Southeast Missouri (13-3) at Missouri State (8-7)

Series Information
Dates: Friday-Sunday, March 18-20, 2022
Series Schedule: Friday - 3 p.m.; Saturday - 2 p.m.; Sunday 1 p.m., CT
Location: Springfield, Mo.
Facility: Hammons Field (10,486)
Series: MSU leads, 67-40
Last Meeting: MSU 9, SEMO 8 (10) (Mar. 30, 2021 | Cape Girardeau, Mo.)
Head Coaches: Andy Sawyers (218-146 overall; 131-121 at SEMO; 65-55 OVC). Keith Guttin (1,317-850 overall; 1,317-850 at MSU).

Follow the Redhawks
Video: ESPN3 (Friday Only)
Radio: ESPN 93.5 FM & 1220 AM (Erik Sean)
Live Stats: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 (MissouriStateBears.com)
Twitter: @SEMObaseball
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri (PDF)

Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday - Jason Rackers, RHP (SEMO) / Reece Lang, LHP (MSU)
Saturday - Noah Niznik, LHP (SEMO) / Adam Link, RHP (MSU)
Sunday - Tommy Windt, RHP (SEMO) / Jake McMahill, RHP (MSU)

Another Missouri Valley Foe On Tap 
Ohio Valley Conference leader Southeast Missouri (13-3) faces its third Missouri Valley Conference opponent in a week when it visits in-state foe Missouri State (8-7) for a three-game series this weekend. First pitch of the series is scheduled for 3 p.m., CT Friday at Hammons Field.

Follow the Redhawks
Video for Friday's series-opener is available online at ESPN3. Listen live on the radio at ESPN 93.5 FM and 1220 AM. Erik Sean will call the action. Live stats can be accessed online at MissouriStateBears.com. Twitter updates available @SEMOBaseball.

Series History
Southeast Missouri and Missouri State meet for the 108th time Friday. MSU leads the all-time series by a count of 67-40. SEMO has beaten the Bears 16 times in 54 meetings with MSU in Springfield. The last time the Redhawks defeated MSU in Springfield was on Mar. 15, 2011 (8-7). The last time SEMO won a series against the Bears in Springfield was 1976 (2-1). MSU took seven of the last nine meetings between the teams.

Best Start in Division I Era
The Redhawks began the 2022 season at 13-1, their best start in their NCAA Division I era. Southeast Missouri moved to the D-I ranks in 1992. SEMO's 13-1 start tied with the 1973 team which also won 13 of its first 14 contests.

Winning Streak Ends at 11
Southeast Missouri saw its 11-game winning streak end when it fell to Indiana State, 10-1, on Mar. 15. The winning streak was SEMO's longest since it won 11 in a row (Mar. 18-Apr. 5) during the 2016 campaign. At the time, it was the third-longest winning streak in NCAA Division I baseball this year.

Against the Missouri Valley
Southeast Missouri has faced all eight Missouri Valley Conference baseball schools in its program history. The Redhawk are 55-84 all-time against MVC teams in their NCAA Division I era. Missouri State is the fifth of six MVC schools SEMO will face in 2022. The Redhawks are currently 8-3 against the MVC after winning two of three at then-#22 Dallas Baptist (Feb. 18-20), sweeping both Bradley (Mar. 4-5) and Valparaiso (Mar. 12-13), and losing two at Indiana State (Mar. 15-16). SEMO faces Missouri State this weekend, and plays a home-and-home series against regional-rival Southern Illinois later this year. 

Top-20 RPI
Southeast Missouri entered the week ranked 19th in RPI after being previously rating 45th. SEMO is the only Ohio Valley Conference school among the top 20 teams in the nation in RPI. The RPI ranking is the best in six years under Head Coach Andy Sawyers. Prior to 2022, SEMO rated 87th in RPI during the 2021 campaign. The Redhawks other RPI rankings with Sawyers at the helm include 136th (2017), 200th (2018, 2020) and 259th (2019).

