Ashley Dickerson
GoSycamores.com
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Indiana State Baseball (21-12, 2-1 MVC) has hit the ground running in MVC play. The Sycamores traveled to Carbondale, Ill., last weeked, racking up a series win over Southern Illinois. After the weekend, the Sycamores moved into second place standings for MVC play, just behind Dallas Baptist who went 2-0 against Illinois State in opening MVC weekend. Junior Ryan Keaffaber was named the Missouri Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week as he threw his second consecutive complete game in the shutout win over the Salukis on Saturday. The Sycamores are set to host Illinois State for a three-game MVC series beginning Friday April 15 and continuing into Saturday and Sunday.
Week Schedule
Friday: Home vs. Illinois State (6:30pm)
Saturday: Home vs. Illinois State (2:00pm)
Sunday: Home vs. Illinois State (1:00pm)
Probable Pitchers
Friday: Jr. LHP Justin Hill
Saturday: Jr. LHP Ryan Keaffaber
Sunday: Fr RHP Tyler Ward
Keaffaber Earns MVC Pitcher Of The Week
Junior Ryan Keaffaber, a southpaw from Wabash, Ind., tossed his second consecutive compete game of the season for the Sycamore pitching staff on Saturday in the 3-0 shutout win against MVC foe, Southern Illinois. Keaffaber improved himself to 4-2 on the season, throwing his second consecutive complete game win, throwing all nine innings, needing no help, as he gave up only three hits and walked just one Saluki batter. Only four Salukis reached base against Keaffaber, and only one would collect an extra base hit as the southpaw retired three-in-a-row in five different innings. Out of the 107 pitches delivered, the junior hurler was perfect on 75. Keaffaber's complete game shut-out was the first for a Sycamore since the 2013 season when Devin Moore tossed a complete game shut-out against Southern Illinois as well.
Keaffabaer's first complete game was a 7-2 win over in-state rival, Butler, earlier in the season. Keaffaber threw all nine innings, giving up only two runs and two walks, while striking out two.
Ward With The W
Freshman Tyler Ward threw a nearly perfect seven innings in Sunday's 5-1 win over the Salukis. Ward retired 13 batters in a row during the middle part of the game, giving up only four hits and one walk on the day. Ward improved himself to 4-3 on the season with his second consecutive win on the mound. With this win, Indiana State moved nine games ahead of .500 for the first time this season.
In The Ranks
The Sycamores currently rank second in the MVC after opening weekend of MVC play. The Sycamore defense remains top in the conference, fielding at .979, including 24 double plays. Indiana State's pitching staff has also claimed the top spot in the Valley with a 3.41 overal ERA, while tallying 224 overall striekouts. Junior Hunter Owen and senior Kaden Moore currently rank in the top ten of the conference with .357 and .360 batting averages.
The Missouri Valley Conference-best Sycamore defense ranks 10th in the nation with the .979 fielding percentage.
Junior Ryan Keafaber currently ranks 14th in the nation for complete games thrown with two, throughout 50.2 innings pitched this season.
Hunter Owen ranks in the top 50 of the double category, with 12, while Kaden Moore also ranks top 50 in hit by pitches per game. The pair of Sycamores are also tied at 63rd in the nation for RBIs with 33.
Andy Young and Kaden Moore rank in the top 25 for overall hit by pitches with 10 each. Owen and his 47 hits rank in the top 60 in the country, while both Owen and Young round out the top 100 in runs scored with 33 each.
The Sycamores are 26th in the nation with hit by pitched, as well as top 40 in hits allowed per game.
A Little History
The Sycamores lead the series with the Redbirds, 97-77, dating back to 1948
Scouting The Competition
The Redbirds are currently 8-23 overall and 0-2 in MVC play. The Redbirds hosted Dallas Baptist (20-10, 2-0 MVC) on opening weekend of MVC play, dropping the first two games before a Sunday rainout.
Impact players:
Owen Miller - .301 batting average, 40 hits, 13 doubles, four home runs, 26 RBIs, .489 slugging percentage.
Pitching:
Steve Heilenbach - 2.65 ERA, 3-1, 51.0 innings pitched, 44 hits, 16 runs, 14 walks, 27 strikeouts.
David Meade - 4.43 ERA, 2-2, 40.2 innings pitched, 40 hits, 24 runs, 12 walks, 40 strikeouts.
Jacob Hendren - 7.99 ERA, 1-7, 41.2 innings pitched, 62 hits, 41 runs, 16 walks 32 strikeouts.
Be sure to head out to Bob Warn Field for the weekend series against Illinois State, starting Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET. Friday is Little League Night where any child wearing their little league jersey can receive free admission, and anyone accompanying can receive $4.00 admission. Saturday will be Family Day where purchasing two tickets will get you two additional tickets at no cost. On Sunday, any youth eight grade and under are invited to run the bases at Bob Warn Field. For additional information about Sycamore Baseball, follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
