Southeast Missouri (9-1) at Arkansas State (4-5)

Series Information
Date: Tuesday, March 8, 2022
First Pitch: 6 p.m., CT
Location: Jonesboro, Ark.
Facility: Tomlinson Stadium (1,200)
Series: ASU leads, 40-33 
Last Meeting: SEMO 5, ASU 3 (Mar. 3, 2020 | Jonesboro, Ark.)
Head Coaches: Andy Sawyers (214-144 overall; 127-119 at SEMO; 65-55 OVC). Tommy Raffo (334-361-1 overall; 334-361-1 at ASU).

Follow the Redhawks
Watch: ESPN+
Radio: ESPN 93.5 FM & 1220 AM (Erik Sean)
Live Stats: SEMORedhawks.com
Twitter: @SEMObaseball
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri

Probable Starting Pitchers
Bryce Grossius, RHP (SEMO) / Will Nash, RHP(ASU)
 

Redhawks Visit Arkansas State 
Southeast Missouri (9-1) visits Sun Belt Conference member Arkansas State (4-5) for a midweek matchup Tuesday. First pitch is set for 6 p.m., CT at Tomlinson Stadium-Kell Field.

Follow the Redhawks
Listen live on the radio at ESPN 93.5 FM and 1220 AM. Erik Sean will call the action. Watch on ESPN+. Live stats can be accessed online at AStateRedWolves.com. Twitter updates available @SEMOBaseball.

Series History
Southeast Missouri meets Arkansas State on the front end of a home-and-home series this season. SEMO and ASU are also scheduled to play in Cape Girardeau on Apr. 5. Tuesday marks the 73rd meeting between the teams. The Redhawks ended a three-game losing streak in their series against the Red Wolves with a 5-3 win on Mar. 3, 2020 (Jonesboro), the last time these teams faced each other.

Best Start in Division I Era
At 9-1, the Redhawks are off to their best start in their NCAA Division I era. Southeast Missouri moved to the D-I ranks in 1992. Overall, the start is SEMO's best since 1983 when that team put together a 10-1 record. The 13-0 start by the 1973 team is the best in program history.

Top-50 RPI
Southeast Missouri currently ranks among the Top-50 in RPI this season. SEMO is currently 49th as the highest ranked Ohio Valley Conference team in that category. The RPI ranking is the highest 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), 259th (2019) and 200th (2020). 

Seven in a Row
The Redhawks are on a seven-game winning streak as one of three Ohio Valley Conference teams which have won a minimum of five-straight contests. Tennessee Tech (10-0) leads the league with a 10-game winning streak as the OVC's only undefeated team remaining. If Southeast Missouri wins Tuesday, it will become the third OVC team to get 10 wins this year along with Tennessee Tech and Belmont (10-3). One more win will also give SEMO its longest winning streak since it won 11 in a row during the 2016 season. 

Get Out the Brooms!
Southeast Missouri posted its second series sweep of the season when it beat Missouri Valley Conference affiliate Bradley (Mar. 4-5). SEMO also won three games in its first-ever meeting with Atlantic Sun member Bellarmine (Feb. 26-27). The series sweep against Bellarmine was the Redhawks first since they won four games against Ohio on Feb. 28-Mar. 1, 2020.

11-Straight Series Wins
The Redhawks claimed their 11th-straight series win dating back to the start of April 2021 when they swept Bradley, 16-7, 11-8, 12-5, on Mar. 4-5 in Cape Girardeau. Southeast Missouri has not lost a series since Mar. 26-27, 2021 (at Eastern Illinois).

Offensive Outburst
Southeast Missouri scored 77 runs in its last six games and outscored its opponents by a +42 margin (77-35) in that stretch. SEMO is already over 100 hits (107) and 100 (103) runs this year. The Redhawks had 73 hits and 42 runs through their first 10 games in 2021.

Seeing Double
The Redhawks scored double-digit runs in each of their last six games. It is the first time in six years where Southeast Missouri scored 10 or more times in at least five consecutive games. SEMO finished with double figures in the run column a total of six times in 52 games last season. The Redhawks are second in the Ohio Valley Conference with 103 runs scored behind both Tennessee Tech (109) and Murray State (109).

Power Outage
Southeast Missouri hit 20 home runs this season, 14 more than it did throught its first 10 games of 2021. SEMO hit nine home runs in its series against Bradley (Mar. 4-5), including a season-high nine during game three. The Redhawks became the third team to 20 home runs in the Ohio Valley Conference thus far, joining SIU Edwardsville (22) and Tennessee Tech (21). Tyler Wilber leads SEMO with four round-trippers, while Andrew Keck, Jevon Mason and newcomer Joel Vaske follow close behind with three apiece. Eight different Redhawks have homered in 2022. The Redhawks are 12th in the nation in home runs and seventh in home runs per game (2.0).

Streaks Intact
Tyler Wilber is on an eight-game hitting streak, while Brett Graber and Jevon Mason have hit safely in seven-straight contests.  Mason, Peyton Leeper, Lincoln Andrews and Graber have reached base in all 10 games this year. 

Approaching 200 Hits
Tyler Wilber is four hits away from reaching 200 in his career. Wilber has 196 hits and will look to extend his eight-game hitting streak in Tuesday's matchup with Arkansas State.

NCAA Division I Rankings
The Redhawks rank among the top 13 NCAA Division I teams in six statistical categories. Southeast Missouri is seventh in scoring (10.3 runs per game) and home runs per game (2.0), eighth in walks (75), 12th in home runs (20) and 13th in both slugging percentage (.551) and win-loss percentage (.900). Individually, Peyton Leeper rates fifth nationally in walks (14) and walks per game (1.4), and 18th in runs per game (1.6), Andrew Keck and Tyler Wilber are tied for 12th in RBI per game (1.8), Jevon Mason is 15th in walks per game (1.2) and 14th in triples (2), and Bryce Grossius and Noah Niznik are each 11th in games started (3). 

