• OVC Baseball Report – May 12 (PDF)
This Week’s Schedule
Tuesday, May 13
Saint Louis
at Western Illinois, 2:00 p.m.
Eastern Illinois at Illinois State, 5:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
Evansville
at Southern Indiana, 6:00 p.m.
Middle Tennessee
at Tennessee Tech, 6:00 p.m.
SIUE at Southern Illinois 6:00 p.m.
UT Martin at Ole Miss, 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Thursday, May 15
*Western Illinois at Eastern Illinois, 2:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Tennessee Tech at Morehead State, 5:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Southern Indiana at Lindenwood, 5:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*SIUE at UT Martin, 5:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Little Rock at Southeast Missouri, 6:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
Friday, May 16
*Western Illinois at Eastern Illinois, 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Tennessee Tech at Morehead State, 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*SIUE at UT Martin, 3:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Southern Indiana at Lindenwood, 5:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Little Rock at Southeast Missouri, 6:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
Saturday, May 17
*Tennessee Tech at Morehead State, 12:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Western Illinois at Eastern Illinois, 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Southern Indiana at Lindenwood, 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*SIUE at UT Martin, 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Little Rock at Southeast Missouri, 2:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
OVC Players of the Week
PLAYER
Mack Whitcomb, C • 6-0, 200, So. • Mokena, Ill. • Tennessee Tech
In three games versus Lindenwood last week Whitcomb hit .500 (5-for-10) with six runs scored, three home runs, five RBI, a .615 on-base percentage and 1.400 slugging percentage. He tied the TTU program record with three home runs in Sunday's 7-4 victory over the Lions. Whitcomb went deep in consecutive at-bats in the third, fifth and seventh innings and finished that game 3-for-4 with three runs scored, four RBI and a walk. In Saturday's 9-1 victory he was 1-for-3 with three runs scored, a walk and RBI and he also had a hit in Friday's opener. Behind the plate he did not commit an error. Whitcomb leads the OVC in on-base percentage (.466), ranks fifth in home runs (0.25/game, sixth in batting average (.339), total bases (2.29/game) and slugging (.619) and seventh in runs scored (0.92/game).
Others Nominated: Ethan Rossi, Eastern Illinois; Zach Henry, Little Rock; Alex Kean, Morehead State; Khi Holiday, Southern Indiana; Peeko Townsend, UT Martin.
PITCHER
Jackson Wells, RHP • 5-11, 200, Sr. • Rogers, Ark. • Little Rock
Wells tied his career-high with nine strikeouts in Saturday’s 11-4 win over UT Martin. The senior limited the Skyhawks to just three hits (two singles). After a walk to the leadoff hitter, he retired 11 of the next 12 batters he faced. He would make way to the bullpen in the six innings as the Trojans went on to win to keep its OVC Tournament hopes alive. Wells leads the OVC in strikeouts (76).
Others Nominated: Tyler Kapran, Eastern Illinois; Josh Newell, Lindenwood; Jared Herzog, Tennessee Tech; Jacob Sitton, UT Martin; Eric Rawlings, Western Illinois.
Other Notable Performances
Below are other notable performances from the past week.
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Khi Holiday (OF, Sr.), Southern Indiana. Hit .545 (6-for-11) with five runs scored and five RBI as USI compiled a perfect 4-0 record.
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Josh Newell (RHP, Jr.), Lindenwood. Combined with the bullpen for a shutout at Tennessee Tech. Went 7.0 innings, allowing five hits and striking out two without a walk.
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Tyler Kapraun (LHP, Grad), Eastern Illinois. Picked up the win against SIUE, lasting 5.2 innings and striking out seven without a walk.
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Jared Herzog (LHP, Sr.), Tennessee Tech. Struck out seven Lindenwood batters over 6.0 innings in moving to 3-0 on the season.
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Zach Henry (OF, R-Sr.), Little Rock. Hit .533 (8-for-15) with two runs, three doubles, three RBI, two stolen bases and a .733 slugging percentage at UT Martin.
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Peeko Townsend (OF, Sr.), UT Martin. Hit .400 (6-for-15) with five runs scored, two home runs, four RBI and an .867 slugging percentage as Skyhawks took two of three from Little Rock.
