Redhawks hope to continue progress

Southeast Missouri State baseball coach Mark Hogan is looking forward to playing at 16th-ranked Mississippi Tuesday and Wednesday.

But Hogan also knows it would be a big mistake to look past Freed-Hardeman, which visits Capaha Field today for a 3 p.m. first pitch that will complete the Redhawks' seven-game homestand.

Freed-Hardeman, an NAIA program from Henderson, Tenn., is 12-3, having outscored the opposition 101-42 while compiling a .290 batting average and a 2.09 earned-run average.

"They're red hot," said Hogan, whose 5-7 Redhawks have won two straight, including Thursday's 7-3 victory over Southern Illinois. "If we look past them, they'll beat us. I don't want that to happen."

Southeast also hosted Freed-Hardeman last season, with the Redhawks rolling to a 12-4 victory.

"But they're the type of team that is certainly good enough to beat you if you don't play well," Hogan said.

Hogan liked the way Southeast performed during Thursday's win over Southern Illinois that he said was the Redhawks' best triumph of the season. Southeast had nine hits and no errors while receiving strong pitching.

"It was a really good win for us," Hogan said. "Winning two in a row feels a lot better, but we still have a lot of work to do."

Said junior left-hander Derek Herbig, the winning pitcher against the Salukis: "It was a good team outing and it should help us build our confidence, but we know we still have to get a lot better."

After playing today and then having the two-game series this week at the University of Mississippi, the Redhawks will return to Cape Girardeau for four more consecutive home dates, giving them 11 contests at Capaha Field in a 13-game span.

Central Michigan visits for a three-game series Friday through March 20, and Evansville comes in on March 22.