Ball State University Athletics
Friday, May 8
DeKalb, Ill.
4 PM ET / 3 PM CT
Ball State University
at
Northern Illinois
Photo by: Caden Vincent
Baseball Heading to Northern Illinois for Final Road Series of Season
May 07, 2026 | Baseball
The Ball State baseball team is set for its final road series of the season when it plays at Northern Illinois this weekend.
Friday's game is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET (3 p.m. CT) with start times for Saturday at 3 p.m. ET (2 CT) and Sunday at 2 p.m. ET (1 CT). Links to the broadcasts and live stats can be found above and on the schedule page.
Ball State (21-26, 14-13 Mid-American Conference) stands at sixth place in the league standings and will look to bolster its chances of playing in the MAC Tournament, which takes the top six teams.
Northern Illinois (29-13, 19-8 MAC) is in a tie for second in the conference standings and has clinched a spot in the MAC Tournament. The Huskies swept Central Michigan last weekend on the road and are riding a four-game winning streak.
Ryan Copeland is in his third season as the head coach at NIU, who was picked eighth in the MAC preseason poll.
The Huskies' pitching staff ranks second in the conference in WHIP (1.46) and fewest hits allowed per nine innings (8.99) while ranking third in ERA (5.72). Northern Illinois' offense is fifth in the league in scoring at 7.5 runs per game.
Senior left-handed pitcher Max Vaisvila is second in the MAC in ERA (3.41), WHIP (1.12) and strikeouts (71) and third in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.94). Freshman outfielder Wyatt Wawro boasts a .391 batting average (third in the MAC, No. 26 in NCAA Division I) and .520 on base percentage (third in the MAC, No. 12 nationally).
After the weekend, Ball State next plays Purdue on Tuesday afternoon.
HUSKIES HEADING TO THE HORIZON: Ball State will face Northern Illinois for the final time in DeKalb as Mid-American Conference foes, as NIU is set to compete in the Horizon League starting next season.
The Cardinals enter the weekend sporting a 72-38-1 record in the series history with the Huskies including a 38-23-1 mark in DeKalb. Ball State has won the last four meetings against Northern Illinois and 23 of the last 25.
DOING DAMAGE AS THE DESIGNATED HITTER: Sophomore Brayden Huebner stands among the league leaders in multiple offensive categories entering this weekend.
The right-handed batter, who has slotted in as the DH and leadoff hitter for the balance of the season, ranks third in the MAC in slugging percentage (.673), fourth in doubles (15), fifth in runs scored (51), and 12th in batting average (.347).
QUICK CARDINALS: Seniors Gavin Balius and Brett Griffiths are near the top of the national leaderboards in stolen bases and triples, respectively.
Balius has swiped 34 bags to pace the MAC and rank eighth in NCAA Division I, while Griffith's six triples are the fourth-most nationally. Justin Love (44 steals in 1997) and Zach Cole (nine triples in 2022) hold Ball State program records in those categories.
CLEAN FIELDING AND TURNING TWO: Ball State leads the league in double plays turned (38) and ranks third in the MAC with a .977 fielding percentage.
The 2025 Cardinals finished the season ranking fourth in NCAA Division I in fielding percentage (.983) and 20th with 49 double plays.
BAKUS COMES THROUGH IN THE CLUTCH: Junior Jack Bakus hit a walk-off two-run homer on April 25 against UMass to give Ball State a 10-9 win over the Minutemen.
The blast was the second of the season for the first baseman, with both being of the pinch hit and go-ahead variety. Bakus came on in the ninth inning of the March 21 contest at Western Michigan to drill a grand slam and give the Cardinals a 7-6 edge in an eventual 8-6 win.
COMEBACK CARDINALS: Ball State's 10-9 win over UMass on April 25 was its fifth this season when trailing entering the ninth inning.
The walk-off home run from Bakus was the first of the year for the Cardinals, while Griffiths delivered a pair of walk-off knocks earlier in the campaign (March 8 vs Central Michigan and April 11 vs Akron). The two wins at Western Michigan (March 21 and 22) also featured comebacks from down 6-3 and 4-3 going into the ninth, respectively.
SEVENTH INNING STRETCH AND NINTH INNING RALLIES: The Ball State offense has been at its best in the seventh innings of games, scoring 54 runs total in that frame so far this season.
