Redbirds Set to Battle Sycamores in MVC Tournament
NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State baseball will open the 2025 Missouri Valley Conference Baseball Tournament on Tuesday afternoon as the No. 5 seed Redbirds play No. 8 seed Indiana State at 1:30 PM.
GAME INFORMATION
No. 5 Illinois State (27-26, 15-12 MVC) vs No. 8 Indiana State (24-30, 12-15 MVC)
SCHEDULE
Tuesday, May 20, at 1:30 PM CT | VIDEO | STATS
MVC TOURNAMENT HISTORY (UNDER HOLM)
Illinois State will make its fifth MVC Tournament appearance under the direction of head coach Steve Holm (2019, 2021, 2022, 2024, and 2025).
2025 marks the third time Illinois State will be a top-five seed in the MVC Tournament since 2019. The Redbirds were the No. 2 seed in 2019 and No. 4 seed in 2024, respectively.
SERIES HISTORY
Indiana State leads in the all-time series, dating back to 1948, holding an 122-92 margin.
The last meeting between Illinois State and Indiana State in the MVC Tournament came during the 2021 MVC Tournament as the Sycamores claimed a 5-2 win in Carbondale over the Redbirds.
The two programs met in Terre Haute last weekend, as the Redbirds took two of three to secure their first road series win over the Sycamores since 2018.
Game one (Thursday) saw the Redbirds tally five home runs en route to an 11-4 win. After dropping a 17-3 result on Friday, ILS stormed back on Saturday to score 12 runs on 15 hits for a series clinching 12-1 win in seven innings.
SCOUTING THE SYCAMORES
Indiana State is 24-30 overall in 2025, including 12-15 in MVC play, to return to the MVC Baseball Championships for the 15th consecutive season after claiming the No. 8 seed overall in the postseason.
The Sycamores in the No. 8 spot marked the lowest seed by an Indiana State team in the Valley tournament since the field was expected to at least eight teams in the 2010 season.
For the latest updates on Illinois State Baseball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdBaseball) and Instagram (isuredbirdbaseball), and like the team on Facebook (Illinois State Baseball).
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
Latest Athletics News
- Redbirds’ MVC Tournament Run Ends on ThursdayThe Illinois State baseball team dropped a pair of Thursday games in the 2025 MVC Championship to no. 2 seed Missouri State and no. 6 seed Belmont.
- Ten Redbirds Selected To Represent Illinois State At NCAA West First Round In TexasThe NCAA has announced its selection of athletes for the 2025 NCAA West first round, which will begin on May 28 in College Station, Texas.
- Starks Earns MVC Women's Scholar-Athlete Of The Year As 17 Redbirds Named To Scholar-Athlete TeamThe Missouri Valley Conference has announced its Track and Field Scholar-Athletes of the Year and Scholar-Athlete teams Thursday morning.
- Redbirds Open MVC Tournament with Win over Sycamores, 14-4Illinois State defeated Indiana State in its first Missouri Valley Conference Tournament game, 14-4. Tyrelle Chadwick fanned seven batters in the victory.
- Six Redbirds Honored with All-MVC Team SelectionsJunior Daniel Pacella was named First-Team All-MVC to headline a group of six Illinois State baseball student-athletes honored by the conference, as announced Tuesday morning.
- Redbirds' Secure Runner-Up Finishes and Three Individual MVC Titles on Day Two of MVC ChampionshipThe Illinois State track & field program closed out the 2025 MVC Outdoor Track & Field Championship at the Lew Hartzog Track & Field Complex, Sunday afternoon.
