Wednesday, May 21
Avon, Ohio
12:30 PM
Ball State University
vs
Eastern Michigan
Baseball Begins MAC Tournament Wednesday against Eastern Michigan
May 20, 2025 | Baseball
The Ball State baseball team begins the 2025 Mid-American Conference Tournament at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday against No. 6 seed Eastern Michigan at Crushers Stadium in Avon, Ohio.
Links to the ESPN+ broadcast and live stats can be found above and on the schedule page. The schedule page will be updated with links to ensuing Ball State games in the tournament.
The No. 3 seed Cardinals (35-20, 21-9 MAC) won 14-9 on Friday afternoon against Miami (OH) but fell in the first and third games to the RedHawks to get in the third position in the final regular season standings. Miami and Kent State tied for the top spot at 23-7, but Miami won the head-to-head series to get the top seed.
The Eagles (20-29, 12-18 MAC) took a 12-11 decision in 12 innings on Thursday against Kent State after coming back from down 11-7 after the top half of the 12th to help EMU get into the tournament. Western Michigan tied with Eastern in the final conference standings, but the Eagles claimed the sixth seed thanks to beating the Broncos in two out of three games in mid-March.
Ball State and Eastern played a noteworthy series in early April in Ypsilanti featuring a 21-inning doubleheader Friday and a 9-5 comeback win for the Cardinals on Sunday to complete the road sweep. The Cardinals won 4-2 in 14 innings in the second game of the twinbill on Friday, April 4.
Eastern Michigan is led by an offense that averages 7.7 runs per game, which ranks fourth in the MAC. The Eagles pitching staff puts up the 10th-best ERA in the conference (7.91).
Seniors Tyler Kapa (84 strikeouts, first in the MAC) and Drew Beckner (75, third) are two of the top punchout pitchers in the league. Junior infielder Devin Zirwas is the team leader in batting average (.339), hits (65) and doubles (20, No. 3 in the MAC) while hitting eight home runs and driving in 52.
The Cardinals will play Kent State at 6 p.m. on Thursday if they beat EMU or Bowling Green or Toledo at 10 a.m. Thursday if they lose.
ALL-CONFERENCE RECOGNITIONS: Six different Ball State players were named to the All-MAC teams on Tuesday morning including Blake Bevis (outfield), Dylan Grego (shortstop), Nick Husovsky (second base) and Keegan Johnson (starting pitcher) on the First Team.
Jacob Hartlaub (starting pitcher) and Alex Richter (third base) were recognized on the Second Team while Grego and Richter were voted on the All-Defensive Team at their respective positions.
BIG INNING BY BEVIS: The Brentwood, Tenn., native made a big impact in the eight-run seventh inning of Ball State's 14-9 win over Miami (OH) on Friday.
Bevis blasted a leadoff solo home run over the left field wall on the first pitch of the frame before chugging around the bases on a three-run inside-the-park home run to center field to put a cap on the productive inning.
TAKING TWENTY-SEVEN FOR THE TEAM: Senior Alex Richter was hit by a pitch for the 25th time this season on May 10 at Ohio to set a new program record, which is now at 27.
Ryan Read was hit 24 times during the 1995 campaign for the previous record. Richter ranks sixth in NCAA Division I in HBP this year and leads the team in walks (33) as well for a .415 on base percentage. Additionally, the infielder wrapped up the regular season with the most home runs in MAC play (15) for any team.
OLD RELIABLE THIRTY: Ball State's 9-6 win on April 25 at Central Michigan was its 30th of the season, a mark the program has now reached in each of the last 12 completed seasons.
The Cardinals have posted at least 30 wins in each of head coach Rich Maloney's 19 full campaigns as the skipper. Ball State reached at least 35 wins in six straight campaigns as well after achieving the mark on Friday against Miami.
CLEAN FIELDING AND TURNING TWO: The Cardinals wrapped up the regular season with the top fielder percentage (.984) in NCAA Division I.
Ball State has committed 31 errors in 1,882 opportunities this year through the first 55 games. Ball State is No. 11 nationally in double plays turned at 48.
HARTLAUB HOLDING IT DOWN: Senior Jacob Hartlaub has been a productive starting pitcher for the Cardinals this season both in regards to team success and being an innings eater.
Ball State is 12-2 in the right-hander's starts including 10-0 against MAC opponents, and his innings pitched overall (80) and in conference play (60) are both second in the league.
GIO GOING GONE: Junior Ben Giovannetti hit three home runs over the weekend, including his first multi-homer game of the year on Saturday, to highlight a recent power surge.
The infielder out of Redwood City, Calif., has hit four of his sixth home runs in the month of May while seeing increase playing time at third and first base.
RECORD BOOK WATCH: Juniors Blake Bevis (home runs) and Dylan Grego (hits) are climbing the record book standings in those respective batting categories.