Series Wins
The Redhawks saw their streak of 11-conscutive series wins come to an end with a pair of losses at Indiana State (Mar. 15-16). It was Southeast Missouri's first series loss since it dropped two of three at Eastern Illinois (Mar. 26-27, 2021). The Redhawks claimed wins in 17 of their last 19 series dating back to their COVID-shortened 2020 campaign.

Get Out the Brooms!
The Redhawks have swept in three of their first four series this season. Southeast Missouri posted three-straight series sweeps vs. Bellarmine (Feb. 26), Bradley (Mar. 4-5) and Valparaiso (Mar. 12-13). All of those came at Capaha Field. The last time SEMO completed three-straight series sweeps was in 2016 (Morehead State, UT Martin, SIU Edwardsville). The three series sweeps are tied for most in a season under Head Coach Andy Sawyers. SEMO also had three sweeps in 2017 and 2018. In all, the Redhawks have 11 series sweeps with Sawyers at the helm. SEMO did not sweep one opponent during its 2021 season.

Perfect at Home
Southeast Missouri is undefeated at home with a 10-0 record this season. SEMO won 12 of its last 13 matchups at Capaha Field dating back to the 2021 campaign. The Redhawks are 81-41 at home under Head Coach Andy Sawyers. The most home victories by a Sawyers coached team stands at 18 in both 2017 and 2018, his first two years as SEMO's skipper. The Redhawks last won their first 10 home games in a season during the 2000 campaign. That team went undefeated through its first 12 home matchups. This year marks SEMO's first 10-game home winning streak in six years. The 2016 club won 13 in a row at home.

Yard Work
The Redhawks rank second in the Ohio Valley Conference with 33 home runs through 16 games this season for an average of a little over two per game. Southeast Missouri has homered in 14 of its 16 games and recently hit a series-best 10 round-trippers vs. Valparaiso (Mar. 12-13). SEMO finished with a season-high five home runs in two games -- vs. Bradley (Mar. 4); vs. Valparaiso (Mar. 13). Twenty-two of the Redhawks home runs have come against Missouri Valley Conference teams. 

Single-Season Home Run Marks
With its 33 home runs already this season, Southeast Missouri is five away from surpassing its total of 37 in 52 games a year ago. The single-season school record during SEMO's NCAA Division I era is 92 home runs in 2000. The most home runs hit in a season under Head Coach Andy Sawyers stand at 54 by his first SEMO team in 2017. Here are the Redhawks top-five single-season home run marks since they turned Division I in 1991-92.
92 home runs -- 2000
90 home runs -- 1998
76 home runs -- 2010
71 home runs -- 2009
70 home runs -- 2003

Great Work Williams
Right-hander Austin Williams picked up his first two wins of the season out of the bullpen for Southeast Missouri last week. Williams struck out four, walked none and allowed just one hit in 3.1 scoreless innings to get his first win at Arkansas State (Mar. 8). He then struck out a career-high seven in the longest outing of his career (five innings) to beat Valparaiso (Mar. 13). Williams retired seven-straight Valpo hitters exiting the game in the ninth. For the week, he went 2-0 with a 1.08 ERA, allowed just one run, scattered four hits, struck out 11 and walked one in two relief appearances.

They Did That Twice?
In each of the final two games of its series against Valparaiso (Mar. 13), Southeast Missouri homered three times and scored six runs in an inning. SEMO trailed, 6-3, in game one before Peyton Leeper, Tyler Wilber and Lincoln Andrews homered in the bottom of the fourth. That six-run inning lifted the Redhawks to a 16-6 win as SEMO scored the final 13 runs of the game. In game two, the Redhawks were down, 3-0, when Jevon Mason, Wilber and Brett Graber homered as part of a six-run third inning. SEMO later won that contest by a score of 10-8. The Redhawks fell behind in the first inning during every game against Valparaiso before sweeping the series with three come-from-behind victories.