Leading the OVC
As a team, Southeast Missouri leads the Ohio Valley Conference in RBI (98), walks (75) and batters struck out looking (30). SEMO, which raised its batting average 20 points from .281 to .301 during its series vs. Bradley (Mar. 4-5), is one of two league teams hitting over .300. Tennessee Tech tops the conference with a .354 clip. Peyton Leeper leads the OVC in walks (14).

OVC Strong
Tennessee Tech (10-0), Southeast Missouri (9-1), Belmont (8-1) Belmont (10-3) and Murray State (8-3) are a combined 45-8 this year. UT Martin (4-6) is the only team in the Ohio Valley Conference below .500.

Stealing the Show
Andrew Keck is a perfect 4-of-4 on the basepaths this season. Keck needs one more stolen base to crack Southeast Missouri's all-time top-10 career leaders. He has 38 stolen bases and Lance Craft (1996-97) holds the 10th-place spot on that list with 39.

Midweek Drubbing
Southeast Missouri scored in every inning en route to blowing out Saint Louis, 16-5, in its first midweek game of the season on Mar. 1. SEMO established season-highs in runs (16) and hits (16) against the Billikens.

Graber Goes Off
Outfielder Brett Graber hit a series best .455 with three runs, two doubles, two home runs and eight RBI in Southeast Missouri's three-game set vs. Bradley (Mar. 4-5). Graber went 5-for-11 at the plate. He also walked twice, boasted a 1.182 slugging percentage and finished with a .538 on-base percentage against the Braves. 

Double-Digit Hits
Southeast Missouri registered double-digit hits in seven of its first 10 games. SEMO is undefeated at 7-0 in games where it gets 10 or more hits. It finished with a season-high 16 hits vs. Saint Louis (Mar. 1).

RBI Guys
Andrew Keck and Tyler Wilber are tied for second in the Ohio Valley Conferene with 18 RBI each. Wilber had at least one RBI in every game this season, while Keck did the same each of his last seven starts.

Huge Week for Keck
Andrew Keck hit safely in three of Southeast Missouri's four wins last week. A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Keck opened the week by going 4-for-5 with a double, grand slam, career-high four runs and career-best seven RBI vs. Saint Louis (Mar. 1). The grand slam was Keck's second of the season that came in a three-day span. He also went 3-for-4 with two runs and one RBI vs. Bradley (Mar. 5) after finishing with two hits and two RBI the day before against the Braves. SEMO swept BU for its second series sweep of the season. For the week, Keck hit .563 (9-for-16) with nine runs, a double, grand slam, 11 RBI, three stolen bases and three walks. He boasted a .813 slugging percentage and .600 on-base percentage, as well. 

Career Performance
Catcher Andrew Keck went 4-for-5 with a grand slam, double, two singles, four runs scored, two stolen bases and seven RBI to lead Southeast Missouri to its win over Saint Louis (Mar. 1). Keck hit safely in each of his first three at-bats. His four runs and seven RBI are new career-highs, while his four hits match a career-best. Keck boosted his batting average from .310 to .382 with that monster performance. He is now second on the team with a .382 clip.

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 Leads Redhawks
Leadoff man Jevon Mason is Southeast Missouri's second-leading hitter with a .375 batting average. Mason has accumulated 15 runs, 15 hits, three doubles, two triples, three home runs, 12 RBI, 12 walks and three stolen bases through 10 starts.

Walk-Off Win
First baseman Lincoln Andrews snapped a 7-7 tie with a leadoff walk-off home run in the bottom of the 11th inning to give Southeast Missouri an 8-7 come-from-behind win in its series-opener vs. Bellarmine (Feb. 26). The walk-off hit is the first of Andrews' career. 

Over .300
Southeast Missouri has five players hitting over .300 through 10 games this season. Andrew Keck leads the team with a .400 clip, while Jevon Mason (.375), Brett Graber (.371), Lincoln Andrews (.318) and Joel Vaske (.303) follow. Those five players have combined for 66 RBI for 64 percent of the Redhawks scoring output.

Walk This Way
Southeast Missouri players hold the top three spots among Ohio Valley Conference individuals in walks. Peyton Leeper (14), Jevon Mason (12) and Brett Graber (11) are responsible for 37 of SEMO's league-leading 75 bases on balls.

Windt Wins
In his first career NCAA Division I start, right-hander Tommy Windt struck out three and did not allow a walk in two innings to beat Saint Louis (Mar. 1), Southeast Missouri's first midweek tilt of the season. Windt then came out of the bullpen to strike out four and pitch 3.2 scoreless, no-hit innings en route to a win vs. Bradley (Mar. 5). In two appearances last week, Windt went 2-0 with a 1.59 ERA, struck out seven, walked two and allowed just two runs on two hits in 5.2 innings. Opposing teams hit only .111 against him in those games.

Rackers Cracks Starting Rotation
University of Tennessee transfer Jason Rackers earned his first win in his first career start at Southeast Missouri on Mar. 5. Rackers recorded six strikeouts, walked three and allowed seven runs on six hits in 4.1 innings. He is 1-0 and ties for first on the team with 15 strikeouts this year.

134 and Counting
Tyler Wilber has never missed a start in his Southeast Missouri career. The shortstop has started 134 consecutive games as the most experienced player on the roster. Wilber committed only nine errors in 52 starts at short in 2021.