Friday, May 29
Lawrence, Kan.
5:00 p.m.
Missouri State University
vs
Arkansas
Baseball Bears Lawrence Regional Central
May 27, 2026 | Baseball
| Â Missouri State at NCAA Lawrence Regional | |
| Â Location | Lawrence, Kan. |
| Â Site | Hoglund Ballpark |
| Â Game 1 | Friday, May 29, 5 p.m. vs. Arkansas TV: ESPNUÂ Radio: KBFL 96.9FM/1060 AM ESPNU | Listen | Live Stats | Tickets |
| Â Game 2 | Saturday, May 30, TBD Radio: KBFL 96.9FM/1060 AM ESPN+ | Listen | Live Stats | Tickets |
| Â Fan Info | KUAthletics.com |
| Â Bracket | NCAA.com |
| Â Missouri State | Game Notes Baseball Home Page Media Guide |
| Â Follow the Bears | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook #GoBears | #WeAreMoState |
| Â Bears Mobile App | App Store (Apple Devices) Google Play Store (Android Devices) |
Starting 9
1) Missouri State (34-19) makes its 13th NCAA Division I Regional appearance this week and opens play against Arkansas (39-20) at 5 p.m. Friday in Lawrence, Kan. Host and No. 15 national seed Kansas (42-16) and Northeastern (38-20) make up the other half of the bracket. With an average RPI of 37.75 among the four teams, Lawrence is the most difficult of the 16 regionals based on that metric.
2) Mo State is 23-26 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with Super Regionals in 2003, 2015 and 2017 and a College World Series trip in 2003. The Bears are an at-large selection for the eighth time in program history, earning a bid on the strength of a No. 23 RPI, 16th-ranked non-conference schedule and seven RPI top 33 wins in 2026.
3) Three Bears earned all-CUSA honors, led by Logan Fyffe and Curry Sutherland on the First Team and Ross Felder adding an all-Freshman Team nod.
4) The Bears have homered in 202 of the last 239 games, including 47 of 53 this season, and rank 10th nationally with 526 long balls since the beginning of the 2022 season, when head coach Joey Hawkins took over as hitting coach. Mo State ranks 2nd in Conference USA and 14th nationally this year with 104 homers, while leading the league in slugging (.533) and OBP (.403) and sitting in the top 51 in the NCAA in all three slash categories. The current roster has combined for 206 round-trippers in their time at Mo State.
5) According to TruMedia, Missouri State leads the nation in barrel percentage at 25.5%, defined as batted balls at an exit velocity of 95+ mph and launch angle between 10 and 35 degrees. The Bears also rank 9th with an average exit velocity on batted balls of 90.3 mph and 9th with 47.7% of batted balls at 95+ mph.
6) Junior Caden Bogenpohl ranks 16th nationally with 52 walks this season after drawing 53 and 55 (season record) his first two years. He broke Bill Mueller's career record, held since 1993, on May 8 in 59 fewer games played than Mueller. Bogenpohl ranks 4th among active Division I players in career walks (160) and 16th with 180 runs scored.
7) Senior Taeg Gollert ranks 2nd among active NCAA players (all divisions) with a Missouri State-record 72 career doubles, and also owns the Mo State career record with 117 extra-base hits. Gollert also ranks 3rd at Mo State in RBIs with 190 and 7th among active Division I players with 449 total bases. The Toronto native ranks in the top 11 of nine career offensive categories for the Bears (more on page 22).
8) Max Knight and Curry Sutherland headline Missouri State's two-way threats this season, with both making the 15-player John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year semifinalist list. Knight has made starts at 1B, LF, RF, DH and P this year, and has 23 homers and 83 RBIs as a Bear while going 11-5 with 7 saves and 115 strikeouts in 88 innings. Sutherland owns career totals of 28 homers and 91 RBIs while throwing 34.2 innings with 44 Ks.Â
9) Missouri State is in its first season in Conference USA in 2026 after a 35-year run in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Bears went 488-347 (.584) with 7 regular season championships and 5 tournament titles in the MVC from 1991-2025.
Against the Field
Mo State is 32-60 all-time against Arkansas including a home-and-home split this season, winning 15-14 in Springfield and losing 12-4 in Fayetteville. The Bears are 4-3 against the Hogs in NCAA Tournament play, with meetings in 1999, 2015 and 2017, all in Fayetteville. Since the beginning of the 2015 season, Missouri State is 10-9 against Arkansas, joining Florida, Georgia, LSU and Vanderbilt as the only programs nationally above .500 against the Hogs (minimum 10 meetings) over that span.
    The Bears are 33-32 all-time against Kansas with a 14-19 record in Lawrence. KU won the last meeting at Hoglund Ballpark, 9-8 on April 4, 2023.
    Missouri State has never played Northeastern in baseball.
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
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IF
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OF/1B
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LHP/1B/OF
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IF/RHP
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