NASHVILLE -- No. 23 ranked Indiana State will open the 2019 NCAA Tournament Friday at 1 p.m. ET/12 noon CT at Hawkins Field in Nashville. The No. 2 seeded Sycamores will begin regional play against No. 3 McNeese before advancing to Saturday where ISU will face either No. 2 overall seed and host Vanderbilt or Ohio State.
Fans can watch Friday's action on ESPN3 with Dave Neal and Todd Walker calling the action. Sycamore fans can also hear the radio call on Friday on
GoSycamores.com or 1440 AM with
Luke Martin and
Brian Fritz on the call. The remaining games in the regional will air on 97.9 FM/1230 AM/1440 AM in the Wabash Valley and on
GoSycamores.com around the world.
On Friday, May 31 from 10-11:30 a.m. prior to the Sycamores' NCAA Tournament opener, Sycamore Athletics and the ISU Alumni Association will hold a Sycamore Tailgate Event. The Sycamore Tailgate Event will be located between the Nashville Marriott and the Vanderbilt Football Stadium. Parking is available in the Kensington Garage. A
PDF map is available here. Registration for the event is free and available
online.
LOOKING AT INDIANA STATE
The Sycamores come into postseason play at 41-16 after a third-place finish (13-8) in the MVC. ISU is hitting .267 as a squad. Second baseman
Jarrod Watkins (.312, 12 2B, 2 HR, 32 RBI, .404 SLG) and shortstop
Clay Dungan (.298, 10 2B, 9 HR, 34 RBI, .489 SLG) lead the team while four other Sycamores are hitting above .270 on the year. Indiana State boasts the 20th-best team ERA in collegiate baseball and second-best in the MVC at 3.60. ISU's .978 fielding percentage ranks 25th nationally and tops in the MVC.
2019 MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE POSTSEASON HONORS
Right-hander
Collin Liberatore was named the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year while third baseman
Jake Means was tabbed Defensive Player of the Year. Indiana State's three selections for First-Team All-MVC honors were second baseman
Jarrod Watkins, starting pitcher
Collin Liberatore and reliever
Tyler Grauer. ISU placed two players on the Valley's Second Team, with outfielder
Roby Enriquez and reliever
Tyler Ward. Senior starting pitcher
Triston Polley and
Jake Means picked up honorable mention recognition, while Means, Enriquez and Polley also took home an MVC All-Defensive Team honor as well.
TOP THREE FOR FOUR YEARS
With Indiana State's victory over Bradley to the regular season, the Sycamores cemented a top-3 finish in the Missouri Valley Conference standings in 2019 and each of the last four seasons. It marks just the second time in program history that the Sycamores have finished top-3 over a four-year span dating back to 1982-85.
TO THE NCAA POSTSEASON
Indiana State enters NCAA Postseason play for the 10th time in program history and the first time since 2014 as the No. 2 seed in the Nashville Regional hosted by No. 2 overall seed Vanderbilt. The Sycamores are 8-18 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with the last win coming in 1995 against Penn. The Sycamores advanced to the College World Series in 1986 after sweeping the Mideast Regional in Ann Arbor, defeating Michigan and Central Michigan.
IN THE POLLS
The Sycamores entered the national ranking in three different polls this week, coming in at No. 23 in both D1Baseball.com and Perfect Game while sitting at No. 25 in the Baseball America poll. The last time the Sycamores were nationally ranked was at the conclusion of the 1989 season when ranked 22nd by Collegiate Baseball. ISU was also ranked in 1986 during the CWS run (7th by Collegiate Baseball and 15th by Baseball America). The Sycamores were also ranked during the 1979 (18th), 1983 (30th) and 1984 (30th) seasons.
PITCHING STRONG FOR THE SYCAMORES
The Indiana State pitching staff has been outstanding this season, combining for a 3.60 team ERA which is 20th-best nationally. As a team, ISU also ranks 9th nationally with a 1.22 WHIP, 23rd in hits per nine innings (7.78) and 10th with six shutouts. ISU pitching has combined to hit just 21 batters which is third-fewest in the country.
Complete Game Notes…
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.
