EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville baseball team will continue a season-long eight-game homestand on Tuesday night, as the Purple Aces will welcome the SIUE Cougars to German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium for a non-conference contest. First-pitch is set for 6 p.m.
Evansville will bring a 9-13 overall record into Tuesday night’s game. The Purple Aces are trying to snap a season-long five-game losing streak, as UE has dropped three one-run decisions in the last five contests. UE is led offensively by graduate outfielder Mark Shallenberger, who will bring a team-best .398 batting average into Tuesday’s contest. Shallenberger currently ranks third in NCAA Division I baseball with 15 hit-by-pitches this season, as he is just one HBP shy of the national lead. Career-wise, Shallenberger ranks fifth among active Division I players with 47 career HBPs, and he is just four shy of UE’s career mark of 51, set by Troy Beilsmith in 2021. He currently ranks 11th among Division I players in on-base percentage this year at .561.
SIUE will bring a 7-17 overall record into Tuesday’s game after winning two out of three games against Lindenwood to open Ohio Valley Conference play over the weekend. Junior outfielder Lucas Spencer currently paces the SIUE offense with a .398 batting average. Spencer has collected eight doubles, two triples, and a home run offensively for SIUE, and he has been red-hot as of late, as he will ride a nine-game hitting streak into Tuesday’s contest.
Evansville out-lasted SIUE, 11-7, last March in Edwardsville, Illinois to win the only season meeting a year ago. UE launched four home runs in the contest, led by current graduate catcher Brendan Hord, who went 4-for-6 with two home runs and four RBI. All-time, UE leads the series 18-8.
