Southeast Missouri (1-2) at Middle Tennessee (1-2)

Date: Tuesday, February 21, 2023
First Pitch: 3 p.m., CT
Location: Murfreesboro, Tenn.
Facility: Reese Smith Jr. Field
Series: MTSU leads, 21-13
Head Coaches: Andy Sawyers (243-169 overall; 156-142 at SEMO; 81-63 OVC). Jerry Meyers (168-160 overall; 1-2 at MTSU; 0-0 C-USA).

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

Southeast Missouri Probable Starting Pitcher
Tuesday - Bryce Grossius, RHP, 6-1, 210, St. Louis, Mo. (St. Mary's)

Redhawks Head to Middle Tennessee 
Southeast Missouri (1-2) travels to Middle Tennessee (1-2) for its first midweek matchup of the season Tuesday. First pitch is set for 3 p.m., CT at Reese Smith Jr. Field.

Follow the Redhawks
Listen live on the radio at ESPN 1220 AM and 93.5 FM. Erik Sean will call the action Video can be accessed at ESPN+. Live stats are available at GoBlueRaiders.com. Twitter updates will be provided @SEMObaseball.

Series History
Former Ohio Valley Conference member and current Conference-USA affiliate Middle Tennessee holds a 21-13 lead in its all-time series against Southeast Missouri. MTSU left the OVC in 2000. This season marks the first time in 20 years where SEMO and MTSU play each other. The Redhawks dropped a close 11-9 decision against the Blue Raiders in the last meeting on Apr. 16, 2003 in Cape Girardeau. MTSU won each of the last four matchups between the teams.

Redhawks Dominate Season-Opener 
Southeast Missouri pounded out 13 hits in a dominating 11-3 season-opening win over Central Arkansas (Feb. 17). SEMO scored its most runs in a season-opener in 13 years when the Redhawks began the 2010 campaign with a 13-8 victory over SEC member Auburn. SEMO posted its fourth-straight season-opening win under Head Coach Andy Sawyers. The Redhawks also improved to 14-18 all-time in season-opening games during its NCAA Division I era (since 1992).

Redhawk Debuts
Twelve players made their Southeast Missouri debuts during opening weekend at Central Arkansas (Feb. 17-19). Josh Cameron, Carlos Aranda, Chance Resetich, Caleb Rodgers, Gunnar Doyle, Yanluis Ortiz, Nolan Ackerman, HadenDow, Logan Katen, Jonah Sarabia, Michael Laudando and Esteban Hernandez all saw action for the first time in a Redhawk uniform.

Grossius Gets the Start Tuesday 
Right-hander Bryce Grossius will get the ball for Southeast Missouri's first midweek start of the season at Middle Tennessee Tuesday. Grossius was 0-2 in 13 appearances and seven starts for SEMO last season. For his career, Grossiusholds a 6-5 record with 105 strikeouts in 115.2 innings over 54 games and 16 starts. He last pitched 1.1 scoreless innings of relief in the Redhawks NCAA Regional game vs. Oregon (June 4, 2022).

100 Starts
Jevon Mason made his 100th career start at Central Arkansas (Feb. 17). Mason is now the third third active player on this year's roster with over 100 career starts joining Peyton Leeper (113) and Lincoln Andrews (108).

107 and Counting
Jevon Mason has started 107 consecutive games dating back to the 2021 season. That streak began with his start vs. Austin Peay on Mar. 20, 2021. Mason was one of three players to start all 59 games for the Redhawks in 2022.

Getting on Base
Lincoln Andrews, Jevon Mason and Peyton Leeper reached base in each of Southeast Missouri's first three games of the 2023 campaign. Andrews led SEMO with a series-high four hits, while Mason and Leeper added two apiece. Andrews hit .333 (4-for-12) with two runs scored, one RBI and a walk during opening weekend.

About Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee, like Southeast Missouri, is 1-2 this season. MTSU dropped its final two games of the Baseball at the Beach Classic. The Blue Raiders beat VCU in their season-opener, 14-8, before falling to Coastal Carolina (11-3) and Fairfield (14-9). Brett Coker and DJ Wright are each hitting .400 or better through three games this season. Coker is hitting .429 and Wright had a .400 clip. MTSU also hit five home runs in its first three games of the 2023 campaign. Coker has two of those round-trippers.

Miller Named to NCBWA Stopper of the Year Preseason Watch List 
Right-hander Kyle Miller was one of four Ohio Valley Conference players named to the 2023 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Stopper of the Year Preseason Watch List. Miller joined Morehead State's John Bakke and Jarrett Miller, and Eastern Illinois' Zane Robbins on the list. Miller, a Preseason All- Ohio Valley Conference selection, went 8-4 with a 3.35 ERA in 24 relief appearances last season. He picked up six saves and led the Redhawks in wins. Miller struck out 47 and walked 14 in 45.2 innings.

Season 65
The 2023 campaign marks Southeast Missouri's 65th of college baseball. The Redhawks are in their 32nd season as an NCAA Division I program. SEMO is 1,432-1,163 all-time and 898-776-1 at the NCAA Division I level since the inception of its baseball program. The Redhawks have a 442-301-1 record in Ohio Valley Conference play. SEMO won five OVC regular-season titles (2002, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2021), five OVC Tournament crowns (1998, 2002, 2016, 2021, 2022) and made five NCAA Tournament appearances (1998, 2002, 2016, 2021, 2022) in program history.

