Redhawk baseball undeniable in conference-opening sweep at Eastern Illinois

Southeast's Sam Heyman winds for a pitch during a March 3, 2024 game between the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks and the Toledo Rockets at Capaha Field in Cape Girardeau, Mo. Toledo defeated Southeast, 10-9.

Clay Herrell ~ cherrell@semoball.com

After finishing the early non-conference schedule with a less-than-desirable record, Southeast baseball (12-13, 3-0) made a loud statement over the weekend in its conference-opening series.

The Redhawks went on the road to Charleston, Illinois, for a series at Eastern Illinois (5-16, 0-3) and smothered the Panthers in their house, scoring a whopping 56 runs in the series.

Good for an average of nearly 19 runs per game, Eastern never had a chance against an unstoppable Redhawk offense, scoring a series-low 15 runs on Sunday in the finale.

Finishing with 54 hits over their three-game stay in the Land of Lincoln, the Redhawks made a smashing first impression in the Ohio Valley Conference to wipe away some early doubts.

Caleb Corbin kept his hot streak going, racking up eight hits over the weekend for SEMO, including a Saturday homer and a double and triple effort on Sunday.

His average has shot up to .433 with 10 games now played in the 2024 season, leading the recent charge for the Redhawks as they’re streaking back in the right direction.

The defense slacked on Friday, but Southeast put up back-to-back four-run efforts on Saturday and Sunday to ensure the offense’s high-motor effort was more than enough.

Sam Heyman (2-0) put up a scoreless five-inning appearance on Sunday, allowing just three hits and a walk to hold the Panther offense at bay through his start.

Alex Hayes (2-1) and Tommy Windt (3-2) earned wins on Friday and Saturday respectively for Southeast, with Windt allowing just one run over three innings of work.

The Redhawks slid into a stretch in which they lost five of six games starting in the Marshall series in Huntington, West Virginia, but they’ve turned that on its head lately.

Beginning with this past week’s Tuesday shootout victory over Austin Peay, Southeast has now rallied to put a four-game winning streak together in which its scored 64 runs.

There’s some wind under the Redhawks’ wings, and it's certainly turning some eyes around the grounds within the Ohio Valley ranks.

They’ll be tested this week with a 3 p.m. Tuesday game at Missouri State (10-12, 1-2) before returning to Capaha Field for a weekend league series against SIU-Edwardsville (7-17, 2-1).

That midweek game against an in-state power has a huge opportunity to show the Redhawks’ mettle following a win at Missouri earlier this year.

With any luck, Southeast has a chance to extend its conference-opening dominance with a fun weekend against the visiting Cougars of SIUE, looking to make it 6-0 in the OVC.