Southeast Missouri State baseball team shakes up rotation for series at UTM

The resurgent Southeast Missouri State baseball team, which is coming off its first Ohio Valley Conference series win of the season, will try to build on that this weekend against struggling Tennessee-Martin.

Southeast and UTM kick off the three-game set at 6 p.m. today in Martin, Tenn. There also will be contests at 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.

"We've been playing a lot better and hopefully we can keep it going," All-American senior third baseman Trenton Moses said.

Southeast (14-28, 5-10) escaped the OVC basement last weekend by taking two of three against Tennessee Tech to move into an eighth-place tie in the 10-team league.

The Redhawks have won six of their last 10 games after losing 14 of 15.

"We're starting to come around," said Southeast coach Mark Hogan, whose squad kicked off a stretch of eight straight road games with Tuesday's 9-5 nonconference loss at SIU Carbondale.

UTM (10-30, 4-11) has replaced Southeast at the bottom of the OVC.

The Skyhawks began conference play by winning two of three against Tennessee Tech but then dropped 10 of 12 league games and 14 of 16 overall. They have suffered six straight losses.

UTM is next-to-last in the OVC in batting average (.259) and runs scored (184).

Senior right fielder Jordan Owen is UTM's top hitter. He leads the Skyhawks with a .338 average, seven home runs and 23 RBIs.

The Skyhawks also are next-to-last with a 6.76 ERA, ahead of only Southeast's 6.91.

UTM does have two solid conference starters in junior right-hander Alec Mills (2-5, 4.26) and senior right-hander Willie Frederick (3-5, 4.93).

The Skyhawks also boast one of the OVC's top relievers in junior right-hander Dan Tobik (2-2, three saves, 2.53).

"Tennessee-Martin is struggling a little bit right now, but they never quit," Hogan said. "I'm expecting another competitive weekend. There's a lot on the line."

Southeast's pitching rotation for the series will feature only one familiar face.

Junior ace right-hander Shae Simmons (3-4, 4.61), who has started in every OVC series and sports three of the Redhawks' five league wins, will get the nod today. He leads the league in strikeouts.

Junior college transfer left-hander Zack Smith (1-5, 6.04), who is coming off a strong 5 2/3-inning relief performance against Tennessee Tech last weekend, will make his first conference start Saturday. Smith has started five times, all in nonleague action, for the Redhawks.

Juco transfer right-hander Dylan Lynn (3-0, 5.21), who turned in Southeast's mound performance of the season in his first OVC start, will go Sunday.

Lynn pitched all nine innings of last Sunday's 3-1 win over Tennessee Tech to help the Redhawks secure their first OVC series victory. He has made three starts.

"It's taken a while to sort everything out with so many new guys on the staff," said Hogan, whose squad returned just three pitchers and no starting hurlers from last year. "But I think we have a rotation now."