TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State returns to the road this weekend as the Sycamores make the trek to the Windy City for a three-game Missouri Valley Conference series against UIC. The series will run from March 28-30 at Curtis Granderson Field with all three games set to be carried live on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
 
There are potential weather concerns in Chicago, Ill. for the weekend series. All updates on game times and dates can be found on GoSycamores.com as announced.
 
The Sycamores (11-13, 2-1) enter the weekend series after taking two of three this past weekend at Bob Warn Field against Valparaiso. Indiana State taking the series against the Beacons marked their 20th consecutive series MVC win dating back to the end of the 2022 season, continuing the longest streak in the Valley over the last few seasons.
 
Indiana State's series win over the Beacons wrapped up a 4-3 mark at Bob Warn Field over the last two weeks as the Sycamores were in Terre Haute for one of their longest stretches of the 2025 season. Included in the home stretch marked series wins over Pacific and Valparaiso, while falling in the midweek contest to Indiana.
 
The Sycamores fell in the first game of the weekend series against Valparaiso as Indiana State was unable to get the offense going against Valpo starter Connor Lockwood. Indiana State bounced back in Saturday's first game by utilizing Keegan Garis' home run and Jorge Cartagena's RBI double to left in support of strong pitching from Ty Brooks and Gavin Morris to even the series with the 2-1 win. Indiana State's offense exploded in the series finale as Carter Beck and Mason Roell both homered in the 10-5 series clinching win.
 
Jackson Taylor (.400) and Carlos Pena (.364) were among the team's hitting leaders over the weekend series as the duo combined for eight of Indiana State's 21 hits and added three doubles. Beck drove in a team-high four RBIs, while Eli Gipson added three RBIs of his own in the series win.
 
Breyllin Suriel (S, 1) and Gavin Morris (1-0) both made multiple appearances on the mound with Morris shutting down the Beacons in Saturday's first game in picking up the win, while Suriel closed out game two for his first save of the season. Overall, the Sycamore pitching staff posted a 4.33 ERA with a 25:9 strikeout-to-walk ratio over the three-game series.
 
Pena continues to lead Indiana State's offense over the course of the 2025 season as the senior has posted a .345 batting average with a team-high 13 extra-base hits, including eight doubles, a triple, and four home runs. Taylor (.304) saw his average rise above the .300 mark for the first time of the 2025 season and has connected on four doubles over the last two weeks, while Keegan Garis (.295) and Carter Beck (.277) are among the team's home run leaders on the year with six and seven respectively.
 
The Sycamores' weekend rotation has been in flux as several athletes are battling early season injuries. Max McEwen (2-2, 4.00 ERA) has taken one of the three starting slots early in the season, while Ty Brooks (1-2, 5.84 ERA) has started a team-leading six games on the mound. Breyllin Suriel (0-2, 7.41 ERA), Colby Morse (2-1, 5.82 ERA), and Jacob Spencer (0-1, 9.69 ERA) also boast multiple starts over the course of the 2025 season.
 
Indiana State has seen strong pitching out of the bullpen as of late with Gavin Morris (3-2, 5.40 ERA) and Jack Armstrong (1-0, 3.46 ERA) among the first arms to the mound. Zac Laird (0-0, 4.50 ERA), Aaron Moss (1-0, 4.91 ERA), and Carson Seeman (0-0, 6.60 ERA) have also garnered multiple appearances on the bump over the last few weeks. Indiana State has posted a 5.83 team ERA over the season with a 155:103 strikeout-to-walk ratio while allowing opponents to hit .268 from the plate.
 
Scouting UIC
UIC entered the week with a 4-18 mark prior to their their Wednesday night contest at Northern Illinois. The Flames fell to 1-2 in Missouri Valley play in the conference opener this past weekend in Carbondale, Ill. UIC took the opening game, 17-6, before falling in extra-innings in both games of Saturday's doubleheader by scores of 5-4 and 10-9 at Itchy Jones Stadium.
 
UIC was selected seventh overall in the Missouri Valley Conference's preseason baseball poll announced prior to the start of conference play. The Flames received 46 total points in the poll as voted on by the league's head coaches. Reliever Reece Lawler was UIC's lone representative on the MVC Preseason Baseball All-Conference team.
 
Luke Nowak (.361) and James Harris (.340) are among the team's hitting leaders early in the season pacing a UIC offense hitting .259 overall from the plate. Jackson Bessette returns to the lineup as one of the top catchers in the conference and leads the Flames with six home runs and 20 RBIs, while hitting .254 from the plate.
 
Dillon Schueler (1-5, 8.58 ERA) has started in all six weekend series, while George Eisenhardt (0-3, 14.73), Kendall Lyons (0-1, 13.00 ERA), Tommy Egan (0-1, 2.89 ERA) have all posted multiple starts on the season. The Flames have posted a team 8.50 ERA over 175.2 innings with a 115:101 strikeout-to-walk ratio. UIC has allowed opponents to hit .298 from the plate on the year.
 
Series History
Indiana State is 8-2 all-time against the Flames dating back to the first contest between the two squads with the Sycamores winning the last seven games in the series. The winning streak includes sweeping the series in Terre Haute last season, while also eliminating the Flames from the MVC Baseball Championships last year, 5-3.
 
Grant Magill (.467) and Mike Sears (four HRs) were the offensive leaders for the Sycamores last season against UIC as Indiana State hit .322 from the plate as a team against the Flames. Luke Hayden (2-0, 0.71 ERA) paced the Sycamores on the mound over two starts with 17 strikeouts over 12.2 innings to highlight a Sycamore pitching staff that posted a 4.26 ERA allowing UIC to hit just .207 from the plate over the four games.
 
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.