Preseason favorite to visit Cape for series

~ Austin Peay has struggled to a 5-7 record after being the coaches' choice to win the OVC.

Not a whole lot was expected out of Southeast Missouri State's baseball team from the rest of the Ohio Valley Conference this year, as the Redhawks were picked fifth in the league's preseason poll.

Austin Peay, however, was highly regarded. The Governors were tabbed the OVC favorite in voting by conference coaches after they won last year's league tournament.

But entering this weekend's three-game series at Capaha Field, the squads find themselves in the same precarious position -- tied for seventh in the 10-team OVC with identical 5-7 records.

There will be plenty on the line when the Redhawks (14-20) and Govs (21-16) square off in a 1 p.m doubleheader today and a 1 p.m. contest Sunday. The top six teams in the OVC regular-season standings qualify for the postseason tournament.

Today's action was originally scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. but has been moved up because of a problem with the Capaha Field lights.

"I'm sure it will be a hard-played series, like it always is with them," Southeast coach Mark Hogan said. "It's an important series for both teams."

While last weekend's results weren't quite what he wanted, Hogan gladly will take the kind of performance from the Redhawks they displayed during a conference series against first-place Samford.

The Redhawks very easily could have come away with a sweep, but they won just one of the three games and suffered two down-to-the-wire losses, 6-5 and 8-6 in 15 innings.

"Hopefully, we'll continue to play like we did last weekend," Hogan said. "I know the results were disappointing, but our effort was outstanding.

"It was probably one of our best-played series in a few years. We need to build on that."

Southeast will face an Austin Peay team that has lost eight of its past 10 games, including five of its last six OVC contests.

But the Govs feature some of the top players in the conference.

Heading up a pitching staff that leads the OVC with 4.27 earned-run average are senior left-hander Rowdy Hardy and junior right-hander Shawn Kelley.

Hardy, last season's OVC pitcher of the year, is 6-2 with a 2.69 ERA, which ranks second in the league.

Kelley is just 2-3, but his 1.69 ERA tops the conference.

Hardy will pitch today's nine-inning opener, with Kelley working the seven-inning nightcap. The likely starter for Sunday's nine-inning series finale is junior left-hander Matt Reynolds (2-2, 4.85).

"Their pitchers are outstanding," Hogan said.

Austin Peay's batting average of .287 is fourth in the OVC, led by senior left fielder Ryan Kane (.365) and senior center fielder Cody Youngblood (.365).

Kane has hit safely in 33 straight games, which is the nation's longest current streak. He also leads the OVC in stolen bases, having swiped 22 of 28, and he is second in runs batted in with 35.

Youngblood leads the OVC in runs scored with 42, and he is tied for second with 19 stolen bases. He has been caught just four times, as the Govs lead the conference with 73 steals in 103 attempts.

Southeast has stolen 27 bases in 39 attempts, and the Redhawks have allowed opponents to steal only 26 in 42 attempts.

"It will be a challenge for us to slow them down on the bases," Hogan said.

Southeast still ranks last in the OVC with a .252 batting average, but the Redhawks actually have hit well over the last few weeks after they were mired at .217 not all that long ago.

Senior catcher Levi Olson (.410) is the league's No. 2 hitter.

Pitching today will be senior right-handers Jamie McAlister (4-6, 4.06) and Anthony Maupin (4-3, 5.54), who has gone the distance in all four of his conference starts.

Hogan said the Redhawks will make a change on the mound Sunday as junior left-hander Asif Shah (2-1, 5.09) gets his first OVC start, replacing senior left-hander Derek Herbig.

While Herbig (2-2, 5.45) has struggled in his last two starts -- both in league play -- Shah has impressed during his last three starts, all in nonconference action.

"Asif certainly deserves an opportunity to pitch in conference," Hogan said. "Derek is not in the doghouse, we're just playing the hot hand."