO-PLAYER
Luke Pectol, OF • 6-3, 200, Sr. • Little Rock, Ark. • Little Rock
Pectol helped Little Rock lock up its first-ever Conference baseball championship with a sweep of Tennessee Tech over the weekend. The senior hit .684 (13-for-19) with four runs scored, a double, seven RBI, two stolen bases, a .739 slugging percentage and .737 on-base percentage. In game two of the series the outfielder went 6-for-6 which established a new school record for hits in a game. In that game he doubled and drove in four as Little Rock won 6-4. In the first game of the series he was 3-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBI; he finished the regular season with two hits in the finale. Pectol was also perfect in the field, recording 10 putouts and an outfield assist in throwing a runner out at home plate.
 
CO-PLAYER
Roman Kuntz, 1B • 6-3, 190, Sr. • New Carlisle, Ind. • Morehead State
Kuntz finished the regular season by setting the OVC single-season RBI record. The senior played in four games last week, hitting .437 (7-for-16) with nine runs scored, three home runs, nine RBI and a 1.000 slugging percentage. In the second game of Thursday's doubleheader with SIUE he smashed two home runs (including a grand slam) and drove in seven RBI to surpass the 90 RBI plateau (he finished the regular season with 92 RBI (second nationally). Kuntz had two hits and two runs scored in the team's midweek game with EKU, and added a hit, run and two walks in the series finale with the Cougars.
 
Others Nominated: Trenton Pallas, Eastern Illinois; Josh Cameron, Southeast Missouri; Ricardo Van Grieken, Southern Indiana.
 
CO-PITCHER
Luke Helton, RHP • 6-1, 180, Grad. • Whiteland, Ind. • Morehead State
Helton struck out seven without a walk and limited SIUE to 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position as Morehead State claimed last weekend's series opener by a 14-3 margin. The senior went eight innings and scattered five hits (three singles) during his time on the mound. In the process he picked up his OVC-leading eighth victory of the season. His 91.1 innings this season also leads the OVC.
 
CO-PITCHER
Peyton Brown, RHP • 6-10, 250, Jr. • Clemmons, N.C. • Southern Indiana
Brown was an emergency starter 15 minutes before game time and ended up with a victory to start the series with Western Illinois. The righty had a no-hitter through 4.1 innings and overall posted his longest outing of the season by finishing six innings. Brown allowed just two singles and struck out four in improving to 2-2 on the season.
 
Others Nominated: Eli Cartwright, Eastern Illinois; Jackson Wells, Little Rock; Logan Katen, Southeast Missouri; Tristan Walton, UT Martin.
 
 
General Tournament Notes
This year marks the 45th 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), Oxford, Alabama (2017-18), Marion, Illinois (2019, 2023, 2024), Jackson, Tennessee (2021) and Lexington, Kentucky (2022)...This year marks the 23rd at a neutral site...No event was held in 2020 due to the pandemic...Since the tournament went to a neutral site, the No. 1 seed has won eight titles, the No. 2 seed has won six titles, the No. 3 seed has won four titles, the No. 4 has won twice and No. 5 seed has claimed two championships.
 
EASTERN ILLINOIS
Appearances: 19
Titles: 3 (1999, 2008, 2023)
All-Time Record: 25-26
Eastern Illinois is back in the field for the third-straight year...It marks the first time since 2008-10 that the team has qualified three-straight times...Last year the team was the No. 5 seed and won twice (to advance out of the single elimination portion of the bracket) before losing to No. 1 seed Morehead State; the Panthers then three-straight games to claim its third title...EIU has won five-straight games entering the postseason...The Panthers open Tournament play with fellow Land of Lincoln school SIUE; EIU won two of three in the regular season from the Cougars...SIUE holds a 1-0 advantage in OVC Tournament games over the Panthers (2022).
 
LITTLE ROCK
Appearances: 2
Titles: 0
All-Time Record: 1-2
This year marks the second in the OVC for Little Rock...The team was the No. 2 seed a year ago, going 1-2 in the event...This season they are the No. 1 seed after winning its first-ever Conference baseball championship, finishing OVC play 19-8...The Trojans won their final seven OVC games (and 9 of its final 10 OVC contests)...The team has 32 overall victories, marking the first back-to-back 30-win seasons in program history...The team has a bye until Thursday's action and will play either Southern Indiana, Tennessee Tech or UT Martin; Little Rock was a combined 8-1 against those teams this year.
 
