Baseball Renews Rivalry with EKU This Weekend

NOTE: Game one of the series has been moved to 7 p.m. ET Friday instead of 6 p.m.

MOREHEAD, Ky. -- The Morehead State baseball team will strive to make an upward move in the Ohio Valley Conference standings this weekend when the Eagles visit Eastern Kentucky for a three-game series. Game one is set for Friday at 7 p.m. ET as it will mark the first night game in EKU's home field history.

The second contest is scheduled for 6 p.m. Saturday, with the finale slated to begin at 1 p.m. Sunday. MSU (13-15/5-7 OVC) is currently right behind the Colonels (13-15/4-5 OVC) for the sixth spot in the league standings.

Ways to follow the games:

LIVE AUDIO (GM 1 | GM 2 | GM 3) | LIVE AUDIO (MOBILE DEVICES) | LIVE STATS

MSUEagles.com will feature a free audio broadcast of all three games. Fans can also listen on most mobile devices at m.Morehead.EZStream.com. Michael Gustin is in his second season as "Voice of the Baseball Eagles." Live stats can be accessed through links here on MSUEagles.com. The link remains the same for all three games.

Releases and pre-series information:

MOREHEAD STATE (PDF) | EASTERN KENTUCKY | OHIO VALLEY CONFERENCE

Notes heading into the series:

Series Stuff
Last year marked the 200th meeting between EKU and MSU, and the Colonels currently hold a 111-88-1 advantage in the series. EKU has won nine straight meetings between the teams. MSU's last win came in 2010 when the Eagles swept the Colonels in Morehead. MSU has lost eight of its last nine games played in Richmond.

Where Do We Rank?
Junior right fielder Brandon Rawe is tied for third in the nation (Division I) with 49 hits. He trails the national leader, Tennessee Tech's Daniel Miles, by just two. Rawe also ranks fifth in the country with 13 doubles, is sixth in doubles per game and ranks tied for 13th with his .419 batting average. Junior second baseman Tyler Bigler is second nationally in times being hit by a pitch with 15. He is just one HBP out of leading the nation. As a unit, the Eagles rank 16th in hit by pitches and 31st in doubles per game.

Rawe Power
Brandon Rawe leads the team with 49 hits, including 18 extra-base knocks. He has an Ohio Valley Conference-best 13 doubles and leads the club with five home runs. Rawe has driven in 28 runs and leads the team with a .679 slugging percentage. He has reached base in 22 of the last 23 games.

Mr. Consistency
Junior shortstop Robby Spencer batted .625 (10-for-16) in his last four outings. He has multiple hits in all four of those contests and has reached base safely now in a team-high 16 consecutive games.

Crushing the Ball
Junior first baseman Kane Sweeney clobbered a grand slam against St. Catharine (Ky.) on Wednesday and drove in six runs. He was the first Eagle to record six RBI in a game since Luke Bainer did, ironically, against St. Catharine in 2012. Sweeney ranks second on the club with 22 RBI.

Craig's List
Sophomore pitcher Craig Pearcy continues to be one of just 11 Division I pitchers who leads his respective team in wins and saves. Pearcy is 3-2 with a team-best 2.56 ERA. He has also collected three saves to be tied for team honors with senior Dan Hyatt.

He's Burning Up
Senior utility man Bobby Burns has raised his batting average 102 points in just a 10-game span. Before the March 19 game at Alabama A&M game he was at .214, but Burns is 12-for-31 (.387) since then. He's now ranked fourth on the team with a .316 batting average.