Eastern Illinois (9-19, 4-5 OVC) vs. SIUE (12-21, 5-4 OVC)
April 12-14 | Charleston, Ill.
Game 1 – Friday, 3 p.m. |
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Game 2 - Saturday, 1 p.m. |
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Game 3 – Sunday, 1 p.m. |
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ON TAP: After a midweek loss to NIU on Tuesday, the Eastern Illinois baseball team will resume conference play this weekend as they welcome SIUE to Coaches Stadium for a three-game series. Game one is set for 3 p.m. on Friday.
SERIES HISTORY: EIU trails SIUE 41-46 in their all-time head-to-head series. They first met in 1972 and have played yearly (except 2020) since the Cougars joined the OVC in 2009. SIUE swept Eastern in Edwardsville last season.
SCOUTING THE COUGARS:
- SIUE enters this weekend with a 12-21 record, including a 5-4 mark in OVC play. They won two out of three against UT Martin last weekend before knocking off Missouri 5-4 earlier this week.
- As a team, the Cougars are batting .277 with an ERA of 8.28.
- The offense is led by junior Lucas Spence, who leads the OVC in hits with 52. His .403 batting average is third best in the conference.
- SIUE is led by eighth year head coach Sean Lyons, who has a 143-209 record with the Cougars. Lyons is an EIU alum and played for the Panthers from 1996-1999.
LAST TIME OUT: Eastern came up just a little short against Northern Illinois on Tuesday afternoon. The Panthers scored six runs in the ninth inning but were unable to complete the rally as they fell by a score of 14-12.
Cole Gober homered twice as part of a 3-6, four RBI outing, while
Lucas Loos extended his on base streak to 23 games after going 3-5 with a home run and three RBI.
OVC STANDINGS: The Panthers are currently one of five teams with a 4-5 record in OVC play. Tennessee Tech, Little Rock, and Southeast Missouri are atop the league with 6-3 records.
QUICK HITTERS:
- Dylan Drumke is second in the OVC in slugging percentage (.718) and sixth in OPS (1.188). His nine home runs are fourth most in the conference, and he is tied fourth in RBI with 32. He has reached base in 20 consecutive games.
- Lucas Loos' .365 batting average is sixth best in the OVC, and he is tied for second in doubles with 12. He is second in Slugging percentage (.731) and third in OPS (1.186). He has reached base in 23 consecutive games.
- Tyler Castro's .354 batting average is eighth best in the OVC.
- Jonathon Hanscom continues to assert himself as one of the top arms in the OVC. He is top five in the conference in multiple categories, including ERA (3.77), opposing batting average (.235), hits allowed (27), and earned runs allowed (12).
- In his last two starts, Colton Coca has an ERA of 3.60 with 12 strikeouts in 10.0 innings of work. He picked up his first win of the season against WIU last Friday.
CATEGORY LEADERS:
Hits:
Lucas Loos (39),
Cole Gober (37),
Dylan Drumke/
Michael O'Conor (29)
Multi-Hit Games:
Lucas Loos (11),
Cole Gober (11),
Dylan Drumke (10)
Home Runs:
Dylan Drumke (9),
Lucas Loos (8),
Cole Gober (7)
RBI:
Dylan Drumke (32),
Lucas Loos (25),
Michael O'Conor (19)
Strikeouts:
Colton Coca (30),
Bryce Riggs (30),
Jonathon Hanscom (29)
ON DECK: The Panthers will complete their home stand with a pair of non-conference games next week. They will face Bradley on Tuesday before tussling with St. Xavier on Wednesday. Both games are scheduled for 3 p.m.
