TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State is back on the road this week as the Sycamores make the short trip to Bloomington, Ind. for a midweek contest at Indiana University on March 21.
 
The Tuesday night contest at Bart Kaufman Field is set for 5 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed live on B1G+ with live stats provided on IUHoosiers.com.
 
The Sycamores return to the road once again after making their home debut this past Sunday with a doubleheader against Michigan State. ISU connected on four home runs over the two-game set with the Spartans, but MSU jumped ahead early in both contests to take the 8-2 and 10-7 wins.
 
Parker Stinson, Keegan Watson, Adam Pottinger, and Miguel Rivera all homered for the Sycamores in the pair of losses, while Jared Spencer set a new career-high with seven strikeouts in a relief outing to highlight ISU's efforts on Sunday.
 
Over the last week the Sycamores were paced by Watson's resurgence at the plate. The redshirt senior came through in the clutch in ISU's midweek extra-inning win at Illinois and hit safely in all three games. He opened with a pinch-hit three-run double down the right field line that gave ISU the 7-3 lead in the Sycamores' first win at Illinois since 2007. He finished the week with a team-high .500 batting and a team-high five RBI.
 
Spencer also highlighted the week after recording 12 strikeouts over 5.2 innings of work in multi-inning relief appearances against Illinois and Michigan State. The sophomore left-hander retired the final eight batters in his second win of the season against the Fighting Illini. He posted a stretch of five consecutive strikeouts to shut down the Illinois offense and kept it going on Sunday against Michigan State. Spencer went the final three innings in the doubleheader posting seven strikeouts on his way to boasting a 19.06 K/9 inning mark and a 6.0 K:BB ratio over the week.
 
Luis Hernandez continues to be Indiana State's leader at the plate with a .290 batting average on the season. The sophomore boasts team-highs in hits (20), runs scored (13), and doubles (5), while adding eight RBI with 17 starts at first base, designated hitter, and right field. Seth Gergely already boasts an MVC Player of the Week selection on the season and is hitting .286 with a team-high six stolen bases. Mike Sears continues to lead ISU with four home runs and 15 RBI.
 
Fifteen different Indiana State pitchers have seen time on the mound this year with the Sycamores boasting a team 5.68 ERA and a 172:82 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Zach Davidson and Jared Spencer pace ISU with two wins apiece with Spencer (14.1), Davidson (13.0), Brennyn Cutts (12.0), and Jacob Pruitt (11.0) joining Connor Fenlong (28.1) and Matt Jachec (26.0) with double-digit innings pitched. Cameron Holycross (0.82 ERA) and Luke Patzner (1.35 ERA) are ISU's ERA leaders on the year.
 
The Sycamores continue to be elite defensively. Indiana State entered the week third in the NCAA and first in the MVC in fielding percentage. The Sycamores are fielding at a .988 clip on the season with six players posting perfect 1.000 percentages with at least 20 chances.
 
Scouting the Opposition
Indiana Hoosiers
Indiana enters the midweek matchup with a 13-7 overall record on the year following their weekend home sweep against Morehead State. The Hoosiers have won eight of their last nine dating back to March 8 against Purdue Fort Wayne with their lone loss during the stretch coming on the road at Kentucky (12-2) on March 14. The Hoosiers boast a perfect 10-0 mark at Bart Kaufman Field this season.
 
Phillip Glasser (.434) leads an Indiana offense that is hitting .290 from the plate in the 2023 season. The senior infielder leads the Hoosiers with 21 runs, eight doubles, and 20 RBI, while adding 10 stolen bases. Tyler Cerny (.350) and Hunter Jessee (.313) are also among the team's hitting leaders on the season with Jessee and Devin Taylor boasting a team-leading three home runs on the year.
 
The Indiana pitching staff has posted a 4.60 ERA on the year with 19 different pitchers making appearances so far in 2023. Evan Whiteaker (1-0, 1.42 ERA), Aydan Decker-Petty (1-0, 1.69 ERA), and Ryan Kraft (1-1, 1.72 ERA) are all among the Hoosiers' top pitchers in the 2023 season with Indiana boasting a 191:80 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
 
Indiana was ranked sixth overall in the Big Ten preseason poll as announced by the conference office in the preseason. Catcher Matthew Ellis, infielder Phillip Glasser, and outfielder Carter Mathison were all honored on the preseason Big Ten All-Conference team. Mathison was a four-time Freshman All-American following his 2022 season that featured a .273 batting average with 19 home runs and 58 RBI.
 
Indiana State and Evansville (May 16) are the lone Missouri Valley school teams on Indiana's schedule in the 2023 season.
 
Indiana State – Indiana History
Indiana leads the all-time series against Indiana State 66-46-1 dating back to the first contest in 1895. The Sycamores and Hoosiers have lined up in Bloomington 46 times with Indiana holding the 27-19 advantage. ISU picked up its last win at Bart Kaufman Field in 2017 with the Sycamores taking the 7-3 win on March 29.
 
Indiana took the lone contest between the two teams last year in Terre Haute on April 12 as the Hoosiers utilized a five-run rally in the top of the ninth inning to win 6-5. The IU-ISU game in Bloomington on March 21 was called due to inclement weather.

Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on the Sycamore Baseball team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.  Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from both the App Store and the Google Play Store.