Notes From Around the League
Highlights From Around the League: Entering the final week of the regular season, three teams are tied for first place with the same winning percentage (.667) - Eastern Illinois, Tennessee Tech, SIUE ... Due to rainouts, EIU has played three less games than the other two teams and would have a higher winning percentage than the other two if they sweep Western Illinois this week ... EIU is looking for its first regular season championship since 2009, Tennessee Tech last claimed a regular season title in 2018 and SIUE has never won an OVC baseball regular season crown ... Six teams have clinched a spot in the eight-team OVC Tournament Field: Eastern Illinois, Lindenwood (its first-ever OVC appearance), Southeast Missouri, SIUE, Southern Indiana and Tennessee Tech ... UT Martin is in the field with one victory or a loss by either Little Rock or Western Illinois ... Once UTM clinches, the final spot in the field will come down to whoever wins more games this weekend, Little Rock (at SEMO) or Western Illinois (at EIU) ... Lindenwood's Josh Newell improved to 9-2 on the season with a win at Tennessee Tech on Friday; his nine wins are second all-time in a single-season for the Lions ... Newell's nine victories ranks tied for fifth nationally entering the week ... UT Martin reached the century mark in stolen bases over the past week, the first time in the program's Division I history the team had stolen 100 bases in a season ... USI has had six walk-off wins this season ... USI's Cameron Boyd has the longest active hitting streak in the OVC (16); it is one of four current hitting streaks of 10 games or greater entering the week ...Tennessee Tech head coach Matt Bragga is now in sole possession of fifth in league history for wins with 560 in his career; he now sits just five wins away from passing Jacksonville State legend Jim Case for fourth on the league's ranking ... Three former OVC players were on Major League Baseball Opening Day rosters, including former Eastern Illinois pitcher Hayden Birdsong (San Francisco Giants), former EIU shortstop Trey Sweeney (Detroit Tigers), the 2021 OVC Player of the Year, and former Austin Peay closer Tyler Rogers (San Francisco Giants), the 2013 OVC Pitcher of the Year ... Three other former OVC players were on 40-man MLB rosters to open the season.
Regular Season Title Up for Grabs: Entering the final week of the regular season, three teams are tied for first place with the same winning percentage (.667) - Eastern Illinois, Tennessee Tech, SIUE. Due to rainouts, EIU has played three less games than the other two teams and would have a higher winning percentage than the other two if they sweep Western Illinois this week. If each team would win twice, there would be a three-way tie, and if each team wins once, they SIUE and TTU would be tied. Eastern Illinois is looking for its first regular season championship since 2009; the Panthers have titles in 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2009. Tennessee Tech has earned 10 regular season titles (1949, 1955, 1956, 1970, 1988, 1997, 2010, 2013, 2017, 2018 - including Divisional crows in 1970 and 1988) while SIUE has never won an OVC baseball regular season crown.
2025 OVC Baseball Championship presented by SERVPRO: For the third year in a row the OVC Baseball Championship presented by SERVPRO was held at Mtn. Dew Park in Marion, Illinois. This year's event is May 21-24. The event was also held at the venue (which was previously known as Rent One Park) in 2019. For the fourth 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 46th 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.
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 28 wins over nationally-ranked non-conference opponents.
April 15 - Little Rock 7, #11 Ole Miss 3
Longest Game in OVC History: The Eastern Illinois at Southeast Missouri game on April 11 lasted 19 innings, making it the longest game by innings in OVC history. It broke the previous record of 17 innings done twice before (Jacksonville State vs. Kennesaw State in 2014, and Austin Peay vs. Eastern Illinois in 2002). After the seventh inning neither team scored again until EIU plated three runs in the top of the 19th to win 6-3.
Two Named to Midseason Stopper of the Year Watch List: Southeast Missouri junior
Jackson Kranawetter and Tennessee Tech sophomore
Juan Vargas were among the 56 players nationally added to the Midseason Watch List for the 20th Annual Stopper of the Year Award as announced by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). The award goes to the top relief pitcher in Division I baseball.
Southeast Missouri Picked as 2025 OVC Preseason Favorite: Defending tournament champion Southeast Missouri was picked as the 2025 OVC preseason baseball favorite in a vote of OVC head baseball coaches and communications directors. The Redhawks picked up 13 of 20 first-place votes and 157 points in being picked first, just ahead of Little Rock who picked up five first-place votes and 144 points. Tennessee Tech was picked third (118), Morehead State fourth with one first-place vote (107), Eastern Illinois fifth (92) and SIUE got the final first-place vote while being picked sixth (89). The poll was rounded out by UT Martin (69), Southern Indiana (57), Lindenwood (45) and Western Illinois (22).
OVC Professional Success: Former OVC baseball players have found professional success at the Major League level. To begin the 2025 MLB season, three former OVC players were on Opening Day rosters (
Hayden Birdsong, Trey Sweeney and
Tyler Rogers) while three others were on 40-man rosters. 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 became the first former OVC player to be on the active roster of a World Series Champion. 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; Sweeney is now with the Detroit Tigers and made his MLB debut in 2024. Also in 2021, former SEMO pitcher
Dylan Dodd was 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.
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-place team cannot be determined, the AQ shall be the semifinal team that had the highest remaining seed going into the tournament).
Division I Council Adopts New Reclassification Criteria: On January 15 the NCAA Division I Council adopted a proposal that requires schools moving into Division I to meet objective measures that focus on the student-athlete experience and support a school’s successful transition to Division I. The change reduces the reclassification period from four to three years for Division II schools and four years for Division III schools. Members currently in the reclassification process (Lindenwood and Southern Indiana) can use the new timeline IF they meet all other criteria. Progression through the process is dependent upon meeting each year’s benchmarks. If the benchmarks are met, teams would be eligible for NCAA postseason events in the 2025-26 school year.
The 2025 Season: The 2025 season marks the 77th year of competition in the OVC. Over the previous 76 years, 14 different teams have claimed an OVC baseball regular season championship.
ESPN+: The OVC has a 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 $11.99 a month (or $119.99 per year) or as part of a bundle with Disney+ and ad-supported Hulu ($16.99/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.