Baseball Bears Head to Windy City for Series with UIC

Friday, April 18

Chicago, Ill.

3:00 p.m.

Missouri State University

UIC

Baseball Bears Head to Windy City for Series with UIC

April 17, 2025 | Baseball

ESPN+ (Game 1)ESPN+ (Game 2)ESPN+ (Game 3)Live Stats Game Notes

By: MSU Athletics Communications

Missouri State at UIC
Game 1	April 18, 3 p.m. Curtis Granderson Stadium Chicago, Ill. Live Stats \| ESPN+ \| Listen Radio: KBFL 96.9 FM/1060 AM
Game 2	April 19, 1 p.m. Curtis Granderson Stadium Chicago, Ill. Live Stats \| ESPN+ \| Listen Radio: KBFL 96.9 FM/1060 AM
Game 3	April 19, 4:30 p.m. Curtis Granderson Stadium Chicago, Ill. Live Stats \| ESPN+ \| Listen Radio: KBFL 96.9 FM/1060 AM
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Starting 9
1) Missouri State (19-16, 10-2 Missouri Valley Conference) looks to remain in first place in the MVC standings when the Bears travel to UIC (9-25, 5-7) for a three-game series April 18-20. Game times from the Windy City are 3 p.m. Friday and a 1 p.m. Saturday doubleheader.
    The Bears are averaging 11.1 runs in their last 16 games overall and have hit at a blistering pace in league play, averaging 11.9 runs per game with a .348 batting average and .673 slugging percentage in 12 Valley games.
    After the UIC series, the Bears are home for five in a row to close out April, with Evansville (April 25-27) and No. 2 Arkansas (April 29) coming to town.

2) MoState is 14-5 all-time against UIC with a 7-2 record in away games. MSU swept the Flames in Chicago in 2023 in its first visit to UIC since 1990.

3) The Bears have homered in 136 of the last 166 games, and rank 10th nationally with 381 long balls since the beginning of the 2022 season, when first-year head coach Joey     Hawkins took over as hitting coach. MoState's 114 homers last season ranked second in school and fourth in MVC history. The current roster has combined for 181 round-trippers in their time at MoState.

4) This season, Missouri State ranks 11th nationally with a .550 slugging percentage, 8th in doubles with 89 and 10th with 68 home runs.

5) Missouri State's pitching staff leads the MVC and ranks 47th nationally with 9.6 strikeouts per nine innings. The Bears' 2.31 K/BB ratio also leads the Valley and ranks 56th nationally. Jason Schaaf leads the MVC with a 4.25 K/BB ratio.
    Jackson Holmes, Max Knight and Michael Yusypchuk have earned MVC Pitcher of the Week honors this season, while Tyler Charlton (3rd - 49), Holmes (4th - 48) and Yusypchuk (5th - 46) and are all in the top 5 in strikeouts. Knight, meanwhile, is the only Division I player with at least 12 pitching appearances and 35 RBIs.

6) Several Bears are climbing MSU career charts. Zack Stewart is 10th on career homers (40) and 16th with 75 extra-base hits. Taeg Gollert currently sits ninth in school history with 49 career doubles and 19th with 73 extra-base hits. Nick Rodriguez ranks 11th in walks (99), 18th in homers (32) and 20th in extra-base hits (72).

7) Missouri State is 12-4 in its last 16 games, hitting .334 as a team with a .648 slugging percentage. Since March 21 against Bradley, the Bears have 42 homers and 47 doubles, with Nick Rodriguez (.429, 10 doubles, 11 homers, 29 RBIs) leading the way with a pair of     MVC Player of the Week awards.

8) D1Baseball tabbed the Bears as the favorite to win the MVC this season, with sophomore Caden Bogenpohl as its preseason player of the year and Michael Yusypchuk as its freshman of the year. The MVC coaches poll was released on March 17 and also MSU to win, with Bogenpohl and Nick Rodriguez earning all-MVC honors.

9) The 2025 season is Missouri State's 35th and final year in the MVC. The university accepted an invitation to Conference USA on May 10, 2024, and will officially join that league on July 1, 2025. The baseball Bears own the most league wins (481) and highest MVC winning percentage (.585) of any current league school with six regular season championships and five tournament titles in 34 seasons.