TAHLEQUAH – The RiverHawks baseball team will open the 2020 season this weekend with a four-game series at Southeastern Oklahoma. Game one of the series is Friday at 2 p.m. The teams will play a doubleheader Saturday starting at noon and will wrap up the series at 1 p.m. Sunday.

The Opening Pitch
1. NSU finished the 2019 season 12-37, with a 9-24 record in MIAA play. They are returning two of their three All-MIAA selections from last season, including All-MIAA Second TeamerJaxon Phipps and Blake Freeman, who recorded NSU's first 60-hit season in three years and finished the season with a .343 batting average.

2. Jonathan Smithey led the RiverHawks in innings one year ago, throwing 70. He had a record of 2-4 with an ERA of 4.76. John Rains and Colt Browne are also returning on the mound, having posted the two lowest ERA in 2019.

3. The RiverHawks are entering their fifth season under head coach Jake Hendrick. Butch Rea is entering his first season as an assistant coach after spending the last two seasons as a graduate assistant for NSU. Tyrie Blalock is entering his first season as a graduate assistant. He previously served as an assistant coach at the University of South Carolina at Lancaster.

4. The Savage Storm will bring a 2-2 record into the weekend after splitting their season-opening four-game series with Northwest Missouri. Colton Buckner leads the Savage Storm with a .385 batting average and one home run.

5. Davis Jenks led the Savage Storm to a 2-1 win on Saturday against the Bearcats, throwing six innings, allowing one run and recording six strikeouts. Kenneth Klier pitched one hitless inning to pick up his first save of the season.

Up Next: The RiverHawks will travel to Alva, Okla. on Tuesday to play Northwestern Oklahoma.