NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State baseball program is set to head to Evansville, Ind., for a Tuesday afternoon challenge with Southern Indiana at USI Baseball Field. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. and will be available to watch on ESPN+.
The mid-week matchup with the Screaming Eagles marks the first contest between the two programs since 1977. Southern Indiana leads the all-time series with one victory.
The Redbirds travel to the Hoosier State after capturing a 14-7 win in the final contest of a three-game series with Middle Tennessee State. In the victory, Illinois State used an eight-run first inning to move past the Blue Raiders. The run total in the opening frame is the most in the first inning since the Redbirds secured an 18-11 victory over Apr. 19, 2023.
Redshirt Sophomore Brayden Bakes headlined the Illinois State offense in the series with a pair of home runs and a three-hit performance in the final contest of the three-game set. Bakes has homered in three of the last four games for Illinois State and is tied with Junior Graham Mastros for the league lead with four home runs this season.
Southern Indiana enters Tuesday's meeting with the Redbirds after capturing two wins in a three-game series with North Alabama to improve to 8-4 to open 2026. The Screaming Eagles are led by second-year head coach Chris Ramirez.
For the latest updates on Illinois State Baseball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com, follow the Redbirds on X (formerly Twitter) (@RedbirdBaseball), and Instagram (isuredbirdbaseball), and like the team on Facebook (Illinois State Baseball).
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