In last weekend's series with Western Michigan University, the Ball State University baseball team made a point to distance itself from the preseason favorites.
The Cardinals (20-19) won the series and dropped the Broncos to the bottom of the Mid-American Conference West Division. This weekend they will have another chance to put a team's postseason hopes in jeopardy.
Eastern Michigan University (15-29) plays host to a three-game series with Ball State beginning at 6:05 p.m. today. The Eagles are fourth in the division, one game behind Central Michigan University for the final automatic spot in the MAC Tournament and a game behind the University of Akron for the last wild card position. Ball State is in second place in the MAC West, one game ahead of Central Michigan and two behind divison-leading University of Toledo.
With nine conference games to play, Eastern Michigan is heating up at the right time. The Eagles are 7-3 in their last 10 games and have won their last two MAC series.
Ball State has won five of its last seven games, including beating IPFW on Wednesday. Ball State is looking to build on the momentum from its 10-3 victory against IPFW.
"It's real important to get the momentum for the weekend," senior second baseman Nate Fields said. "It's more of a momentum boost going into the weekend."
The Eagles historically have been very good at Oestrike Stadium, holding a 446-300-2 record in 38 years of play. This year's team isn't quite as good as it is 6-7 at home.
To stop Eastern Michigan on its home field, Ball State will have to contend with senior center fielder Kyle Rhoad, who has stolen 24 bases in 25 attempts. Rhoad also leads his team with a .361 batting average. He is third in the conference in stolen bases behind Ball State's Fields and junior center fielder Jeremy Hazelbaker.
Hazelbaker missed Ball State's game against IPFW after being hit in the knee Tuesday during a loss to Purdue University. Beals said he expects Hazelbaker to be ready to play this weekend.
Ball State's bats will face a pair of young starting pitchers to start the weekend. Eastern Michigan will start sophomore Corey Chaffins on Friday and freshman Jordan Glover on Saturday. Neither has been very successful this year and Chaffins was the last of the pair to win, beating Ohio University on April 10.
The Cardinals will look to continue their success against the reigning-MAC champions. Last season Ball State took two games in its series at Ball Diamond, but Eastern Michigan was able to recover to win the MAC Tournament.
The series begins a seven-game road trip for Ball State. It will finish the regular season at home with a three-game series against Toledo, starting May 14.
Ball State at Eastern MichiganGame No. 40First pitch: 6:05 p.m.Oestrike StadiumPitching matchup: RHP Brad Piatt (4-1, 4.21 ERA) vs. RHP Corey Chaffins (2-3, 7.63)Weather: 62 degrees, mostly cloudy, WNW 15 mph
Ball State at Eastern MichiganGame No. 41First pitch: 3:05 p.m.Oestrike StadiumPitching matchup: RHP Brenden Stines (2-4, 5.52) vs. RHP Jordan Glover (2-3, 6.34)Weather: 61 degrees, cloudy, southwest 11 mph
Ball State at Eastern MichiganGame No. 42First pitch: 1:05 p.m.Oestrike StadiumPitching matchup: RHP Kolbrin Vitek (3-2, 4.91) vs. TBAWeather: 63 degrees, mostly cloudy, southwest five mph
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