Five Series to Watch
1) Oregon State at Oregon
“The Civil War” is set and ready to get under way this weekend in Eugene, OR. Another fun rivalry in the collegiate landscape, the series this season carries a heavier air of importance than in year’s past. Oregon enters the weekend with an RPI of 37 which should be strong enough to get them to the NCAA Tournament, what should be considered a huge accomplishment for this Ducks’ squad. The only problem? They are currently 21-22 overall and must hold a record of .500 or better to qualify for post season play. The Ducks are slated to play Utah and Arizona State in the final weeks of Pac-12. They’ve made it through the gantlet and now just need to find away to grind out victories the rest of the way. Picking up a couple wins over Oregon State would be a great start.
For Oregon State, they should be considered a bubble team for the NCAA Tournament at 21-18 with a 42 RPI it is coming down to the wire for the Beavers who only have two weekends of Pac-12 play remaining. Oregon State really cannot afford to lose any remaining games.
2) Drexel at James Madison
A meeting of No. 1 and No. 2 in the Colonial Athletic Association is set to take place this weekend in Harrisonburg, VA. While JMU is comfortably in control of the CAA regular season race the Dragons can really swing it. If their pitching staff can hold up this could be a fun weekend of ball.
3) Illinois at Ohio State
The Illini and Buckeyes are teams battling to build their postseason resumes in hopes of receiving an NCAA tournament nod. Illinois currently holds an RPI of 45 while Ohio State sits at 41; this series will be pivot for both squads.
Ohio State holds the advantage has they have stronger pitching and more depth in the circle but both programs can absolutely crush the ball, so, get ready for what could be an offensive battle.
4) Missouri at Mississippi State
In what could be considered a slightly underrated series this weekend, the Tigers travel to Starkville, MS. for a matchup with the Bulldogs. For Mizzou, they look to maintain their spot atop the best in the SEC while Mississippi State is fighting for their place in the SEC Tournament; different storylines for both programs but equally important for the direction of each’s season end and postseason goals.
5) Louisiana Tech versus WKU
After a tornado devastated La Tech’s facilities this week (no injuries reported), the fate of the huge series between conference No. 1 and No. 2 La Tech and WKU was left in question. Enter Louisiana Monroe who has offered their facility for these teams to square off.
For La Tech, this weekend was to include senior day festivities. Couple that with the natural feeling of emotions running high keep on eye on the Ladytechsters and how they work to overcome this adversity. La Tech enters the weekend one game back from WKU and tied at 14-4 with North Texas.
