TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State baseball will look to begin another winning streak this weekend as the team opens a three-game series with Austin Peay starting Friday in Clarksville. All games can be seen on the OVC Digital Network.
Series Schedule
Friday - 4 p.m. ET - OVC Digital Network
Saturday - 2 p.m. ET - OVC Digital Network
Sunday - 2 p.m. ET - OVC Digital Network
NEWCOMERS MAKING AN IMPACT
Indiana State newcomers have made an immediate impact so far for the club on the offensive side of the ball.
Luke Fegen has started two game for the Trees but has seen action in all eight contests with 13 at bats and six hits for a team high .462 batting average.
Roberto Enriquez has manned right field in eight starts for the Trees, coming in with a .367 batting average and nine RBIs. Enriquez has 11 hits, including a triple and a home run.
Jarrod Watkins has started every game at second base to go along with a .343 average at the plate. Watkins drove in the tying runs against Belmont with a two-RBI triple in the ninth.
Romero Harris has been the boom in the lineup with four home runs through eight games. Harris is slugging .786 and has a .321 batting average while driving in 12 runs.
SEE THE BALL - BE THE BALL
Seven games into the 2018 campaign, Indiana State has shown the ability to be aggressive as well as the patience to sit back and wait at the plate. The Sycamores rank in the top-50 nationally in home runs (25), batting average (45), slugging percentage (49), on-base percentage (24) and base on balls (11). ISU drew 14 walks in back-to-back games to start the weekend, capitalizing on those walks for 38 runs in the contests.
Dane Giesler ranks third in the nation in walks this season with 11 in eight games. The redshirt senior drew three at Middle Tennessee.
LARRISON NAMED MVC PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Indiana State hurler
Ethan Larrison dominated out of the Sycamore bullpen over the last week as the Trees went 4-0 and improved to 5-2 on the season. Larrison carried a 1.12 ERA over eight innings, striking out nine batters and holding opponents to a .167 average against during the stretch. The right-hander from Shelbyville, Indiana pitched the final three innings in ISU's 4-2 win over UNLV Monday before picking up a relief appearance win at Belmont Sunday. Larrison went three innings and allowed only two hits and one run while striking out five UNLV batters en route to the three-inning save. Larrison went on to toss five innings at Belmont, allowing just two hits to the Bruins while striking out four for his first win of the season.
QUALITY STARTS
Triston Polley improved to 2-0 on the season Saturday after pitching a gem as the Sycamores defeated Middle Tennessee. The southpaw tossed a season high 6.1 innings while striking out seven batters while allowing just two runs. It marked the second game this season that Polley has went at least six innings and struck out five batters. In two starts, Polley has allowed just two earned runs for a 1.46 ERA.
Tristan Weaver (1-0) picked up his first win of the season with a five inning start at Lipscomb, allowing just four hits and two earned runs. In total, the southpaw struck out three batters he faced.
Right-hander
Tyler Ward set a new career high with eight strikeouts in just 5.1 innings against No. 12 Vanderbilt.
SYCAMORES AT A GLANCE
After two weekends of action, Indiana State is hitting .284 as a club with 22 extra-base hits, including 12 home runs. The Indiana State pitching staff has put together a 4.11 ERA and has struck out 60 batters in 72.1 innings.
GET ON BASE
Three Sycamores have reached base in every game (8) this season, including newcomer
Jarrod Watkins.
Clay Dungan, and
Dane Giesler have also reached each game.
HITTING STREAK
Jarrod Watkins holds the teams longest hitting streak at eight. Watkins has 12 hits, including a double and a triple for a .343 average.
FAST STARTS
Indiana State has dominated the first two innings this season, outscoring opponents 18-6. The Sycamores have outscored the opponent in every inning so far this season including a 12-3 advantage in the ninth.
GET ON AND SCORE
Though
Luke Fegen has only started two game for the Sycamores, the junior has been one of the top run-scorers for the Trees. Fegen has six hits in 13 at bats for a .462 average. He has reached base eight times (6 H, HBP, BB) and has scored five runs for the Sycamores.
PRESEASON ALL-MVC
Redshirt senior
Dane Giesler was tabbed Preseason All-MVC following a breakout season a year ago. The Jasper, Indiana native led the way for the Trees in several offensive categories. He finished with a team high 17 home runs which was fourth-best in the conference. Giesler was also fifth in the league with a .593 slugging percentage and seventh in RBIs with 49.
WHAT RETURNS FOR THE TREES
Indiana State returns six position starters and three key pitchers from last season's 29-26 team. Infielder
Clay Dungan returns for ISU after starting in 55 games last season hitting .275 with 60 base hits and nine home runs. The Sycamores will also welcome back
Dane Tofteland and
Chris Ayers to the batting order. The duo combined for 57 base hits and 45 runs a year ago.
Indiana State will look to fill a void in the starting rotation this season after its top arm was taken in the 11th round of the MLB Draft. Junior RHP
Tyler Ward will look to fill the spot after a solid year on the mound. Ward finished at 4-5 with a 4.16 ERA in 84.1 innings.
Two bullpen arms in right-hander
Ethan Larrison and southpaw
Triston Polley return for the Sycamores this season as well. Larrison appeared in 19 games last season and struck out 32 batters while walking only 13. Polley struck out 35 batters and walked 14 in 26.2 innings.
SYCAMORES PICKED THIRD IN PRESEASON POLL
Indiana State was picked to finish third in the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll. Dallas Baptist tallied 63 points and were named the favorites over second-place pick Missouri State (57). The Sycamores collected 42 votes overall followed by Southern Illinois (35), Illinois State (31), Bradley (30), Evansville (18) and MVC newcomer Valparaiso (12).
For the latest information on the Sycamore Baseball team, be sure to visit
GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media on
Facebook,
Twitter and
Instagram.
