ST. LOUIS (Interstat) — Two teams seeking momentum will meet when the Bradley Braves visit the Saint Louis Billikens on Friday at Billiken Sports Center.

First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. under cloudy skies with a temperature near 59 degrees.

Both clubs enter with identical 4-7 overall records, though Bradley has won three of its last four, including an 8-7 victory at SIU Edwardsville on Tuesday. Saint Louis has dropped three straight, most recently a 3-2 home loss to Western Illinois on Tuesday.

A key matchup will feature Bradley’s Joey Cirelli against Saint Louis’ Liam McKinney. Cirelli, a right-hander, is coming off a unique performance Tuesday where he pitched 7 1/3 innings of relief, allowing five earned runs on no hits with one strikeout in the win. His outing prior at UNLV on Feb. 22 lasted just 2 1/3 innings.

For the Billikens, right-hander Liam McKinney has been effective in two of his last three appearances. He threw three scoreless innings of relief against Western Illinois on Tuesday and three more scoreless frames in a win over Southern Indiana on Feb. 25. However, he allowed six earned runs while recording just two outs at North Alabama on Feb. 22.

In Tuesday’s win, Bradley was led by designated hitter Jack Holubowski, who drove in three runs, and third baseman Luke Skinner, who added two hits and an RBI. Saint Louis’ bullpen kept it close against Western Illinois, with Andrew DuMont and Drew Welk combining for 4 2/3 innings of relief, allowing two runs and striking out seven.

Projections for the series opener are split. The Interstat game simulator predicts a narrow 5-4 victory for Bradley, while the same service’s ELO rating system gives Saint Louis a 62.5% probability to win.

The teams will continue the three-game series on Saturday and Sunday in St. Louis.