The University of Illinois Springfield baseball team heads to Missouri S&T this weekend where it will play a four-game conference series against the Miners. UIS enters the weekend atop the rankings in the GLVC Blue Division, and Missouri S&T sits in fourth place in the division.
 
This past weekend, the Prairie Stars swept a four-game series against Lewis University. UIS scored 26 runs in the series, while allowing just 17.
 
The 13th nationally-ranked Prairie Stars are carrying an 11-game winning streak into Missouri S&T. Overall, the baseball team is 29-6 on the season and 9-3 in conference play. 
 
The Prairie Star pitching staff has been solid all season long. They currently are second in the GLVC with a team ERA of 4.72. The UIS staff is ranked third in the country with 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings.
 
On the offensive side, UIS has a .332 team batting average. The Prairie Stars are also averaging nearly 10 runs per game. Many of UIS runs come via the long ball. They lead the conference by far with 67 home runs and a slugging percentage of .586. Those 67 home runs are good enough for the tenth-most home runs in the nation. 
 
Asher Bradd leads the conference in hits with 58, and also leads the conference in runs scored with 57. He is second in the GLVC with five triples. Zion Pettigrew leads the GLVC in RBIs with 55, home runs with 17, and total bases at 113.
 
Seth Masters stood out on the mound for not only UIS, but throughout the entire conference last week. He pitched 10 innings, allowed 0 runs, and struck out 14 batters in two appearances for the Prairie Stars. This stat line was worthy of GLVC Pitcher of the Week honors. The Prairie Stars also lead the league in fielding percentage at .974.
 
UIS vs. Missouri S&T
Date/Time/Location: Friday, April 22, 2:00 P.M. - Rolla, Mo.
Date/Time/Location: Saturday, April 23, 12:00 P.M. - Rolla, Mo. (Doubleheader)
Date/Time/Location: Sunday, April 24, 12:00 P.M. -Rolla, Mo.
Streaming: https://glvcsn.com/mst/
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/mst/baseball
All Time Series: Missouri S&T leads 16-12 (MST leads 7-2 in Rolla)
 
Missouri S&T enters play this weekend with a record of 16-15 overall and a 5-7 record in GLVC play. In their last conference series,  the Miners split the four games with Indianapolis.
 
Missouri S&T has proven it can hit with a team batting average of .310, and it has scored 248 runs in 31 games. The Miners are also at the top of the conference in stolen bases with 74. The Miners pitching staff has a 7.62 ERA, and leads the GLVC in saves with seven.
 
The offense is led by Doug Wood who has a .418 batting average and six home runs. On the mound, Cade Meier leads the Miners with a 3.99 ERA in 29.1 innings. He is 3-1 on the year. 
 
Last year, UIS swept the Miners in a four-game series that was played in Springfield. The Prairie Stars outscored the Miners 51-21 in that series. 
 
Up Next: 
UIS will travel to the University of Indianapolis for a four-game GLVC series on April 29 through May 1.