TAHLEQUAH— Northeastern State baseball remains at home on Tuesday to host Arkansas-Fort Smith before playing a four-game non-conference series against Drury from Friday through Sunday. The RiverHawks battle the Panthers at Rousey Field on Friday and in a Saturday doubleheader before playing the Sunday finale in Springfield, Mo.
NSU (10-11, 7-5 MIAA) picked up their third MIAA series victory by taking down Washburn in Friday and Sunday wins in Tahlequah. The offense collected 41 runs in the series, their most on the season in a three-game stretch against a league foe in 2025.
Key Players to Watch:
- Mason Ruiz recorded a two-homer game on Friday against the Ichabods and claimed seven total base hits across the series against WU. In his first campaign with the program, Ruiz has collected nine extra-base hits with 13 RBI, a total that ranks fourth on the team.
- Austin Albright recorded base hits in all three contests and scored six runs against Washburn over the weekend. Albright provided pair of two-hit games on Saturday and Sunday and additionally drew a pair of walks to reach base four times in the series finale.
- Colton Ayres recorded six base hits and six RBI in last weekend's series against WU. Ayres added four stolen bases across Saturday and Sunday, including three in the series finale. The total for Ayres on Sunday matched a team-high for NSU, who stole 13 bases in the 13-7 win, the second-most in an NCAA Division II baseball contest in 2025.
Tuesday's 5 p.m. matchup against Arkansas-Fort Smith marks a first-ever MIAA meeting against the Lions. UAFS joined the conference prior to the 2024-25 athletics season after serving as members of the Lone Star Conference (LSC). In the all-time series, the RiverHawks have won ten of 19 meetings, including five straight.
The Lions enter the week at 7-15 overall and 2-10 in conference play with seven straight losses. The duo of Cooper White (.367, two HR, 17 RBI) and Noah Davis (.326, five HR, 22 RBI) have combined for seven of the team's 13 home runs on the season, while White is second in the MIAA in doubles (12).
The four-game series later in the week marks the first meetings in program history with the Panthers. Drury enters the week at 12-11 overall. NSU is the second opponent from the MIAA that the Panthers will have faced this season, having previously earned wins in two of three games across February and March against Missouri Southern.
Jackson Crider (.411, four HR, 17 RBI) ranks inside the top ten in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) in batting average, while Hesston Gray (.263, 18 RBI) is tied for second in doubles (ten). Drury's pitching staff is third in the GLVC in strikeouts (160) and ranks sixth in ERA (6.37).