Atop the OVC
As a team, Southeast Missouri leads the Ohio Valley Conference in runs scored (157), RBI (147), total bases (311), walks (111) and wins (13). Jevon Mason is first among league-leaders in runs (26), Tyler Wilber leads the OVC in RBI (27) and Peyton Leeper is first in walks (18).

Seeing Double
The Redhawks scored double-digit runs in nine of their last 12 games. Southeast Missouri scored 10 or more runs in seven consecutive games for the first time in program history from Feb. 27-Mar. 8. In the nine games where it scored double-digit runs, SEMO outscored opponents by a staggering +62 margin (117-55). The Redhawks lead the Ohio Valley Conference and rank 12th in the nation with 157 runs.

Power Outage
Eight different players have homered for Southeast Missouri this season. Tyler Wilber leads the Redhawks with seven home runs, while Jevon Mason and Peyton Leeper follow with six and five, respectively. Andrew Keck has four and Brett Graber, Joel Vaske and Lincoln Andrews each have three. Ty Stauss completes the group with two round-trippers.

Streaks Intact
Peyton Leeper is on an eight-game hitting streak which started on Mar. 5. It is the third longest hitting streak of any Redhawk this year. Leeper and Brett Graber have reached base in all 16 games in 2022.

Leeper Tabbed OVC Player of the Week
Southeast Missouri utility player Peyton Leeper won Southeast Missouri's first Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Week honor of the 2022 season on Mar. 14. A native of Mokane, Missouri, Leeper homered in all four of his starts last week helping the Redhawks extend their winning streak to 11 games. He broke SEMO's series-opener against Valparaiso (Mar. 12) open with a grand slam, the first of his career. Leeper then homered in both games of the series-ending doubleheader against the Beacons the following day. His second round-tripper that day was a game-winning two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning during the nightcap. Leeper's other home run for the week came in a midweek matchup at Arkansas State (Mar. 8). In the Valparaiso series alone, Leeper finished with three home runs, six runs scored and nine RBI. For the week, he hit .353 with four of his six hits coming via the long ball. He scored nine times, had 10 RBI, boasted a 1.059 slugging percentage, recorded a .500 on-base percentage and was a perfect 3-of-3 in stolen bases. Leeper carries a six-game hitting streak into this week's action. Leeper won the award for the first time in his career. UT Martin right-hander Rhett Fetner (Pitcher of the Week) rounded out the week's honorees.

Wilber Clears 200 Hits
Tyler Wilber went over 200 career hits in the Redhawks series sweep of Valparaiso (Mar. 12-13). Wilber hit a team-high .500 in the series. He had four runs, six hits, three home runs, seven RBI and a 1.250 slugging percentage against the Beacons. Wilber got his 200th career hit on a two-out single in the bottom of the eighth inning during game two of the series. He now has 203 hits in his career.

Over 150
Andrew Keck surpassed 150 hits in his career against Valparaiso (Mar. 12-13). Keck hit .357 with a run scored, home run and two RBI against the Beacons. He is SEMO's top hitter with a .375 batting average and is the second player on this year's team to reach 150 or more hits joining Tyler Wilber (203).

NCAA Division I Rankings (Top-12)
As of games through Mar. 16, the Redhawks rank among the top 12 NCAA Division I teams in six statistical categories. Southeast Missouri is fourth in home runs (33), fifth in home runs per game (2.0), sixth in walks (111), eighth in scoring (9.8 rpg), 10th in slugging percentage (.548) and 12th in runs (157). Individually, Peyton Leeper rates sixth nationally in walks (18), seventh in walks per game (1.1), fourth in runs (25) and sixth in runs per game (1.6). Tyler Wilber is ninth in RBI (27) and 10th in RBI per game (1.69), and Jevon Mason is second in runs scored (26) and third in runs per game (1.6).

