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 TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State baseball team heads north to take on Central Missouri in a four-game MIAA series April 16-17.
 
The RiverHawks (23-15, 16-12 MIAA) and Mules (23-16, 18-10 MIAA) were originally slated to meet April 17-19, but rain in the forecast for late in the weekend forced the two teams to move the series up a day. The four-game set will begin with a 3 p.m. doubleheader April 16, followed by a second doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. April 17. All four games will be held at Crane Stadium.
 
The RiverHawks currently sit in a tie for fifth in the MIAA standings with Missouri Western State, while the Mules are tied for second with Nebraska-Kearney. NSU is 14-4 on the road this year, while UCM owns a 9-4 home record.
 
Northeastern State enters the weekend following a four-game road sweep of Lincoln last week where the team outscored the Blue Tigers 69-10. NSU also lost a rain-shortened midweek contest 7-2 to Arkansas Tech at home.
 
Nine members of the team are hitting better than .300 this season, led by junior Charles Sims and his .398 (41-for-103) average. He also owns 24 RBI, 30 runs scored, 10 doubles and two homers. Sophomore Bryce Davenport is second in average (.383, 46-for-120), home runs (4) and doubles (12), while leading the squad with 35 runs batted in. Junior Gabriel Wurth (.377, 49-for-130) leads the team in hits and runs scored (35). Junior Cody Begovich (.273, 30-for-110) is the home run leader with seven, and he is third on the team with 29 RBI. Sophomore Jared Aschbrenner (.245, 23-for-94) ranks third in the country in sacrifice bunts (12).
 
Northeastern State features three of the top pitchers in the MIAA in senior Kyle Shambaugh, junior Jake Kern and sophomore Ryan Helsley. Shambaugh is 6-0 on the mound with a 4.72 earned-run average. He has conceded 21 runs and struck out 34 batters in 40.0 innings pitched. Helsley (6-2) owns a 3.26 ERA in 47 IP, while sitting fifth in the country in strikeouts per nine innings (13.4). Kern (1.80 ERA) is eighth in the entire country with nine saves.
 
UCM dropped its first game last weekend to Washburn but went on to capture the final three contests to win the series over the Ichabods.
 
Trevor Jones (.385, 60-for-156) is the team's leader in batting average, hits, doubles (7), triples (6) and runs scored (28). Bennett Oliver (.359, 28-for-78) is the reigning MIAA Hitter of the Week and is the team leader in home runs (6) and RBI (24). Dusty Maas (.313, 31-for-99) also owns 24 RBI to go along with 26 runs scored, five doubles and three triples.
 
UCM's pitching staff is one of the best units in the entire conference. Carlos D'Armas (3.02 ERA) owns a 1-1 record and 48 strikeouts in 44.2 IP. Tyler House (3.44 ERA) is 4-2 with two complete games and 53 K's in 49.2 IP. Ricky Rivera (3.89 ERA) is 6-2 with 24 strikeouts in 44.0 IP, and Jake Heissler (4.08 ERA) owns a 4-1 record with 42 K's in 46.1 innings pitched. Trevor Ezell (7.50 ERA) is second in the MIAA with seven saves.
 
Since NSU joined the MIAA prior to the 2013 season, the Mules own a narrow 5-4 series lead. The RiverHawks lost all three games at home in 2013 and split a four-game home series during the 2014 regular season. The Mules will be looking for revenge after Northeastern State went to Warrensburg and ended UCM's 2014 season. The RiverHawks won both games in the opening round of the 2014 MIAA Championship when Central Missouri was ranked No. 12 in the nation. The series loss was the first at home for UCM since March 20-22, 2009.
 
2015 MIAA TEAM RANKS (as of April 12)

Batting Average
4.	Northeastern State	.324
12.	Central Missouri	.287
Slugging Percentage
8.	Northeastern State	.483
12.	Central Missouri	.403
On-Base Percentage
1.	Northeastern State	.433
13.	Central Missouri	.374
Runs Scored
4.	Northeastern State	292
12.	Central Missouri	229
Hits
6.	Northeastern State	378
11.	Central Missouri	337
Runs Batted In
4.	Northeastern State	260
12.	Central Missouri	197
Doubles
4.	Northeastern State	78
13.	Central Missouri	50
Triples
1.	Central Missouri	16
T12.	Northeastern State	5
Home Runs
10.	Northeastern State	32
12.	Central Missouri	18
Walks
1.	Northeastern State	169
6.	Central Missouri	140
Stolen Bases
3.	Central Missouri	60
8.	Northeastern State	38
Earned Run Average
1.	Central Missouri	4.08
2.	Northeastern State	4.34
Opposing Batting Average
1.	Central Missouri	.257
2.	Northeastern State	.267
Batters Struck Out
2.	Northeastern State	284
3.	Central Missouri	274
Fielding Percentage
1.	Northeastern State	.968
2.	Central Missouri	.968
2015 MIAA INDIVIDUAL LEADERS (TOP 10)
Batting Average
5.	Charles Sims – NSU	.400
7.	Bryce Davenport – NSU	.390
10.	Trevor Jones – UCM	.385
On-Base Percentage
3.	Gabriel Wurth – NSU	.497
8.	Charles Sims – NSU	.478
Hits
3.	Trevor Jones – UCM	60
Doubles
T6.	Preston Cash – NSU	14
Triples
1.	Trevor Jones – UCM	6
Walks
T6.	Gabriel Wurth – NSU	25
Hit By Pitch
T5.	Preston Cash – NSU	12
Sacrifice Bunts
1.	Jared Aschbrenner – NSU	12
2.	Dusty Maas – UCM	10
Stolen Bases
T5.	Derek Cornell – UCM	13
Strikeouts
T5.	Cody Begovich – NSU	32
Earned Run Average
5.	Carlos D'Armas – UCM	3.02
6.	Ryan Helsley – NSU	3.26
8.	Tyler House – UCM	3.44
Opposing Batting Average
2.	Carlos D'Armas – UCM	.214
3.	Tyler House – UCM	.226
6.	Jake Heissler – UCM	.241
7.	Ryan Helsley – NSU	.242
Batters Struck Out
2.	Ryan Helsley – NSU	70
6.	Tyler House – UCM	53
T9.	Carlos D'Armas – UCM	48
Wins
T3.	Ryan Helsley – NSU	6
T3.	Kyle Shambaugh – NSU	6
T3.	Ricky Rivera – UCM	6
Saves
1.	Jake Kern – NSU	9
T2.	Trevor Ezell – UCM	7
Appearances
1.	Jake Kern – NSU	19
T8.	Hayden Walch – NSU	15

 
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