The Cardinals have allowed 38 runs in the seventh this year for a +16 run margin. Ball State's best run differential in an inning is +26 (32-6) in the ninth largely thanks to the five comeback wins as mentioned above.
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Friday's game is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET (3 p.m. CT) with start times for Saturday at 3 p.m. ET (2 CT) and Sunday at 2 p.m. ET (1 CT). Links to the broadcasts and live stats can be found above and on the schedule page.
Ball State (21-26, 14-13 Mid-American Conference) stands at sixth place in the league standings and will look to bolster its chances of playing in the MAC Tournament, which takes the top six teams.
Northern Illinois (29-13, 19-8 MAC) is in a tie for second in the conference standings and has clinched a spot in the MAC Tournament. The Huskies swept Central Michigan last weekend on the road and are riding a four-game winning streak.
Ryan Copeland is in his third season as the head coach at NIU, who was picked eighth in the MAC preseason poll.
The Huskies' pitching staff ranks second in the conference in WHIP (1.46) and fewest hits allowed per nine innings (8.99) while ranking third in ERA (5.72). Northern Illinois' offense is fifth in the league in scoring at 7.5 runs per game.
Senior left-handed pitcher Max Vaisvila is second in the MAC in ERA (3.41), WHIP (1.12) and strikeouts (71) and third in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.94). Freshman outfielder Wyatt Wawro boasts a .391 batting average (third in the MAC, No. 26 in NCAA Division I) and .520 on base percentage (third in the MAC, No. 12 nationally).
After the weekend, Ball State next plays Purdue on Tuesday afternoon.
HUSKIES HEADING TO THE HORIZON: Ball State will face Northern Illinois for the final time in DeKalb as Mid-American Conference foes, as NIU is set to compete in the Horizon League starting next season.
The Cardinals enter the weekend sporting a 72-38-1 record in the series history with the Huskies including a 38-23-1 mark in DeKalb. Ball State has won the last four meetings against Northern Illinois and 23 of the last 25.
DOING DAMAGE AS THE DESIGNATED HITTER: Sophomore Brayden Huebner stands among the league leaders in multiple offensive categories entering this weekend.
The right-handed batter, who has slotted in as the DH and leadoff hitter for the balance of the season, ranks third in the MAC in slugging percentage (.673), fourth in doubles (15), fifth in runs scored (51), and 12th in batting average (.347).
QUICK CARDINALS: Seniors Gavin Balius and Brett Griffiths are near the top of the national leaderboards in stolen bases and triples, respectively.
Balius has swiped 34 bags to pace the MAC and rank eighth in NCAA Division I, while Griffith's six triples are the fourth-most nationally. Justin Love (44 steals in 1997) and Zach Cole (nine triples in 2022) hold Ball State program records in those categories.
CLEAN FIELDING AND TURNING TWO: Ball State leads the league in double plays turned (38) and ranks third in the MAC with a .977 fielding percentage.
The 2025 Cardinals finished the season ranking fourth in NCAA Division I in fielding percentage (.983) and 20th with 49 double plays.
BAKUS COMES THROUGH IN THE CLUTCH: Junior Jack Bakus hit a walk-off two-run homer on April 25 against UMass to give Ball State a 10-9 win over the Minutemen.
The blast was the second of the season for the first baseman, with both being of the pinch hit and go-ahead variety. Bakus came on in the ninth inning of the March 21 contest at Western Michigan to drill a grand slam and give the Cardinals a 7-6 edge in an eventual 8-6 win.
COMEBACK CARDINALS: Ball State's 10-9 win over UMass on April 25 was its fifth this season when trailing entering the ninth inning.
The walk-off home run from Bakus was the first of the year for the Cardinals, while Griffiths delivered a pair of walk-off knocks earlier in the campaign (March 8 vs Central Michigan and April 11 vs Akron). The two wins at Western Michigan (March 21 and 22) also featured comebacks from down 6-3 and 4-3 going into the ninth, respectively.
SEVENTH INNING STRETCH AND NINTH INNING RALLIES: The Ball State offense has been at its best in the seventh innings of games, scoring 54 runs total in that frame so far this season.
The Cardinals have allowed 38 runs in the seventh this year for a +16 run margin. Ball State's best run differential in an inning is +26 (32-6) in the ninth largely thanks to the five comeback wins as mentioned above.
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