Southeast Missouri (27-13, 17-4 OVC)
vs. Jacksonville State (22-17, 11-7 OVC)
Friday, April 25 - Sunday, April 27
6, 1, 1 p.m.
Jacksonville, Ala.
Rudy Abbott Field
Head Coaches
Steve Bieser: 53-46, second season
Jim Case: 13th season
Radio: Friday, Saturday: 92.9 FM; Sunday: 1220 AM
Play-by-Play: Erik Sean
Audio Webcast: SEMOESPN.com
Live Stats: JSUGamecockSports.com
Live Video: OVCDigitalNetwork.com (Friday only)
Twitter Updates: @SEMObaseball, @GoSoutheast
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri
 
Critical OVC Series
Southeast Missouri will take on Jacksonville State this weekend in their most important Ohio Valley Conference series so far. The first-place Redhawks have had a target on their backs much of the season and third-place Jacksonville State will be looking to rebound from a series sweep by Tennessee Tech last weekend. JSU was in second-place going in to last weekend but the Golden Eagles passed the Gamecocks with the sweep. Southeast will have their work cut out for them as Jacksonville is 14-7 at home this season. Game one Friday can be seen live on the OVC Digital Network at 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday's game will air on ESPN 92.9 FM while Sunday's game can be heard on 1220 AM.
 
Looking Back
The Redhawks are looking to bounce back after dropping the series finale to EIU and dropping a game at Southern Illinois on Tuesday. Southeast was held to a combined five runs in the losses. These are the first back-to-back losses the Redhawks have had since Mar. 21 and 22 against Morehead State.
 
OVC Player of the Week Once Again
Matt Tellor was named Ohio Valley Conference Co-Player of the Week, the league announced Monday afternoon. It seemed as though all Tellor did this week was manufacture runs. Besides scoring seven runs, he also drove in seven. He blasted two solo home runs and had four sacrifice flies on the week. He started 0-for-1 at Saint Louis but had two sac flies and scored after drawing a walk. In game one against Eastern Illinois, his one hit came on a home run and he scored three times in the game. In game two, he went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBI, and two sac flies. He was 2-for-4 in the series finale Saturday. Tellor hit .455 (5-for-11) and slugged 1.091% on the week with a .444 on base percentage. Tellor is also sporting a 17-game on base streak.
 
Sacrificial Lambs
The Redhawks lead the country in sacrifice flies with 31. Derek Gibson and Matt Tellor each have eight sacrifice flies to their names, both tied for most in the conference and third in the nation.
 
Double Vision
Southeast Missouri is the second-most double play turning team in the nation with 51 double plays turned this season. They also rank second in double plays per game with 1.28. Georgia Tech holds the top spot in both categories with 54 double plays and a slightly higher 1.29 double plays per game.
 
Hurts So Good
Jason Blum is quickly catching up to Trenton Moses for being hit by a pitch in the span of a career. The record, held by Moses, is 49, while Blum, a junior, has been clunked 45 times, second in the career standings. Cole Bieser is also rising the in the ranks of earning a bruise as he is now ranked fifth with 26. Blum and Bieser are tied for the team lead with 13 this season.
 
Hit it Hard
Derek Gibson is only four hits away from cracking the top-ten list in career hits. Gibson has 196 career hits and needs to reach 200 to make the list. Darin Kinsolving's 200 hits from 1997-2000 ranks 10th in the record book.
 
Speed Racers
The Redhawks have made their presence on the base paths known this season. Southeast leads the OVC in stolen bases as a team with 74; 14 more than Jacksonville State, who has the second most. The Redhawks' 74 stolen bags is the ninth-best in the nation. Jason Blum ranks second in the league with 18. Cole Bieser is also one stolen base away from cracking the career stolen bases list.
 
Team Statistical Rankings
As of Thursday, April 24, the Redhawks' .310 team batting average ranks ninth in the nation. Southeast is the eighth-highest run producing team in the country with 298 runs while Southeast ranks seventh in scoring (7.5 runs/game). The team .427 slugging percentage is ranked 15th.
 
Individual Statistical Rankings
Derek Gibson's .403 batting average is good enough for 16th-best in the country. Matt Tellor is sixth in home runs with 11. Jason Blum is the eighth-highest run scorer with 47 this season. Gibson and Tellor, the league's top RBI producers, are the third and fourth highest in the nation.
 
What's on Tap?
The Redhawks will head to Columbia, Missouri for a showdown with in-state SEC rival Missouri on Tuesday. The Redhawks took down the Tigers last season in Columbia. The Redhawks will host Murray State next weekend in the final home series of the season.