Sonny Allen Field Opens This Weekend as Baseball Hosts Butler

SCHEDULE PAGE (LINKS TO LIVE STATS)

MOREHEAD, Ky. -- The season's opening road trip has finally ended for the Morehead State baseball team, and the Eagles are ready to open up Sonny Allen Field for the year this weekend when Butler comes to town for a three-game set. 

MSU is 5-3 on the young season with a pair of series wins at Davidson and North Alabama. Morehead State has won five straight series dating back to last season. 

No stream will be provided for the games this weekend, but fans not in attendance can follow live stats via links on MSUEagles.com.

2024 SEASON RECORDS & CURRENT STREAK

• Morehead State (5-3) W2
• Butler (3-3) L1

SERIES HISTORY

• Morehead State has played Butler one time in school history, a 4-2 loss in Indianapolis, Ind., in 2018. 

PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS

Friday

• Morehead State: Luke Helton (2-0, 1.59 ERA)
• Butler: Justin Hornschemeier (0-1, 10.12 ERA

Saturday

• Morehead State: Grant Herron (0-1, 4.66 ERA)
• Butler: Tyler Banks (1-1, 5.68 ERA)

Sunday

• Morehead State: Callum McGill (1-0, 6.00 ERA)
• Butler: Grant Brooks (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

NOTABLE

• Morehead State currently leads the OVC in stolen bases. The Eagles are 19-21 on the year in stolen base attempts. 
• Luke Helton has dominated in his two starts this season striking out 15 and allowing only three runs (two earned) across 11.1 innings. Last Friday at North Alabama, Helton struck out eight batters across six innings with no walks.
• The bullpen was a big asset for Morehead State on Tuesday, as Trevor Callahan (1.2 IP), Zach Taylor (1.0 IP), and Josh Furtado (2.0 IP, W) combined for 4.2 shutout innings in the win. Furtado picked up the victory in his first appearance as an Eagle, striking out a pair. 
• Colton Becker and Ryley Preece are tied for both the team and OVC lead in stolen bases with six apiece. 
• Becker's speed has been an asset to the Eagles throughout his entire career at MSU. He has not been caught stealing in his last 30 tries after swiping a pair of bags at NKU on Tuesday, a streak that dates back to March 25, 2022. 
• Colton Becker leads qualified batters in the OVC in an abundance of categories, including hits, runs scored, and batting average. Becker is currently batting .455 through eight games. Dating back to last season, Becker has a hit in nine straight games. 
• Roman Kuntz has homered in back-to-back games, with his go-ahead home run in the ninth inning of Tuesday's game at NKU proving to be the game winner. Kuntz leads the team in home runs with three (T-3rd in OVC) and RBI with 11 (2nd in OVC). 
• Ryley Preece drew a walk and stole a pair of bases on Tuesday, extending his reached base streak to 48 games, just four shy of tying Alex Jacobs' school record of 52 set in 2022. 
• Ryan Grabosch has a hit in six straight games to open the season, ranking second on the team in batting average at .364. 
• Nick Gooden drove in a pair of runs on Tuesday, and is tied with Colton Becker for the team lead in multi-hit games with four this season. Isaias Guzman, Ryley Preece, and Hayden Robbins have three multi-hit games, while Ryan Grabosch has two and both Alex Kean and Roman Kuntz have one. 
• Will Grimmett is tied for the OVC lead in saves with two on the young season. The junior right-hander is holding opponents to a .143 batting average with a 1-0 record and 1.59 ERA across 5.2 innings.