NORMAL, Ill. – The Redbirds of Illinois State baseball are scheduled to host Murray State in a weekend series at Duffy Bass Field over March 28-30.
SCHEDULE
Friday at 5:00 PM | VIDEO | STATS
Saturday at 3:00 PM | STATS | RADIO
Sunday at 1:00 PM | STATS | RADIO
ABOUT THE RACERS
Murray State enters the weekend at 14-6, including 1-2 in MVC play, and are 5-1 on the road. The Racers were last in action against Evansville last weekend, dropping two of three to open MVC play at home.
The Redbirds and Racers have met 15 times before, dating back to 2003, as Murray State leads the series, 9-6.
In last year's meeting, the Racers secured the series victory with a 15-12 win over the Redbirds at Reagan Field in Murray, Kentucky. The Racers belted six of the 10 total home runs in the series finale.
BARK IN THE PARK
Illinois State is set to host "Bark in the Park" on Saturday at Duffy Bass Field when Murray State visits Normal.
All dogs can be registered online here.
MIDWEEK WARRIORS
For the first time this season, Illinois State saw back-to-back midweeks as the Birds hosted Iowa on March 25 before traveling to face SIUE on March 26.
Against the Hawkeyes, the Redbirds got out to a commanding 10-0 lead thanks to a seven-run fourth inning, capped off by a bases-clearing double from Daniel Contreras.
Senior Carter Monke went 6.0 innings with four strikeouts and one earned run allowed to get the home win.
Against the Cougars, the Redbirds saw five runs cross the plate in the 2nd inning as the Birds secured a 9-3 road win to split the season series with SIUE. Junior Josh Outlaw smacked his first home run as a Redbird, going 2-for-5 at the plate with 3 RBIs.
Junior Ryan Weaver got the start, going 6.2 innings with two earned runs allowed and a career best seven strikeouts for his first win of 2025.
BAKES GOES YARD (x3)
Freshman Brayden Bakes recorded a three-homer, six RBI performance in the series finale on the road at Belmont on March 23.
With his blasts, Bakes becomes the first Redbird to hit three home runs in a game since Ryan Cermak did so at Western Illinois in April 2022.
His six RBIs also marked the first time a Redbird has reached that mark since teammate Judah Morris last May versus Belmont.
PRESEASON MVC HONORS
A year after finishing with their most conference wins since 2013, the Illinois State baseball team was selected to finish fourth in the annual Preseason MVC Coaches' Poll.
The Redbirds also landed three players on the MVC Preseason All-Conference Team, tied for the most of any school in the conference.
Seniors Judah Morris and Kyle Gibson join junior Daniel Pacella on the squad.
ILLINOIS STATE TO HOST MVC TOURNAMENT
The 2025 Missouri Valley Conference Championships will take place from Duffy Bass Field in Normal, Illinois.
The eight-team tournament opens on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, and is scheduled to run through Saturday, May 24, 2025.
This is the first time Illinois State will host the MVC Championships since 2019.
ON DECK
Following the weekend, ISU hits the road for a midweek battle at Illinois on Tuesday. First pitch is set for 6 PM in Champaign.
For the latest updates on Illinois State Baseball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com, follow the Redbirds on X (@RedbirdBaseball) and Instagram (isuredbirdbaseball), and like the team on Facebook (Illinois State Baseball).
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