MOREHEAD STATE
Appearances: 28
Titles: 4 (1983, 1993, 2015, 2018)
All-Time Record: 37-46
Morehead State is in the OVC Tournament field for the 10th-straight tournament, the longest stretch in program history...The Eagles reached the 30-win plateau for the seventh time in the past 10 seasons, doing so under first-year head coach Brady Ward (who is now the winningest first-year head coach in Eagles history)...The team is in the field for the 28th overall time, the second-most in OVC history (behind SEMO's 29 appearances) ...The Eagles have finished in the top three in the league regular-season standings for eight-straight seasons...After winning the 2018 Tournament, the Eagles advanced to the Championship Round in 2019 as well as last season (2023), when they lost to Eastern Illinois in the Final...This season MSU broke the school record for runs scored (535); the team has hit 125 home runs this year, 10 away from the OVC all-time mark...As the No. 3 seed, MSU has a first round bye; they will play an elimination game with the winner of the Eastern Illinois/SIUE game on Wednesday evening...The Eagles were 5-1 against those two teams this season (including sweeping SIUE this past weekend)...The Eagles are 1-0 all-time against SIUE in the OVC Tournament, but just 1-4 against EIU.
 
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI
Appearances: 29
Titles: 5 (1998, 2002, 2016, 2021, 2022)
All-Time Record: 48-49
After winning back-to-back titles in 2021 and 2022, SEMO was the No. 4 seed last year and lost an elimination game to eventual champion Eastern Illinois...This season the team earned the No. 2 seed (and a bye to the double elimination portion of the bracket) by winning its last five and nine of its final 10 games of the regular season...Overall it is the 29th appearance for SEMO, which is an OVC all-time record...The team is in search of its first win at Mtn Dew Park in the event...SEMO has 48 all-time wins in the OVC Tournament, needing just two to become the second OVC team to win 50 games in the event (EKU being the other)...The Redhawks will play either Eastern Illinois, Morehead State or SIUE in its first game on Thursday (the team was 6-3 against those opponents this year).
 
SIUE
Appearances: 5
Titles: 0
All-Time Record: 2-7
After winning its first-ever OVC Tournament games in 2022, the team was the No. 7 seed last year and lost a first round elimination contest...The team is once again the No. 7 seed, and will face defending tournament champion Eastern Illinois in the First Round (SIUE was 1-2 against EIU this season)...The two teams have played once in the OVC Tournament, with SIUE winning in 2022 in Lexington...Overall SIUE is in the OVC Tournament for the third consecutive year (a first for the program).
 
SOUTHERN INDIANA
Appearances: 2
Titles: 0
All-Time Record: 0-1
In its second year in the OVC Southern Indiana is back in the OVC Tournament for the second time...The Screaming Eagles are still searching for its first win in the event...USI swept Western Illinois the final weekend of the regular season to jump up to No. 4 in the final standings...Southern Indiana is reclassifying to Division I and ineligible to compete in the NCAA Tournament; per OVC policy, should the team win the OVC Tournament Championship, the automatic bid would be awarded to the tournament runner-up...Southern Indiana opens OVC Tournament play against either Tennessee Tech or UT Martin; USI was 2-1 against TTU and 1-2 against UTM this season.
 
TENNESSEE TECH
Appearances: 23
Titles: 4 (1997, 2001, 2009, 2017)
All-Time Record: 40-39
Tennessee Tech is in the field for the third-straight season...Overall the team has made nine-straight tournaments under head coach Matt Bragga, who left after the 2018 season but returned prior to the 2022 campaign...Bragga has 526 wins as TTU's head coach, which ranks tied for sixth in OVC history...The team won the OVC Tournament in 2017 and advanced to the Championship Round in 2018 (a year they got an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Super Regionals)...Last year Tech won two single elimination contests before falling in two-straight games ... Tennessee Tech opens play with in-state foe UT Martin; TTU was 0-3 against the Skyhawks this season...Tech is 1-0 all-time against UTM in the OVC Tournament (with that meeting coming last year).

UT MARTIN
Appearances: 6
Titles: 0
All-Time Record: 1-6
UT Martin has qualified for the OVC Tournament in back-to-back years for the first time in its program's history...The team has been in the event all three times it has been held in Marion...The Skyhawks lone win in the Tournament came in 2011 against Eastern Kentucky...UT Martin has lost five in a row and nine of its last 11 entering the postseason...UT Martin will start Tournament play with in-state foe Tennessee Tech; the Skyhawks swept the Golden Eagles this season, outscoring them by a combined margin of 30-12...The two teams have played once in the OVC Tournament, with TTU winning last year.
 
