Ball State University Athletics
Friday, March 13
Muncie, Ind.
3 PM
Ball State University
vs
Eastern Michigan
Photo by: Caden Vincent
Baseball Hosting Eastern Michigan for Three Games Starting Friday Afternoon
March 12, 2026 | Baseball
The Ball State baseball team prepares for its second home and Mid-American Conference series of the year starting Friday afternoon against Eastern Michigan.
The series opener at Shebek Stadium is slated for a 3 p.m. start time followed by 1 p.m. first pitches on Saturday and Sunday. Each game will be broadcast on WMUN 92.5 FM / 1340 AM and the WMUN app, while a video stream will be played on the WMUN Facebook page. Links to the broadcasts and live stats can be found above and on the schedule page.
Ball State (7-8) fell 10-3 at No. 25 Kentucky on Tuesday night after a series win against Central Michigan last weekend that featured comebacks on Saturday and Sunday to help the Cardinals prevail over the Chippewas.
Eastern Michigan (4-13) hosted Michigan State Tuesday afternoon and lost 13-5 to the Spartans after opening conference play getting swept in three games at Miami. The Eagles have lost six games in a row and have yet to play a common opponent with the Cardinals.
Trevor Beerman has stepped in as the interim head coach for EMU, a program that was picked to finish ninth in the 12-team MAC preseason coaches poll.
The Eagles are 11th in the league in team ERA (8.45) and runs per game (4.5) but have hit the fourth-most homers (18) and drawn the third-most walks (84) in the MAC so far this year.
Seniors Devan Zirwas (six home runs, 15 RBI) and Ty Stecko (five homers, 11 RBI) have the power bats for the Eagles, while fellow senior TJ Williams paces EMU in steals (seven) and is tied for first in hits (15).
Ball State's next scheduled game after this weekend is Tuesday afternoon at Valparaiso.
GRIFFITHS GETS GOING: Senior shortstop Brett Griffiths collected game-winning hits both Saturday and Sunday against Central Michigan to help Ball State win the series against the Chippewas.
A walk-off two-run double to left center finished off an 11-10 comeback win for the Cardinals on Sunday a day after Griffiths blasted a go-ahead solo homer in an 11-6 victory on Saturday. The senior tallied five hits including a double, triple and home run and five RBI during the weekend set.
COMEBACK CARDINALS: Ball State came back from a four-run deficit on Saturday and a seven-run hole on Sunday to post back-to-back comeback wins over Central Michigan.
The Cardinals trailed 6-2 after the top of the sixth inning Saturday but scored four times in the sixth, three in the seventh and twice in the eighth for the final nine runs of the game. Central led 7-0 Sunday after a seven-run fourth frame, 10-4 after the top of the eighth inning and 10-5 going into the ninth, but Ball State rallied for six runs to capture the win.
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GARZA GOES THE DISTANCE: Sophomore Brendan Garza surrendered only two hits and two walk and didn't allow a runner to advance past first base, in a complete game shutout in Ball State's 1-0 win at Hawaii on Feb. 27.
The right-handed pitcher worked 1-2-3 innings five times, as he retired the final 12 batters of the game following a leadoff walk in the sixth. Garza was named the Mid-American Conference pitcher of the week for the performance.
This was Ball State's first complete game since Merritt Beeker allowed one run in 9.0 frames in May 2024 against Toledo at the Mid-American Conference Tournament and first nine-inning shutout in five years (John Baker against Western Michigan in a 2-0 win on March 19, 2021).
GETTING THE GREAT LAKES STATE OVER WITH: Ball State plays each of the three Mid-American Conference schools from Michigan in the first three series of conference play.
After playing Central Michigan last weekend to begin MAC play, the Cardinals host Eastern this weekend and play at Western next. Following the series with the Broncos, Ball State will have 19 games remaining against teams from Ohio, seven from Indiana and three each from Illinois and Massachusetts.
BALIUS BATS AND RUNS: Senior Gavin Balius collected a hit in each game against the Chippewas in addition to one Tuesday night at Kentucky and leads the Cardinals in stolen bases (13) while ranking third in hits (18) and second in batting average (.316) through the first 15 games of the season.
The Flushing, Mich., native has collected multiple hits in three games and multiple steals in four games so far this year. Balius leads the league and ranks 15th in Division I entering the weeken with the 13 steals.
PITCHERS PUTTING IN WORK: Led by Garza (3.70 ERA, 21 strikeouts in 24.1 innings), Owen Quinn (1.98 ERA, 11 strikeouts in 12.2 frames), and John Chambers (3.29 ERA, 16 strikeouts in 13.2 frames), the Ball State pitching staff has been one of the best in the league to start the year.
