EVANSVILLE, Ind. — University of Southern Indiana Baseball hopes to get back on track as it continues its five-game road swing this weekend with a visit to Southern Illinois for a three-game set at Itchy Jones Stadium in Carbondale, Illinois. The first pitch Friday is slated for 6 p.m. before continuing Saturday at 2 p.m. and concluding Sunday at 1 p.m.
The Screaming Eagles' (12-5) final stop on the road swing is March 17 at Bellarmine in Louisville, Kentucky. The USI-Bellarmine matchup is scheduled for 1 p.m. (CDT).
Fans are encouraged to watch social media and
USIScreamingEagles.com for any schedule changes due to the forecast of rain this weekend. Links to follow the Screaming Eagles during 2026 can be found on
USIScreamingEagles.com and the
USI Baseball Schedule.
USI Baseball Notes:
Screaming Eagles bitten by Tigers Tuesday. The USI Screaming Eagles were bitten by the Missouri Tigers, 14-6 Tuesday in Columbia, Missouri. USI was led by junior infielder
Parker Martin, who had three hits, and senior first baseman
Patrick McLellan, who had three RBIs on a three-run home run.
USI off to best start since 1996. The Screaming Eagles were of to its best start since 1996 at 12-4 and before the visit to Missouri. USI, which also is off to its best start in the Division I era, started 1996 with a 13-4 mark.
USI swept homestand. The Screaming Eagles swept their four-game homestand last week, taking the opener from Illinois State and all three versus Youngstown State. The Screaming Eagles averaged 7.75 runs per game and batted .268 (34-127), while posting a team ERA of 2.25 and holding the opposing hitters to a .194 average (24-124).
USI's homestand leaders. Junior second baseman
Zion Stephens led the Screaming Eagles by hitting .400 (4-10), while senior first baseman
Patrick McLellan had a team-best five RBIs in the homestand. Junior right-hander
Abdriel Figueroa had USI's best appearance on the mound last week with a scoreless six innings and struck out five in the game one win over Youngstown State.
The three-game set with Youngstown State. USI battled through three games with Youngstown State, winning 5-2 Friday and sweeping a doubleheader 10-1 and 4-1 Sunday. The Screaming Eagles batted only .231 (21-91), but the hurlers had a 1.33 ERA in 27 innings of work to get the sweep.
USI opened week, homestand with win. The Screaming Eagles opened the four-game homestand this week with a 12-5 win over Illinois State at the USI Baseball Field. Junior third baseman
Parker Martin and junior outfielder
Noah Foster had three RBIs each, while senior first baseman
Patrick McLellan had a pair.
Multi-hit games. Senior shortstop
Clayton Slack has eight multi-hit games this year and four three-hit contests in 17 games. Junior outfielder
Noah Foster and senior first baseman
Patrick McLellan follow with six multi-hit contests this year.
Holiday, McLellan are the run makers. USI graduate centerfielder
Khi Holiday and senior first baseman
Patrick McLellan have been generating the offense for the Screaming Eagles this season. The duo leads USI and the OVC with 24 runs scored each this season.
Doing it at the plate. USI is putting runs on the scoreboard at an incredible rate. USI leads the OVC with 9.2 runs per game this season (156). The Screaming Eagles also rank second in the OVC with a .313 team batting average.
SIU in 2026. Southern Illinois is 6-9 after falling at SIU Edwardsville, 16-6. The Salukis are 5-2 after starting the year 1-7.
USI vs. SIU. SIU leads the all-time series with USI, 6-1, after winning both meetings last season. The Salukis defeated USI in Carbondale last year, 16-12 and 7-0, and have won the last five meetings since the Screaming Eagles made the jump to Division I. USI's lone victory over SIU came in 1989, 6-2, in Carbondale.
Bellarine in 2026. Bellarmine is 4-11 overall in 2026 and hosts a three-game set with Austin Peay State March 13-15 before USI makes the trip to Louisville, Kentucky. The Knights enter the weekend on a high note, winning their last two games and snapping a nine-game losing streak.
USI vs. Bellarmine. USI leads the all-time series with Bellarmine, 89-78, after splitting two games last season. Bellarmine won the meeting, 10-2, in Louisville, Kentucky, while USI took the second matchup, 10-9, at the USI Baseball Field.
