MANKATO, Minn. – Minnesota State baseball hosts Southwest Minnesota State this weekend in their final regular season conference series. The two teams will play a doubleheader on Friday, beginning at 1:30 p.m., followed by a single game on Saturday at noon. Prior to Saturday's game, Minnesota State will honor its seniors with a Senior Day celebration at 11:45 a.m. The Mavericks are 9-1 at home and are on a three-game winning streak.

Last Time on the Diamond
Minnesota State (41-5, 33-4 NSIC) is coming off a dominant performance in a midweek doubleheader sweep over Wayne State College, winning by scores of 4-0 and 18-2.

In game one, the Mavericks struck early, taking advantage of a first-inning fielding error to plate Aidan Byrne. Jake Berkland scored in the second on a sacrifice bunt by Nick Baker to extend the lead to 2-0. A solo home run by Braxton Haggith in the fourth and another run in the sixth helped seal the shutout win. Maverick pitching was stellar, holding Wayne State to five hits over seven innings and recording five strikeouts.

Game two featured an explosive offensive display by the Mavericks. Logan Miller opened the scoring with a two-RBI single in the second, and Minnesota State added runs in six of the eight innings. Byrne highlighted the third with a double, stole third, and scored on a wild pitch. The Mavericks capitalized on Wayne State's miscues and aggressive baserunning in a huge fifth inning.

Minnesota State finished with 18 runs on 15 hits, led by multi-hit games from Miller, Fleischhacker, Berkland, and Haggith. The Mavericks also demonstrated patience at the plate, drawing walks and taking advantage of hit-by-pitches throughout the game.

Scouting SMSU
The Mustangs enter the weekend with a 23-21 overall record and an 18-19 mark in NSIC play, sitting eighth in the conference standings.

Offensively, SMSU is led by Cory Bantam, who boasts a .370 batting average with five home runs and 40 RBI. On the mound, Ryan Chmielewski anchors the rotation with a 3.74 ERA and a 5-2 record.

Last season, the Mavericks split a pair of regular season games in Marshall against the Mustangs, then won 15-2 in the second game of the NSIC Baseball Tournament in Mandan, N.D.

Record Watch
Several Mavericks are approaching Minnesota State records, including Ike Mezzenga, who is three home runs short of the single season record of 19 set by Jordan Hart in 2019. Mezzenga is also chasing Hart's 2019 runs batted in single season mark. Hart posted 72 RBI in 2019. Mezzenga currently stands at 67.

Byrne has 279 career hits, ten short of the Minnesota State record, set by Nolan Johnson (289) in 2015. Byrne also needs one run scored to tie the MSU career record of 225, set by Eric Peterson (2014-17).