EVANSVILLE, Ind. — University of Southern Indiana Baseball enters Ohio Valley Conference Championship play for the third-straight season Wednesday when it takes on the eighth-seeded University of Arkansas at Little Rock in the opening game at Mtn Dew Park in Marion, Illinois. First pitch is slated for 9 a.m.
 
The Screaming Eagles (27-28, 15-12 OVC), which reached the semifinals last season and were eliminated in the opening round in 2023, enter the tournament as the fifth seed, while Little Rock (19-32, 8-16 OVC) is the eighth seed. The winner of this matchup will take on fourth-seeded Southeast Missouri State University (30-24, 16-11 OVC) at 4 p.m.
 
The other half of the bracket features sixth-seeded Lindenwood University (27-28, 14-12 OVC) versus seventh-seeded University of Tennessee at Martin (20-33, 11-14 OVC) in the 12:30 p.m. game Wednesday. The winner will take on third-seeded Tennessee Tech University (37-19, 18-9 OVC) at 7:30 p.m.
 
The top-seeded Eastern Illinois University (29-20, 17-7 OVC) and second-seeded Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (26-26, 18-8 OVC) received byes to the double-elimination portion of the tournament Thursday.
 
The OVC Championship, presented by SERVPRO, runs Wednesday through Saturday (May 21-24) and features the top eight teams during the regular season.
 
For the fourth year in a row, the bracket includes four single-elimination games on Wednesday, with the winners advancing to the double elimination portion of the bracket, which will include the top two seeds (who receive a bye until Thursday games).

Tickets are: 
• All-Session: $30
• Single-Session (Adult): $10
• Single-Session (18 and Under): $5
• College Students (with ID): $5

Tickets can be purchased in advance online or in person during the event (more information).
 
With the ever-changing weather this spring, USI encourages fans to watch for potential schedule changes on USIScreamingEagles.com, X, and Facebook. Links to follow the Eagles all season can be found on USIScreamingEagles.com and the USI Baseball Schedule.    
 
USI Baseball Notes:
 
USI takes fifth OVC with series win. The USI Screaming Eagles grabbed fifth in the OVC regular season and are the fifth seed in the OVC Championship. USI has reached the OVC Championship each season since joining the league.
 
Eagles take two of three from Lindenwood. The Eagles finished the 2025 calendar by taking two of three from Lindenwood University. USI lost the opening game, 9-4, but rallied to take game two, 7-5, and game three, 5-4. Sophomore right-hander Abdriel Figueroa led the pitching staff with a pair of saves and did not allow a run in three innings of work. Junior catcher Micajah Wall led the hitters by hitting .462 (6-13), while junior first baseman Kannon Coakley batted .429 (3-7).  
 
Eagles are 6-6 in midweek. USI was 6-6 during midweek games in 2025. The Eagles are hitting .331 as a team and averaging eight runs a game during the midweek contests, while the USI hurlers are holding the opposition to a .267 batting average and are allowing eight runs a game.
 
Boyd extends hitting streak to 20 games. Sophomore outfielder Cameron Boyd extended his hitting streak to 20 games after the series with Lindenwood. The 20-game streak is tied for the longest of the season by an Eagle (junior designated hitter/first baseman Cole Kitchens had a 17-game streak earlier this season). Boyd is hitting .381 (32-84) during the streak with a .420 on-base percentage, four home runs, and 20 RBIs. The USI overall hitting streak record is 26 games, which is held by Kyle Kempf (last 12 games of 2015 and the first 14 of 2016), while the single-season record is 21 games, which is held by Logan Brown (2018).
 
USI has won five OVC series. The USI Eagles won five OVC series this season, the most since joining the league. USI won the first three series of the year before losing three straight and winning the last two.
 
Hot Eagles. Senior centerfielder Khi Holiday has had the hot stick for USI over the last 10 games. Holiday is hitting .487 (19-39) in the previous 10 games with 14 runs scored, seven RBIs, and five stolen bases. Junior designated hitter Cole Kitchens has been the top run producer with 13 RBIs in the last 10 games.  
 
USI leaders at the plate. Junior designated hitter Cole Kitchens leads USI at the plate with a .378 batting average (82-217), while posting a team-best 60 RBIs and 12 home runs. The .378 average and 54 RBIs are the best marks in the OVC.
 
Martin leads in neutral-site games. Sophomore infielder Parker Martin leads USI in neutral-site games with a .391 mark (9-23). Junior infielder Kannon Coakley follows with a .370 average (10-27).
 
USI in the OVC. USI leads the OVC with a .315 team batting average. The Eagles are ninth in the league with a 687 ERA on the bump. In the 27 games of league action, USI is first in batting (.320) and ninth in pitching (6.31 ERA). 
 
USI in the NCAA. If USI were eligible to be in the NCAA statistics rankings, the Eagles would be ranked 18^th in Division I in batting average (.314).
 
USI non-conference leaders. Junior designated hitter Cole Kitchens is hitting a team-best .439 (43-98) versus non-conference opponents with 30 RBIs and six home runs in 25 games. Sophomore second baseman Anthony Umbach followed by hitting .368.

Holiday leads in OVC play. Senior outfielder Khi Holiday leads the Eagles and the OVC in conference play with a .406 batting average (41-101).