McLean County Times

Illinois State University's baseball team is set to host Iowa on Tuesday at Duffy Bass Field before traveling to Edwardsville for a matchup against SIUE on Wednesday. The Redbirds, fresh from their first Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) series win of the season, are preparing for a busy week with five games scheduled.

The game against Iowa will begin at 5:00 p.m. CT and will be available on ESPN+, with stats and radio coverage also provided. The following day, Illinois State will face SIUE at 4:00 p.m. CT, also broadcasted on ESPN+.

Iowa's team has shown strong performance this season with a record of 14-8, having won their last six games. They recently swept Ohio State in a three-game series. Historically, Illinois State leads the series against Iowa with 14 wins out of 24 meetings since their first encounter in 1975.

SIUE currently holds a record of 10-12 this season and has been successful in their recent games as well, sweeping Morehead State in their opening weekend of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). In past encounters between Illinois State and SIUE, the Redbirds have won 22 out of 34 games since they first met in 1970.

In recent performances, freshman Brayden Bakes made headlines by hitting three home runs and securing six RBIs during a game against Belmont. This achievement marks him as the first Redbird to hit three home runs in one game since Ryan Cermak did so in April 2022.

Illinois State secured its first MVC series win by defeating Belmont twice last weekend. Nine players contributed hits during these games, including standout performances from Bakes and junior Daniel Pacella.

Looking ahead, Illinois State is gearing up to host the MVC Championships at Duffy Bass Field from May 20-24, marking the first time they have hosted since 2019.

Following their midweek matchups, Illinois State will return home to host Murray State for another three-game MVC series starting Friday.

For updates on Illinois State Baseball, fans can visit GoRedbirds.com or follow them on social media platforms such as X (@RedbirdBaseball), Instagram (isuredbirdbaseball), and Facebook (Illinois State Baseball).