Stealing the Show
Andrew Keck is a perfect 6-of-6 on the basepaths this season. Keck has 40 stolen bases and is now ninth on Southeast Missouri's all-time career stolen base list.

Double-Digit Hits
Southeast Missouri registered double-digit hits in 10 of its first 16 games. SEMO is undefeated at 10-0 in games where it gets 10 or more hits. It finished with a season-high 16 hits vs. Saint Louis (Mar. 1) and Valparaiso (Mar. 13).

RBI Guys
Tyler Wilber and Andrew Keck are first and second in the Ohio Valley Conference with 27 and 23 RBI, respectively. Jevon Mason (19) is tied for sixth among league leaders in that category, as well.

Grand Slamming
Andrew Keck hit his second grand slam in three days against Saint Louis (Mar. 1). Keck launched his team-high third home run of the season over the left field wall in the bottom of the sixth inning. He smashed his first career grand slam to help send Southeast Missouri to a 10-2 win over Bellarmine (Feb. 27). That round-tripper came in the bottom of the first inning against the Knights.

Mason Plays Strong
Leadoff man Jevon Mason is Southeast Missouri's third-leading hitter with a .338 batting average. Mason has accumulated a team-high 26 runs and boasts a team-best .754 slugging percentage. He ranks second on the team in hits (22), doubles (5) and home runs (six) through 16 starts.

Over .300
Southeast Missouri has four players hitting over .300 through 16 games this season. Andrew Keck leads the team with a .375 clip, while Brett Graber (.358), Jevon Mason (.338), and Peyton Leeper (.300) follow. Those four players have accounted for over 50 percent of the Redhawks scoring output.

Walk This Way
Southeast Missouri players hold four of the first six spots among Ohio Valley Conference individuals in walks. Peyton Leeper (1st, 18), Jevon Mason (t2nd, 17), Tyler Wilber (4th, 16) and Brett Graber (t5th, 15) occupy those places. Those four are responsible for 66 of SEMO's league-leading 111 bases on balls.

Early and Often
Southeast Missouri has jumped on oppoents early through its first 14 games this season. In the first four innings alone, SEMO has scored a combined 86 runs, including 22 in the first, 18 in the second, 31 in the third and 15 in the fourth. Fifty-four percent of the Redhawks runs have come in the first four innings of play. SEMO is outscoring opponents 86-63 in that span. 

Season 64
The 2022 campaign marks Southeast Missouri's 64th year of college baseball. The Redhawks are in their 31st season as an NCAA Division I program. SEMO is 1,407-1,142 all-time and 873-755-1 at the NCAA Division I level since the inception of its baseball program. The Redhawks have a 432-294-1 record in Ohio Valley Conference play. SEMO won five OVC regular-season titles (2002, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2021), four OVC Tournament crowns (1998, 2002, 2016, 2021) and made four NCAA Tournament appearances (1998, 2002, 2016, 2021) in program history.

OVC Preseason Favorite
Southeast Missouri was tabbed the preseason favorite in the 2022 Ohio Valley Conference Baseball Preseason Poll on Feb. 10. The reigning OVC regular-season and tournament champion, SEMO received eight of the possible 18 first-place nods in the overall voting by league Head Coaches and Communication Directors. SEMO accumulated a total of 114 points, while Murray State – which the Redhawks beat to win the OVC Tournament crown in 2021 – was picked second with four first-place votes and 104 points. Morehead State (93 pts.), Austin Peay (87 pts.) and Belmont (86 pts.) round out the top five, while SIU Edwardsville (55 pts.), Eastern Illinois (50 pts.), Tennessee Tech (43 pts.) and UT Martin (16 pts.) complete the nine-team predicted order of finish. 

140 and Counting
Tyler Wilber has never missed a start in his Southeast Missouri career. The shortstop has started 140 consecutive games as the most experienced player on the roster. Wilber committed only nine errors in 52 starts at short in 2021.