BASEBALL PREVIEW: TENNESSEE-MARTIN VS. LINDENWOOD (MO.)

MARION, Ill. (Interstat) — The seed Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks (24-27) face the seed Lindenwood Lions (28-26) in the opening round of the Ohio Valley Conference Baseball Championship on Tuesday evening at 2026 OVC Baseball Championship site.

Tennessee-Martin enters the single-elimination tournament after sweeping a three-game series from Lindenwood in March, outscoring the Lions 32-10 across the set. The Skyhawks won 15-7, 10-1 and 7-2 in Martin, Tennessee.

The Skyhawks will likely turn to right-handed pitcher Maxwell Schumacher, who has been inconsistent but delivered a dominant performance in his most recent start. On May 15 against SIU Edwardsville, Schumacher threw 7 innings, allowing no hits and four earned runs with five strikeouts in an 8-7 win. In four starts this month, he has a 5.16 ERA over 22 2/3 innings, striking out 14.

Lindenwood counters with third baseman Owen Ralph, who went 4-for-4 with two RBIs in the Lions’ 14-9 loss at Southern Indiana on May 16. Ralph is hitting .385 over his past five games and leads the team in on-base percentage.

Recent results for both teams are mixed. Tennessee-Martin won two of its final three regular-season series, taking two of three against Western Illinois and splitting with Arkansas-Little Rock. Lindenwood dropped its final series at Southern Indiana, losing two of three.

Tennessee-Martin’s Maxwell Schumacher also logged a win against Eastern Illinois on April 26, throwing 6 innings and allowing five earned runs on seven hits. For Lindenwood, Ralph went 3-for-4 with an RBI in the Lions’ 10-2 win at Southern Indiana on May 15.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a 5-4 victory for Tennessee-Martin.

First pitch is scheduled for [time] with weather forecast of [temperature] degrees. The winner advances to face the winner of seed versus seed matchup in the tournament’s next round.