TERRE HAUTE, IN ? The Indiana State baseball team had their home game against Indiana postponed by weather Wednesday and the weather has forced chances in the schedule for this weekend's games at the University of Missouri.
The Sycamores, 1-5 overall, were scheduled to play four games at No. 18 Missouri this weekend with singles games on Friday and Sunday, and a double-header on Saturday. However, the winter storm that moved through the area and dumped up to 10 inches of snow in some parts of Missouri, has changed the schedule for this weekend.
Indiana State and Missouri will now play a single game at 3 p.m. (ET) on Saturday and then play a pair of nine inning games on Sunday with the first one starting at 2 p.m. (ET).
The Sycamores will send junior left hander Michael Manus (0-1) to the mound on Saturday while junior right hander Brian Oliver (0-1) gets the nod for the first game on Sunday and junior right hander Micah Spencer (0-0) will start in the nightcap Sunday.
Indiana State is seeking to break a three-game losing skid and post their first win against a ranked team this season at Missouri. The Sycamores played at No. 2 Mississippi last weekend and dropped three games, two of which ISU could have won.
“The games on Friday and Sunday were games that we should have won,” Lindsey Meggs, Indiana State baseball coach said. “We had our chances and just didn't follow through.”
The Sycamores lost 6-4 on Friday and then dropped Sunday's game 6-5 in 11 innings after holding a 5-3 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. Saturday's game was an 11-4 loss to Ole' Miss.
Spencer was named a notable performer by the Missouri Valley Conference on Monday. The Modesto, CA, native has a 2.84 ERA after pitching in two games this season, giving up only four runs in 12.2 innings of work. He also leads the team in strikeouts with nine.
Spencer went 6.2 innings against Mississippi, giving up only two runs on six hits. He went six innings against South Florida in his first outing of the season, allowing two runs on seven hits.
Senior outfielder Chris Schmidt has had the hot bat for the Sycamores through the first six games, carrying a .407 batting average and a team high .556 slugging percentage. Schmidt has 11 hits including a triple and two doubles, in 27 trips to the plate, leading the team in total bases with 15 and second in RBI with five.
Missouri enters the weekend series with a 6-2 record. The Tigers had their home opener on Tuesday against Western Illinois cancelled by the weather.