Redhawks Picked to Win OVC
For the second-straight year, Southeast Missouri (128 pts.) was picked first in the Ohio Valley Preseason Poll selected by the league's Head Coaches and Communications Directors. SEMO received 16 of the 18 possible first-place votes. Morehead State, which earned the other two first-place nods, was picked second with 100 points. Eastern Illinois (89 pts.), Little Rock (86 pts.) and Tennessee Tech (78 pts.) rounded out the top five. SIU Edwardsville (76 pts.), UT Martin (41 pts.), Southern Indiana (26 pts.) and Lindenwood (24 pts.) complete this year's predicted order of finish.

Let's Do it Again
Southeast Missouri enters the 2023 season fresh off back-to-back 30-win campaigns. SEMO went 30-22 overall and swept the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season and tournament titles in 2021. A year later, the Redhawks compiled a 37-22 rrecord won their second Tournament crown in a row. The 37 wins in 2022 are currently the most in a season with Andy Sawyers at the helm. Another 30-win season in 2023 will make Sawyers the third head coach in program history to record three-consecutive 30-win campaigns.

//n Amazing Run
The Redhawks were nearly unbeatable on their home diamond (Capaha Field)
in 2022. Southeast Missouri led the nation with a 23-2 home record. The home record was the best in SEMO baseball history. The Redhawks won their first 14 home games a year ago.

More Program Firsts
Along with its staggering home record, Southeast Missouri won back-to-back Ohio Valley Conference Tournament titles and made the NCAA Tournament two years in a row for the first time in program history. SEMO won three-straight elimination games to claim its OVC Tournament crown in 2022. The Redhawks advanced to the NCAA Regional in Louisville, Kentucky in 2022 and NCAA Regional in Oxford, Mississippi in 2021.

Preseason All-OVC
Outfielders Jevon Mason and Brett Grabe, and right-handed pitcher Kyle Miller represented Southeast Missouri on this year's Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference Baseball Team. Mason, who hails from West Des Moines, Iowa, garnered OVC All-Tournament Team accolades in 2022. He ranked fourth on the team with a .317 batting average in 59 starts, including 57 in left field. Mason tied for second on the team with 73 hits, ranked tied for third in doubles (14) and third in home runs (14). His 72 runs scored led the conference and rated 23rd in the nation. A native of Sacramento, California, Graber landed was a Second-Team All-OVC pick last season. He finished third on the team with a .321 batting average as one of four players who hit over .300. He posted 10 home runs, 42 runs scored, 70 hits, three triples and 46 RBI. Graber collected multiple hits in 22 of his starts, as well. Miller, who is from Eureka, Missouri, joined Graber as a Second-Team All-OVC selection. He was SEMO's closer who went 8-4 with a 3.35 ERA in 24 relief appearances. Miller picked up six saves and led the Redhawks in wins. He struck out 47 and walked 14 in 45.2 innings.

Home Run Record
Southeast Missouri broke a program record with 97 home runs in 2022. Five players hit 10 or more home runs for the Redhawks that year. Three of those five in Lincoln Andrews (15), Jevon Mason (14) and Brett Graber (10) are back this season. That trio accounted for over 40 percent of the team's home run output. SEMO's 97 home runs ranked third in the Ohio Valley Conference behind Tennessee Tech (114) and SIU Edwardsville (99).

2023 Roster
Southeast Missouri's 2023 roster includes 39 players with nine seniors, 18 juniors, five sophomores and seven freshmen. SEMO welcomes 16 newcomers to this year's club. The Redhawks also have six returning starters in Brett Graber (OF), Jevon Mason (OF), Ty Stauss (OF), Lincoln Andrews (INF), Peyton Leeper (INF), Ben Palmer (INF). Graber, Mason and Stauss are SEMO's top three hitters back. Pitching wise, the Redhawks return Noah Niznik and Collin Wilma, along with relievers Kyle Miller and Anthony Klein.

Mason Breaks Single-Season Runs Record 
Jevon Mason broke Southeast Missouri's all-time single-season record in runs scored with 72 last season. Mason led the Ohio Valley Conference and ranked 23rd in the nation in that category. He also rated 25th in the country and first in the league with 1.25 runs per game. Mason surpassed current Associate Head Coach and former SEMO standout Trevor Ezell for the new mark.

Mr. Clutch
Brett Graber has relished the role of being a clutch hitter and that showed several times over the course of the 2022 season. Graber had three walk-off hits and delivered a pair of hits that decided the outcome late in the game a year ago. He delivered a go-ahead single in the top of the 10th inning that sent Southeast Missouri to a win over #22 Dallas Baptist (2/19). Graber hit a three-RBI triple in the bottom of the seventh to lead SEMO to an 8-5 win over Arkansas State (4/5). His walk-off hits included a single in the bottom of the ninth vs. Murray State (4/10), home run in the bottom of the 10th vs. Morehead State (4/22) and three-RBI double in the bottom of the ninth vs. UT Martin (5/14). Not to mention, Graber scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning vs. Morehead State (4/22).

On Deck
Southeast Missouri heads to Abilene Christian for a four-game series Feb. 24-26.