 
Notes From Around the League
 
Highlights From Around the League: Eight teams qualified for the 2024 OVC Baseball Championship presented by SERVPRO; this year marks the 45th OVC Tournament (the first elimination style event was held in 1979) ... The eight teams were the exact same eight teams that qualified for last year's event ... The event is being held at Mtn Dew Park in Marion, Illinois for the second-straight year and third time overall ... There was one change to the bracket from the past two years; the Final is now double elimination instead of "Winner Take All" ... Southern Indiana is reclassifying to Division I and ineligible to compete in the NCAA Tournament; per OVC policy, should the team win the OVC Tournament Championship, the automatic bid would be awarded to the tournament runner-up... Little Rock finished 19-8 to win the OVC Regular Season Championship; it marked the first-ever Conference championship for the Trojans ... During the regular season Morehead State's Roman Kuntz set the OVC single-season record for home runs and RBI; he enters the postseason with 31 home runs and 92 RBI (both of which rank second nationally) ... Teammate Ryley Preece established a new OVC career runs scored record during the season; he currently has 245 career runs (second nationally among active players) ... Kuntz also had 186 total bases, which is seven away from the OVC record of 193 (currently held by MSU's Niko Hulsizer and set in 2017) ... Morehead State has 125 home runs on the season (a mark that is fourth nationally), which is 10 away from the OVC single-season record (135 by the 2018 Tennessee Tech team that went to the Super Regionals) ... Tennessee Tech head coach Matt Bragga has 526 victories as a coach in the OVC, which is tied for sixth place all-time (with SEMO's Mark Hogan) ... The All-OVC awards will be released on Tuesday (between 1-1:30pm CT).
 
Little Rock Wins 2024 OVC Regular Season Championship: Little Rock won its final seven OVC contests to finish the Conference season 19-8 and win the 2024 OVC Regular Season Championship. It was the first-ever Conference title for the Trojans, who were members of the Sun Belt prior to joining the OVC on July 1, 2022.
 
2024 OVC Baseball Championship presented by SERVPRO: For the second year in a row the OVC Baseball Championship presented by SERVPRO will be held at Mtn. Dew Park in Marion, Illinois. This year the event runs May 22-25. The event was also held at the venue (which was previously known as Rent One Park) in 2019. For the third year in a row, the bracket includes four single-elimination games on Wednesday, with the winners advancing to the double elimination portion of the bracket which will include the No. 1 and 2 seeds (who receive a bye until Thursday games). The venue, home to the Thrillville Thrillbillies of the Prospect League (the team completed its first season in 2023),.opened in 2007 and has a Sportexe Turf synthetic surface and features 3,400 chairback seats and lawn seating for over 2,000. It also has a new high-definition LED video board, 14 suites, a banquet facility, an entertainment plaza and kids’ play area. The stadium is located directly off Interstate 57. This year marks the 45th OVC Baseball Championship. The first elimination style OVC Baseball Tournament was held in 1980, most usually being played at the site of the regular season championship. Beginning in 2001 the tournament switched to a neutral site for the first time.
 
Seeding Success: Since the OVC Tournament switched to a neutral site format in 2001 (22 tournaments), the No. 1 seed has won eight championships, the No. 2 seed has six titles, the No. 3 seed has won four times, the No. 4 seed has won twice and the No. 5 seed has won twice (including Eastern Illinois last year).
 
MSU's Preece Sets OVC All-Time Runs Record: Morehead State outfielder Ryley Preece established a new OVC career runs scored record on May 11 at Eastern Illinois. The senior scored his 242nd career run to pass the record of 241 previously held by Jacksonville State's Bert Smith (2006-10). Preece enters this week with 245 career runs scored (second among active players, three behind Louisiana Tech's Kasten Furr).
 
MSU's Kuntz Sets OVC Single-Season Home Run Record: Morehead State 1B Roman Kuntz established a new OVC single-season home runs record on May 11 at Eastern Illinois when he smashed his 28th home run, breaking the mark previously held by Morehead State's Niko Hulsizer (who hit 27 home runs in the 2017 season on his way to OVC Player of the Year honors). Kuntz enters this week with 31 home runs which ranks second nationally behind Georgia's Charlie Condon (35 - which is a new BBCOR era NCAA single-season record).
 
Kuntz Sets OVC Single-Season RBI Record: Morehead State 1B Roman Kuntz set the OVC single season RBI record on May 16 against SIUE, smashing his 87th RBI to pass the previous record of 86 set by Murray State's Wes Cunningham in 2010. Kuntz enters the week with 92 RBI (which ranks second nationally, one behind the national leader.).
 
