Baseball Looks to Capture Fifth OVC Tournament Title in Illinois

SCHEDULE PAGE (LINKS TO LIVE STATS, VIDEO, AND AUDIO)

MOREHEAD, Ky. -- Winners of eight of its last 11 and the OVC regular season crown, the No. 1 seeded Morehead State baseball team hits the road this week in search of the fifth OVC Tournament championship in program history and first since 2018. The Eagles have one of the two highly coveted first round byes in the tourney, moving Morehead State into the double elimination portion of the tournament. 

Morehead State will play in the fifth game of the tournament, with the first pitch set for 12:00 p.m. ET/11 a.m. CT on Thursday from Mtn Dew Park in Marion. Live stats and live streaming (ESPN+) will be available, with an audio only stream available on the Eagle Sports Radio Network with Hunter Hurst on play-by-play. 

ABOUT THE EAGLES

• Season Record: 34-19
• Conference Record: 16-7
• Last 10 Games: 7-3
• Current Streak: W2

POSSIBLE OPPONENTS (GAME ONE)

• No. 4 Southeast Missouri
  • Season Record: 26-29
  • OVC Record: 14-10
  • Morehead State won two of three games to take the series over SEMO at Allen Field. 
• No. 5 Eastern Illinois
  • Season Record: 33-18
  • OVC Record: 13-11
  • Morehead State won two of three games to take the series over EIU at Allen Field. 
• No. 8 Southern Indiana
  • Season Record: 17-37
  • OVC Record: 8-15
  • Morehead State swept USI in Evansville during the OVC's opening weekend. 

PROBABLE STARTER

• Luke Helton
  • 2023 Overall: 7-2, 5.60 ERA, 63 K, 70.2 IP
  • OVC Stats: 5-0. 4.37 ERA, 38 K, 47.1 IP

NOTES

• Morehead State has won four OVC Tournament titles (1983, 1993, 2015, 2018). The Eagles are one of two teams since 2015 to win multiple OVC Tournaments, with SEMO being the only team with three. 
• Morehead State has now qualified for nine straight OVC Tournaments (not counting COVID-shortened 2020 season), a program record. 
• Morehead State led the OVC in runs scored overall, with 402 runs in 53 games for an average of 7.58 runs per game. Versus OVC opponents, the Eagles averaged 8.08 runs in 23 games. 
• Morehead State leads the OVC in home runs this season with 96, ranking T-24th nationally. In home runs per game, Morehead State ranks 20th in the nation at 1.81 homers per contest. 
• With his two homer performance on Friday night, Ryley Preece is the first player in Morehead State history to post a 20 HR/20 SB season. The centerfielder from Paintsville, Ky., won two OVC Player of the Week awards this season, and leads the team in RBI with 53. 
• Speaking of OVC Players of the Week, Roman Kuntz took home his first ever POTW award after hitting four home runs in two games vs. Little Rock. Kuntz finished with 14 HR, a new career-high, and had his first ever three home run game on Thursday. In last season's OVC Tournament, Kuntz had a three-run homer against Tennessee Tech. 
• Morehead State's pitching staff has been just as impressive as its offense this season, led by Luke Helton. Helton posted a 7-2 record this season, going 5-0 in conference play. 
• John Bakke sits one save away from becoming the new all-time leader in saves by a Morehead State pitcher with 17 in his career. The lefty from Huntsville, Ala., notched his 215th career strikeout on Friday night to clinch the OVC Regular Season Championship for the Eagles. Bakke ranks 7th in Morehead State history in strikeouts, with an opportunity to move into 6th place during the tournament. 
• Five Morehead State pitchers have recorded a save this season, led by Jarrett Miller with six. Luke Lyman (one), Riley Bradshaw (one), Joe Rotkis (two), and John Bakke (two) are the other four Eagle hurlers with a save. 
• Matt Bettio has been extremely effective and efficient out of the bullpen this season for MSU. In 25 relief apperances, the senior right-hander has issued just seven walks in over 35 innings. 
• Catcher Ryan Grabosch made his return to the Morehead State lineup/battery over the weekend. In his first action since March 25, the junior had a double on Thursday and an RBI single on Friday. 
• 34 wins is the most under Head Coach Mik Aoki, and the first 30-win season since he took over the program prior to the 2020 season. Morehead State has now won 30 games in a season seven times. 
• Jackson Feltner is the team leader in batting average at .352, posting his third straight season with an average higher than .350. He is a career .378 hitter, with 41 career homers (29th player in OVC history) and 41 career doubles. 
• Colton Becker has posted his best career season as a junior. The shortstop has started 151 straight games, and holds career highs in nearly every offensive category this season. Becker is batting .332 with eight home runs and 16 doubles (team leader).