The 17 home runs hit by Bevis in 2025 are tied for the sixth-most in a single season in program history, and he is in fourth at Ball State in career homers with 40 (three back of Thomas Howard for third). Grego's 85 hits are 16th nationally, sixth-most in a season for the Cardinals and only nine away from Howard's program record of 94 set in 1986.
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Links to the ESPN+ broadcast and live stats can be found above and on the schedule page. The schedule page will be updated with links to ensuing Ball State games in the tournament.
The No. 3 seed Cardinals (35-20, 21-9 MAC) won 14-9 on Friday afternoon against Miami (OH) but fell in the first and third games to the RedHawks to get in the third position in the final regular season standings. Miami and Kent State tied for the top spot at 23-7, but Miami won the head-to-head series to get the top seed.
The Eagles (20-29, 12-18 MAC) took a 12-11 decision in 12 innings on Thursday against Kent State after coming back from down 11-7 after the top half of the 12th to help EMU get into the tournament. Western Michigan tied with Eastern in the final conference standings, but the Eagles claimed the sixth seed thanks to beating the Broncos in two out of three games in mid-March.
Ball State and Eastern played a noteworthy series in early April in Ypsilanti featuring a 21-inning doubleheader Friday and a 9-5 comeback win for the Cardinals on Sunday to complete the road sweep. The Cardinals won 4-2 in 14 innings in the second game of the twinbill on Friday, April 4.
Eastern Michigan is led by an offense that averages 7.7 runs per game, which ranks fourth in the MAC. The Eagles pitching staff puts up the 10th-best ERA in the conference (7.91).
Seniors Tyler Kapa (84 strikeouts, first in the MAC) and Drew Beckner (75, third) are two of the top punchout pitchers in the league. Junior infielder Devin Zirwas is the team leader in batting average (.339), hits (65) and doubles (20, No. 3 in the MAC) while hitting eight home runs and driving in 52.
The Cardinals will play Kent State at 6 p.m. on Thursday if they beat EMU or Bowling Green or Toledo at 10 a.m. Thursday if they lose.
ALL-CONFERENCE RECOGNITIONS: Six different Ball State players were named to the All-MAC teams on Tuesday morning including Blake Bevis (outfield), Dylan Grego (shortstop), Nick Husovsky (second base) and Keegan Johnson (starting pitcher) on the First Team.
Jacob Hartlaub (starting pitcher) and Alex Richter (third base) were recognized on the Second Team while Grego and Richter were voted on the All-Defensive Team at their respective positions.
BIG INNING BY BEVIS: The Brentwood, Tenn., native made a big impact in the eight-run seventh inning of Ball State's 14-9 win over Miami (OH) on Friday.
Bevis blasted a leadoff solo home run over the left field wall on the first pitch of the frame before chugging around the bases on a three-run inside-the-park home run to center field to put a cap on the productive inning.
TAKING TWENTY-SEVEN FOR THE TEAM: Senior Alex Richter was hit by a pitch for the 25th time this season on May 10 at Ohio to set a new program record, which is now at 27.
Ryan Read was hit 24 times during the 1995 campaign for the previous record. Richter ranks sixth in NCAA Division I in HBP this year and leads the team in walks (33) as well for a .415 on base percentage. Additionally, the infielder wrapped up the regular season with the most home runs in MAC play (15) for any team.
OLD RELIABLE THIRTY: Ball State's 9-6 win on April 25 at Central Michigan was its 30th of the season, a mark the program has now reached in each of the last 12 completed seasons.
The Cardinals have posted at least 30 wins in each of head coach Rich Maloney's 19 full campaigns as the skipper. Ball State reached at least 35 wins in six straight campaigns as well after achieving the mark on Friday against Miami.
CLEAN FIELDING AND TURNING TWO: The Cardinals wrapped up the regular season with the top fielder percentage (.984) in NCAA Division I.
Ball State has committed 31 errors in 1,882 opportunities this year through the first 55 games. Ball State is No. 11 nationally in double plays turned at 48.
HARTLAUB HOLDING IT DOWN: Senior Jacob Hartlaub has been a productive starting pitcher for the Cardinals this season both in regards to team success and being an innings eater.
Ball State is 12-2 in the right-hander's starts including 10-0 against MAC opponents, and his innings pitched overall (80) and in conference play (60) are both second in the league.
GIO GOING GONE: Junior Ben Giovannetti hit three home runs over the weekend, including his first multi-homer game of the year on Saturday, to highlight a recent power surge.
The infielder out of Redwood City, Calif., has hit four of his sixth home runs in the month of May while seeing increase playing time at third and first base.
RECORD BOOK WATCH: Juniors Blake Bevis (home runs) and Dylan Grego (hits) are climbing the record book standings in those respective batting categories.
The 17 home runs hit by Bevis in 2025 are tied for the sixth-most in a single season in program history, and he is in fourth at Ball State in career homers with 40 (three back of Thomas Howard for third). Grego's 85 hits are 16th nationally, sixth-most in a season for the Cardinals and only nine away from Howard's program record of 94 set in 1986.
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