The Cardinals rank fourth in the MAC in ERA (5.82), fewest hits allowed per nine innings (9.35) and WHIP (1.54) as a group.
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The series opener at Shebek Stadium is slated for a 3 p.m. start time followed by 1 p.m. first pitches on Saturday and Sunday. Each game will be broadcast on WMUN 92.5 FM / 1340 AM and the WMUN app, while a video stream will be played on the WMUN Facebook page. Links to the broadcasts and live stats can be found above and on the schedule page.
Ball State (7-8) fell 10-3 at No. 25 Kentucky on Tuesday night after a series win against Central Michigan last weekend that featured comebacks on Saturday and Sunday to help the Cardinals prevail over the Chippewas.
Eastern Michigan (4-13) hosted Michigan State Tuesday afternoon and lost 13-5 to the Spartans after opening conference play getting swept in three games at Miami. The Eagles have lost six games in a row and have yet to play a common opponent with the Cardinals.
Trevor Beerman has stepped in as the interim head coach for EMU, a program that was picked to finish ninth in the 12-team MAC preseason coaches poll.
The Eagles are 11th in the league in team ERA (8.45) and runs per game (4.5) but have hit the fourth-most homers (18) and drawn the third-most walks (84) in the MAC so far this year.
Seniors Devan Zirwas (six home runs, 15 RBI) and Ty Stecko (five homers, 11 RBI) have the power bats for the Eagles, while fellow senior TJ Williams paces EMU in steals (seven) and is tied for first in hits (15).
Ball State's next scheduled game after this weekend is Tuesday afternoon at Valparaiso.
GRIFFITHS GETS GOING: Senior shortstop Brett Griffiths collected game-winning hits both Saturday and Sunday against Central Michigan to help Ball State win the series against the Chippewas.
A walk-off two-run double to left center finished off an 11-10 comeback win for the Cardinals on Sunday a day after Griffiths blasted a go-ahead solo homer in an 11-6 victory on Saturday. The senior tallied five hits including a double, triple and home run and five RBI during the weekend set.
COMEBACK CARDINALS: Ball State came back from a four-run deficit on Saturday and a seven-run hole on Sunday to post back-to-back comeback wins over Central Michigan.
The Cardinals trailed 6-2 after the top of the sixth inning Saturday but scored four times in the sixth, three in the seventh and twice in the eighth for the final nine runs of the game. Central led 7-0 Sunday after a seven-run fourth frame, 10-4 after the top of the eighth inning and 10-5 going into the ninth, but Ball State rallied for six runs to capture the win.
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GARZA GOES THE DISTANCE: Sophomore Brendan Garza surrendered only two hits and two walk and didn't allow a runner to advance past first base, in a complete game shutout in Ball State's 1-0 win at Hawaii on Feb. 27.
The right-handed pitcher worked 1-2-3 innings five times, as he retired the final 12 batters of the game following a leadoff walk in the sixth. Garza was named the Mid-American Conference pitcher of the week for the performance.
This was Ball State's first complete game since Merritt Beeker allowed one run in 9.0 frames in May 2024 against Toledo at the Mid-American Conference Tournament and first nine-inning shutout in five years (John Baker against Western Michigan in a 2-0 win on March 19, 2021).
GETTING THE GREAT LAKES STATE OVER WITH: Ball State plays each of the three Mid-American Conference schools from Michigan in the first three series of conference play.
After playing Central Michigan last weekend to begin MAC play, the Cardinals host Eastern this weekend and play at Western next. Following the series with the Broncos, Ball State will have 19 games remaining against teams from Ohio, seven from Indiana and three each from Illinois and Massachusetts.
BALIUS BATS AND RUNS: Senior Gavin Balius collected a hit in each game against the Chippewas in addition to one Tuesday night at Kentucky and leads the Cardinals in stolen bases (13) while ranking third in hits (18) and second in batting average (.316) through the first 15 games of the season.
The Flushing, Mich., native has collected multiple hits in three games and multiple steals in four games so far this year. Balius leads the league and ranks 15th in Division I entering the weeken with the 13 steals.
PITCHERS PUTTING IN WORK: Led by Garza (3.70 ERA, 21 strikeouts in 24.1 innings), Owen Quinn (1.98 ERA, 11 strikeouts in 12.2 frames), and John Chambers (3.29 ERA, 16 strikeouts in 13.2 frames), the Ball State pitching staff has been one of the best in the league to start the year.
The Cardinals rank fourth in the MAC in ERA (5.82), fewest hits allowed per nine innings (9.35) and WHIP (1.54) as a group.
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Players Mentioned
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