Becker Named Semifinalist for Brooks Wallace Award Watch List: Morehead State's Colton Becker has been named a semifinalist for the 2024 Brooks Wallace Award. The award honors the nation's top shortstop and will be presented by the College Baseball Foundation later this year. It 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. Previously three other OVC players - UT Martin's Andrew Fernandez, Western Illinois' Trevor Leon and Eastern Illinois' Lucas Loos - were on the Watch List for the Award.
 
Two OVC Players Named to Pitcher of the Year Watch List: Two OVC players - Little Rock's Hoss Brewer and Tennessee Tech's Peyton Calitri - have been named to the 2024 Pitcher of the Year Watch List by the College Baseball Foundation. The award is presented by the College Baseball Foundation.
 
Stopper of the Year Watch List: Little Rock senior Jacob Weatherley was one of 59 pitchers nationally on the Midseason Watch List for the 19th Annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Stopper of the Year Award, given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I Baseball. The NCBWA will announce the finalists on Wednesday, June 5 with the winner being named on Friday, June 14 at the 2024 College World Series.
 
Kuntz Named National Hitter of the Week by the NCBWA (March 20): Morehead State senior DH Roman Kuntz has been named the Dick Howser Trophy National Hitter of the Week by the NCBWA. In five games Kuntz hit .455 (10-for-22) with 10 runs scored, two doubles, five home runs, 14 RBI, a .538 on-base percentage and 1.227 slugging percentage. The senior homered in four of five games (each of which was a MSU victory) as the Eagles averaged 16 runs per game during the week. He scored twice and drove in three runs in the team's midweek win over Ohio. In the first game of a weekend series with Eastern Michigan, he was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBI before combining to go 6-for-9 with five runs scored and eight RBI in a Saturday doubleheader sweep. Overall Kuntz scored 10 of the 12 times he reached base.
 
Little Rock Picked as 2024 OVC Preseason Favorite: Little Rock was picked as the 2024 OVC preseason baseball favorite in a vote of OVC head baseball coaches and communications directors. The Trojans picked up 12 of 20 first-place votes and 155 points in being picked first, just ahead of Morehead State who received the other eight first-place votes and 148 points. Southeast Missouri was predicted third (127) and followed by UT Martin (106), defending tournament champion Eastern Illinois (100), Tennessee Tech (93), SIUE (67), Southern Indiana (52), Lindenwood (31) and Western Illinois (20).

MSU's Preece and LR's Wells Named OVC Preseason Player/Pitcher of the Year: In a vote of OVC head baseball coaches and communications directors, Morehead State senior outfielder Ryley Preece and Little Rock junior right-hander Jackson Wells were tabbed OVC Preseason Player and Pitcher of the Year. Each earned their respective Player of the Year award at the end of the 2023 season. Additionally, 18 total players were named to the Preseason All-OVC team, all of whom were either first or second-team selections last year and were automatic picks for this year’s team. The 18 players came from six OVC teams with Morehead State leading the way with five selections and Little Rock and UT Martin having four apiece.
 
OVC Professional Success: Former OVC baseball players have found professional success at the Major League. 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, 2020. 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 2020 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). In 2021, Eastern Illinois SS Trey Sweeney was selected in the First Round by the New York Yankees (No. 20 overall), becoming just the third First Round pick in OVC history. SEMO pitcher Dylan Dodd was then selected in the Third Round by the Atlanta Braves, marking the first time in OVC history two players were selected in the Top 3 rounds of the same draft.
 
New Teams: After welcoming three new teams last year, the OVC welcomed another new program in 2023-24. Western Illinois joined the OVC on July 1 after previously being in the Summit League. They are just the 25th full-time member in the 76-year history of the OVC.
 
All Teams Eligible for OVC Tournament: Both reclassifying teams, Lindenwood and Southern Indiana, are eligible to compete and win the OVC Tournament Championship this season. Should a transitioning school win an OVC Tournament Championship, the AQ shall be awarded to the tournament runner-up. Should the tournament runner-up also be a transitioning school, the AQ representative shall be the third-place team (where the third-placed team cannot be determined, the AQ shall be the semifinal team that had the highest remaining seed going into the tournament).=
 
The 2024 Season: The 2024 season marks the 76th year of competition in the OVC. Over the previous 75 years, 13 different teams have claimed an OVC baseball regular season championship.
 
ESPN+: This year marks the sixth of the OVC’s media rights deal with ESPN to air games on ESPN+, the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company Direct-to-Consumer & International segment. This season over 200 men’s and women’s basketball regular season Conference games and non-conference games will be streamed on ESPN+. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for $10.99 a month (or $109.99 per year) or as part of a bundle with Disney+ and ad-supported Hulu ($15.99/month). ESPN+ is an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices). More information can be found at www.OVCSports.com/ESPN.