After an up-and-down 20 games for Middle Tennessee baseball, Conference USA play begins this weekend.
Coming out of the non-conference portion of the schedule, the Blue Raiders stand at 12-8, including series sweeps of Fairleigh Dickinson and Oakland at home as the peaks of the team’s performance early in the season.
Most recently, MTSU dropped a midweek clash against SEMO. The loss came after the Blue Raiders took two of three from UAB in Murfreesboro, highlighted by a 9-7 comeback victory after trailing by seven early along with splitting a doubleheader on Sunday, dropping game one 5-4 and winning game two 3-1.
“We just tried to play this one like it was a conference weekend,” head coach Jerry Meyers said. “There can’t be any let up, there can’t be any lulls in energy. There can’t be any innings where we give any at-bats away… or give up anything without them earning it. We had a taste of having to do that this weekend and were able to win a series.”
Some of the lower moments for MTSU include dropping two of three in the round robin they hosted Feb. 28 – March 1, along with a run-rule defeat at home by in-state rival Tennessee Tech 13-3, on March 11.
“We haven’t tapped into how good we can be,” Meyers said. “If we can be a little more consistent in some areas [such as] just a little bit more putting pressure on offensively at times. We played really good defense at times, but just a couple mistakes we made and then same thing on the mound.”
With conference play beginning March 21, a steep road of league series stands in front of Meyers’ crew.
“We’re just going into it [conference play] with a lot of confidence,” catcher Tyler Minnick said. “We played a good series this weekend, not our best, but that’s where our confidence comes from. We don’t feel like we are playing at our best right now, but we’re still able to find ways to win games.”
MTSU currently sits in sixth in the ten-team conference. This leaves the Blue Raiders situated between 14-8 Florida International and 12-9 Louisiana Tech.
League play will begin in Dallas for the Blue Raiders, as they travel to faceoff with preseason favorite and 2024 Conference USA champion Dallas Baptist for their first road series of the year.
“I told them that you got to be able to do whatever we do very well and have done well at home,” Meyers said. “We’ve got to be able to do it on the road as well, and it’s going to be a difficult task for sure.”
No. 15 DBU stands at 14-6 and has been propelled by catcher Grant Jay and designated hitter Tom Poole, who were both named to the preseason all-conference team. Jay was named preseason player of the year and is currently leading the conference in slugging while second in OPS, home runs and total bases. Poole is third in the conference in OPS, OBP and slugging percentage.
The Patriots have picked up some huge wins this season, including defeating No. 12 Oklahoma in a mid-week matchup. DBU will easily be the most talented team that MTSU has faced yet and stands to be a test to start the conference slate.
“We’re going to go down there, full confidence,” Minnick said. “We don’t look at names on the jerseys. We go there, we play baseball, and I feel like we are going to have a great series.”
The Blue Raiders will be closer to full strength than they have been all season as they head to Dallas. Keaton Ray and Cooper Clapp have returned to the lineup after missing significant time, and right-handed reliever Matthew Driver made his first two appearances for MTSU after being out with a back injury.
Friday night starter Trace Phillips will also return for Middle Tennessee, after being scratched against UAB. Phillips is in-line to make his start, “barring any setbacks,” Meyers said.
Another standout in the conference schedule is a trip to Bowling Green, Kentucky to take on Western Kentucky for the 100 miles of hate. WKU is currently leading the conference prior to league play at 20-1, including a 15-game winning streak heading into the conference portion of the season. The Hilltoppers look to challenge for the top spot in the conference and will certainly be a tall task for the Blue Raiders.
The conference schedule will consist of 27 total games, spread across nine weekend series. MTSU will play host to FIU, LA Tech, Jacksonville State and Sam Houston, while hitting the road to take on DBU, WKU, Liberty, New Mexico State and Kennesaw State.
“We’ve done some good things up to this point don’t get me wrong, but we feel like we’ve got a long way to go to be whatever we are capable of being,” Meyers said. “I think our guys know that and need to continue to work with a little bit of a chip on their shoulder.”
The Conference USA championship will be held May 21-25 in Lynchburg, Virginia as Liberty will host the double elimination tournament.
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