Southeast Missouri (31-20, 20-7 OVC) at Belmont (26-25, 14-12 OVC)
Thursday-Saturday, May 14-16, 2015 • E.S. Rose Park • Nashville, Tennessee
Thursday: 5 p.m.
Friday: 5 p.m.
Saturday: 1 p.m.
Head Coaches
Steve Bieser (94-70, Third Season)
Dave Jarvis (18^th season)
Radio: SEMO ESPN 92.9 FM, 1220 AM
Play-by-Play: Erik Sean
Audio Webcast: SEMOESPN.com
Live Video: OVC Digital Network
Live Stats: Game One | Game Two | Game Three
Twitter Updates: @SEMObaseball, @GoSoutheast
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri
 
Southeast Missouri Probable Starting Pitchers
Thursday – LHP Joey Lucchesi
Friday – LHP Alex Winkelman
Saturday – RHP Travis Hayes
 
Belmont Probable Starting Pitchers
Thursday – LHP Dan Ludwig
Friday – RHP Aaron Quillen
Saturday– LHP Patrick McGrath
 
Redhawk Rundown
 
Redhawks Close Regular Season at Belmont
Southeast Missouri baseball will travel to Nashville, Tennessee for a three-game Ohio Valley Conference series with the Belmont Bruins beginning Thursday. The Redhawks look to capture the OVC Regular Season title as well as the No. 1 seed in the OVC Tournament, May 20-24 in Jackson, Tennessee. Southeast needs just one win or one Morehead State loss to secure its second-straight and third overall OVC regular season championship. The series can be viewed on the OVC Digital Network and can be heard on SEMO ESPN. 
 
Let's Review
Southeast Missouri had a week off from Conference play and during the week topped No. 21 Missouri 8-5 before losing three one-run games at Indiana State over the weekend. The Redhawks return to OVC action this week needing just one win or one Morehead State loss to secure its second-straight and third overall OVC regular season championship. With that win Southeast would also lock up the No. 1 seed for the upcoming OVC Tournament (Southeast has the head-to-head tiebreaker with Morehead State); overall the team will be making its 21st-straight appearance in the event which is an all-time league record. Junior Jacob Lawrence was named OVC Co-Pitcher of the Week after getting the victory over nationally-ranked Missouri last week. Lawrence pitched seven and two-thirds innings, allowing three runs and six hits and striking out seven without walking a batter. Although he got a no-decision in Friday's loss, Joey Lucchesi continues to lead the OVC in ERA (3.18) and ranks 20th nationally in hits allowed per nine innings (6.11). Junior utility man Hunter Leeper hit .529 (9-for-17) with three runs, three doubles, two home runs and five RBI during the week and took a crack at history on Sunday when he attempted to play all nine positions in the same game, but fell short in not making it behind the plate or to the mound after playing the other seven spots on the field.
 
OVC Co-Pitcher of the Week
Jacob Lawrence appeared in two games last week, including pitching seven and two-thirds innings in a victory over No. 21 Missouri to begin the week. In that contest he was perfect the first time through the Tigers lineup and had a one-hit shutout through five innings. For the contest he allowed three runs on six hits and struck out seven without walking a batter before exiting the game in the eighth inning. His team held on to win the game 8-5 and give Lawrence his first victory of the season. In Sunday's non-conference game against Indiana State, the junior pitched two and a third scoreless innings in relief.
 
OVC Tournament Tickets Now On Sale
Tickets to the 2015 OVC Tournament in Jackson, Tennessee are one sale now. The tournament, which runs May 20-24, is held at The Ballpark at Jackson, home of the Jackson Generals. Single day tickets as well as tournament passes are available on the Generals' website. The Southeast Missouri Student Activities Council is sponsoring free Southeast Missouri student tickets. Students must present a student ID at the gate for free tickets.
 
On Pace to Repeat
The Redhawks are on pace to repeat as the Ohio Valley Conference Regular Season Champions in 2015. Southeast sits at 20-7 in league play with one OVC series left. Southeast has won seven OVC series this year with sweeps of UT Martin, Jacksonville State, and Murray State. The only series loss came to Tennessee Tech. Morehead State is tied for second at 18-9. Southeast's magic number to clinch the title is two.
 
Capital One Academic All-District®
Senior baseball student-athletes Jason Blum and Dalton Hewitt were named to the District Six Capital One Academic All-District® Baseball team. This is Blum's third time being selected to an All-District team and Hewitt's second time. Blum earned Third Team Capital One Academic All-America® honors in 2014. Student-athletes named All-District are automatically nominated for Academic All-American status.
 
Chasing 100
Head coach Steve Bieser currently has 94 wins in his three-year career at Southeast Missouri. He needs six more wins to reach 100. If Bieser reaches the milestone in 2015, the Redhawks also will tie a program record of 37 wins in a season. Southeast tied the record last season.
 
Against the SEC in 2015
Southeast Missouri went 2-1 in Southeastern Conference games this season after splitting a two-game set with Arkansas and defeating No. 21 Missouri. Southeast has played its SEC opponents close, narrowly outscoring them 23-20 and has outhit them, .300 to .295.

On the Road Again
Southeast has spent a considerable amount of time on the road this season due to moving home three home series to neutral locations early in the season. So far, the Redhawks have bussed approximately 7,621 miles. Southeast is 14-9 in away games this season.
 
Run, Redhawks, Run
Southeast Missouri ranks sixth in the nation in runs scored (403) and sixth in scoring (7.6 runs a game). Southeast has outscored its opponents 403-277 on the season and has scored 10 or more runs in 18 games this season. Southeast also has a +2.5 scoring margin on their opponents, which ranks 18th in the country.
 
Digging the Long Ball
Southeast has hit two or more home runs in 15 games this season. The Redhawks rank third in the OVC in the category with 57; behind Belmont (66) and Morehead State (58). Nationally, Southeast ranks fifth in home runs and 12th in home runs per game with 1.12. 19 of Southeast's 54 have been leadoff home runs. Branden Boggetto leads the team with 10 this season.
 
Looking Ahead
After Southeast takes on Belmont, the Redhawks will make their 21st-straight OVC Tournament appearance next week. The Redhawks have secured at least the No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the tournament and therefore have secured a bye to the second round beginning Thursday. The Redhawks held the No. 1 seed last season but were eliminated in the semi-final round.