TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State begins its final home stand of the 2024 season this weekend as the Sycamores return to Missouri Valley Conference play to host Belmont with a three-game series running May 3-5 at Bob Warn Field.
 
Game times for the weekend include a 6:30 p.m. ET first pitch on Friday, while Saturday's contest will begin at 2 p.m. Sunday's series finale is slated for a 1 p.m. start time. All three games will be carried live on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
 
Indiana State Baseball Weekend Promotions

• May 3 – Postgame Fireworks Show (sponsored by Country Financial), Trading card giveaway, set 4 of 5, sponsored by Refreshment Services Pepsi for the First 100 Fans, Forest T-Shirt Giveaway to members of the ISU Forest
• May 4 – Star Wars Day/Lightsaber Keychain Giveaway, Kids Run the Bases Postgame, State Dance Marathon/Riley Member Throws Out First Pitch
• May 5 – Kids Club Carnival (starts at noon) with an appearance by Sycamore Sam

The Sycamores (31-10, 14-4) head into the weekend series looking to keep a 16-series conference winning streak alive dating back to the 2022 season after taking two of three this past weekend in Carbondale, Ill. against Southern Illinois. The Sycamores have posted a 40-7-1 overall record in Valley competition over the stretch and hold a two-game lead in the conference standings heading into the final month of the regular season.
 
ISU currently leads Evansville (12-6) and UIC (11-7) atop the Valley standings with three weeks to play in conference competition. Murray State (9-9), Southern Illinois (9-9), Belmont (9-9), and Illinois State (9-9) all sit tied for fourth, while Missouri State (7-11) currently holds the final spot in the tournament field if the regular season ended today.
 
The Sycamores built their conference lead following their wins this past weekend at Southern Illinois. Indiana State fell in the series opener against the Salukis dropping a 3-2 contest on Friday night, before rebounding back with a 9-7 win on Saturday and 7-2 win on Sunday afternoon.
 
The Sycamores hit .232 as a team over the series against the Salukis paced by Luis Hernandez (.462) and Randal Diaz (.357), while Grant Magill (.333) and Parker Stinson (.333) were also among the team leaders. Indiana State outscored the Salukis 18-12 over the three games with Magill homering twice. The Sycamores connected on 23 hits with eight extra-base hits over the series.
 
The ISU pitching staff bounced back from a Friday night loss as Brennyn Cutts and Luke Hayden led a unit that posted a 3.81 ERA over 26.0 innings. The Sycamores posted an 18:12 strikeout-to-walk ratio while limiting the Salukis to just a .257 batting average.
 
Indiana State looks to bounce back from a midweek defeat this past Tuesday in Champaign as the Sycamores fell to the host Illini at Illinois Stadium, 21-11. Parker Stinson homered twice and drove in seven RBIs, while Luis Hernandez connected on a pair of RBI doubles in the evening contest as Indiana State fell to 5-2 against the Big Ten in the 2024 season.
 
Indiana State was ranked in all five major NCAA Division I polls for the second time in the 2024 season this week as the Sycamores were recognized in the D1Baseball (No. 24), Baseball America (No. 24), Perfect Game (No. 14), NCBWA (No. 20) and USA Today (No. 22) polls.
 
The Sycamores enter the weekend sitting just outside the top-10 in the NCAA Rating Percentage Index (RPI) standings sitting at No. 11 overall. ISU boasting the No. 25 non-conference strength of schedule and No. 62 overall strength of schedule through 41 games. The Sycamores boast an 20-9 record in road or neutral site games with their 20 wins away from Terre Haute the most in the NCAA Division I through April 29.
 
Luis Hernandez (.374), Dominic Listi (.360), Randal Diaz (.329), and Parker Stinson (.310) lead an Indiana State offense that his connecting at a .288 clip from the plate in the 2024 season. Grant Magill (.279), and Adam Pottinger (.276) have also approached the .300 mark on the year and continue to sit among the everyday leaders on the team.
 
Mike Sears (15) paces four different Sycamores to hit double-digit home runs in the 2024 season marking the first time ISU has accomplished the feat since the 1987 season. Parker Stinson (13), Luis Hernandez (12), and Randal Diaz (10) have also hit the mark on the year making the Sycamores one of two teams in the MVC to have four players hit the mark on the year.
 
