Southeast Missouri State begins OVC baseball tournament vs. Belmont

~ The Southeast baseball team begins today's first round as the sixth seed

The Southeast Missouri State baseball team isn't among the favorites to win the Ohio Valley Conference tournament and gain the league's automatic NCAA tournament berth.

Far from it.

But the Redhawks aren't conceding anything entering the six-team, double-elimination event that begins today in Jackson, Tenn.

The sixth-seeded Redhawks (24-31, 13-17 OVC) will play third-seeded Belmont (37-18, 22-8) at 7 p.m. in the second of two first-round games.

Southeast will play again Thursday, either in an 11 a.m. elimination contest or a 7 p.m. winners bracket semifinal, where it would face top-seeded Tennessee Tech (39-15, 24-6), which received an opening-round bye.

"We've earned our way in by being in the top six," Southeast coach Steve Bieser said. "There's no pressure on us because nobody outside our program expects us to do anything.

"I feel like we've got a chance. Hopefully we can make a good showing."

Southeast hasn't won the OVC tournament since 2002 -- the second of its two conference tourney titles since joining the league and moving up to the Division I level in 1992 -- but the Redhawks consistently have had an opportunity to compete for the big prize.

The Redhawks will be making their 19th straight OVC tournament appearance, the longest streak in conference history.

"We've been underdogs all year. I'd rather be the sixth seed. There's not as much pressure," senior pitcher Zack Smith said. "We're just going to give our best effort and see how it turns out."

Not only did the Redhawks lose the majority of their top players from 2012 -- when they also were the No. 6 tournament seed but won their first two games before dropping their next two -- they have been decimated by injuries.

Southeast has been without three key pitchers for the entire campaign after they all underwent Tommy John surgery in the offseason.

In-season injuries have also taken down several front-line players -- the biggest losses being junior center fielder Cole Bieser, sophomore third baseman Andy Lennington and junior pitcher Luke Shearrow. All have missed the past several weeks and won't play again this season.

Bieser and Lennington are among Southeast's top all-around players. Shearrow boasted the OVC's top ERA in league play (0.90).

"It does have an impact," said Steve Bieser, whose squad is down to nine available pitchers for the tournament. "It's tough when you're without that many key players."

The injuries coincided with Southeast's struggles down the stretch.

The Redhawks lost nine of their final 10 OVC games and enter the tournament having dropped 11 of their last 15 contests overall.

But Southeast is riding its first two-game winning streak in more than a month, taking the final two of a three-game nonconference series against a strong Memphis squad over the weekend.

"It feels good to win the last two games," sophomore third baseman Nolan Fisher said. "It gives us confidence for the tournament."

Southeast lost two of three during the regular season at first-year OVC member Belmont in the opening conference series of the year.

The Redhawks beat senior left-hander Chase Brookshire, the OVC preseason pitcher of the year, 1-0 in the series opener before losing 11-6 and 6-2.

Brookshire, who is 4-2 with a league-leading 2.18 ERA, went all nine innings and allowed just three hits with 11 strikeouts against Southeast. But Brookshire has battled arm problems late in the year and might not be at full strength for the tournament.

Belmont's scheduled starter today is sophomore lefty Dan Ludwig (11-2, 3.47), who leads the OVC in wins and is tied for fifth nationally.

Southeast sophomore lefty Will Spitzfaden (5-4, 4.91) was the winner in the earlier meeting against Belmont with seven three-hit innings. He will start today.

"Belmont is a tough opponent. They play as complete a game as anybody in our conference," Bieser said. "But we feel good with Spitz on the mound."

If the Redhawks win today, they'll face regular-season champion Tennessee Tech on Thursday. The Eagles handily won all three games at Southeast May 10-12, romping 16-1, 11-6 and 5-1 in Southeast's final OVC series.