The Sycamore pitching staff continues to pace the Valley and sit among the nation's best with a 4.50 ERA over 354.0 innings pitched on the year. The Indiana State staff has had sixteen different pitchers combine to post a 411:178 strikeout-to-walk ratio while limiting opponents to a .242 batting average on the year.
 
The numbers have been even more impressive in Missouri Valley play this season with the Sycamores hitting .298 as a team sitting second in team home runs (33), second in RBIs (129), and first in runs scored (135). Magill (.382) has been the team's hitting leader in conference play, while Hernandez paces the team with 28 hits, while leading the Valley with 29 RBIs.
 
The ISU pitching staff has post together a 3.22 team ERA in conference competition over 159.1 innings pitched. The Sycamores have posted a 187:87 strikeout-to-walk ratio, while allowing opponents to hit just .208 from the plate. Cam Edmonson (0.96 ERA), Brennyn Cutts (1.35 ERA), Luke Hayden (2.91 ERA), and Jared Spencer (2.95 ERA) are all among the top-10 in Valley play this season in ERA.
 
The Sycamore defense has also put together another strong campaign in conference play leading the Valley with a .986 fielding percentage over 18 games.
 
Scouting the Belmont Bruins
Belmont has posted a 22-22 overall record heading into the weekend with a 9-9 mark in Missouri Valley play through the first six weekends of conference play. The Bruins are coming off a series win against Bradley taking two of the three contests against the Braves at E.S. Rose Park with Belmont securing the series with a 6-5 walk-off win in the 10th inning.
 
Belmont currently sits in a four-way tie for fourth overall in the conference standings with their Valley schedule highlighted by a road sweep at Murray State and series wins at Valparaiso and against Bradley, while falling in series against Evansville, UIC, and Southern Illinois. The Bruins claimed their third series win on Sunday afternoon as Brodey Heaton connected on a walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the 10th inning to secure the series clinching victory over Bradley.
 
The Bruins were selected sixth overall in the Missouri Valley Baseball preseason poll receiving 40 total points in the poll after a 27-33 mark in the 2023 season including a 10-17 record in conference competition. Belmont returned all of their starting lineup and 92% of their at-bats from last year featuring seven seniors, led by first baseman Brodey Heaton, Mason Landers, and Sam Slaughter. The pitching staff saw 85% of their inning and strikeout totals return this season headlined by key starters Dominic Baratta, Jordan Zuger, Joe Ruzicka, and Will Pryor, as well as relievers Ethan Harden and Jett Thielke.
 
Landers leads four Bruins hitting .300 or higher on the 2024 season with a .356 batting average to go with a team-high 63 hits, 17 home runs, and 50 RBIs. Slaughter is hitting .331 from the plate with 53 hits and a team-high 15 stolen bases, while Jack Rando (.322) and Heaton (.311) are also among the team's hitting leaders. Heaton is the second Bruin with double-digit home runs with 11 and leads Belmont with 11 doubles.
 
Blake Cuiffetelli (2-3, 6.32 ERA), Barratta (3-4, 7.10 ERA), and Joe Ruzicka (3-4, 5.33 ERA) are in the expected rotation for the weekend with the trio combining for 23 starts overall on the season. Zuger has made 22 appearances out of the bullpen for Belmont as the staff has combined for a 5.99 ERA over 386.1 innings on the mound.
 
Series History
Indiana State is 6-0 all-time against Belmont dating back to the series opener back in the 2014 season. The teams met twice in nonconference competition before the Bruins joined the Missouri Valley in the 2023 season.
 
Last year, Indiana State completed a three-game sweep at Belmont in the 2023 season, and then topped the Bruins a fourth time in the Missouri Valley Championships held at Bob Warn Field. The Sycamores outscored the Bruins 27-6 over the four games and posted a team .306 batting average with 16 extra-base hits.
 
Josue Urdaneta (.412) and Mike Sears (.400) combined for 13 hits, three doubles, and six RBIs over 2 at-bats in the series as the duo consistently got on base in the series against the Bruins. Randal Diaz (.333) and Keegan Watson (.333) were also among the team's hitting leaders over the series while Adam Pottinger and Parker Stinson both homered.
 
The Indiana State pitching staff combined to post a 1.03 ERA over the 35.0 innings on the mound. The Sycamores posted a 35:9 strikeout-to-walk ratio, while allowing Belmont to hit just .217 from the plate. Connor Fenlong picked up two wins in the series including a complete-game shutout at the MVC Championships. Jared Spencer (0.00) posted a pair of saves out of the bullpen.
 
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