Evansville baseball advances to first MVC championship game since 2006

The University of Evansville baseball team will play for a title.

The No. 4-seeded Purple Aces advanced to the Missouri Valley Conference tournament championship Saturday after beating No. 2 seed Missouri State 11-3 in the elimination game Friday night. UE lost 10-1 against Indiana State in the winners’ bracket final during the afternoon before extending its season against the Bears.

UE is the first No. 4 seed to advance to Championship Saturday since Creighton in 2009.

All that stands between the Aces and a first NCAA Tournament berth since 2006, which was also their last appearance in the MVC title game, is the No. 1-seeded Sycamores. UE beat Indiana State in the first meeting between the two this season but dropped the next three contests between the in-state rivals.

Last game: 'Here we are': Evansville baseball rallies late to another MVC tournament win

The first of two possible games starts at 1:30 p.m. CT in Terre Haute.

"I felt like we busted through a door bouncing back in Game 2 today to give ourselves a chance to do something unique and special," coach Wes Carroll said. "It means a lot for our program, our past players that have worked really hard to turn this program around over the past five years to put ourselves in this type of position."

The Sycamores are expected to be in the Field of 64 regardless of what happens Saturday while the Aces need to win both possible games to earn an automatic bid. Indiana State is likely to host a regional with a win.

That leaves everything to play for on both sides.

"It's pretty special and unique to play in a championship game," Carroll said. "I want them to feel like, 'Hey, this is different and this is something that we've earned,' this different feeling of playing in a big-time game."

Here are some of the keys for the Aces to snap their 16-year danceless run.

Pitching needs to continue to find success

Should UE upset the Sycamores, its pitching will have to be at the heart of the campaign. Nick Smith and Donovan Schultz both had good performances in the opening wins against Southern Illinois and Murray State, respectively, but there were concerning signs Friday.

The Aces’ pitching staff hit 10 batters between the two games, including eight against Indiana State, and allowed the Sycamores to knock 13 hits in the loss. Despite the quick turnaround, UE's staff allowed two hits against the Bears.

"I think it's huge for our program," Game 2 starter Tyler Denu said. "It was huge for us because we were in the same exact spot last year."

Denu threw five innings against Missouri State and held a no-hit bid through the first four. He had seven strikeouts to show for his efforts. Jarrett Blunt had a strong start for the Aces against Indiana State before the Sycamores piled on in the second half of the game.

UE’s bullpen, despite falling into the losing bracket, remains largely fresh. That could be crucial to the Aces’ upset hopes.

"That's why we were really able to compete in Game 2," Carroll said. "It's gonna be all hands on deck tomorrow. Hopefully we're asking pitchers to dig deep and really give us some quality outs and innings on the mound."

Carroll said he has not decided who will start Saturday.

Keeping the bats hot

The Aces started the tournament with eight hits in the win against Southern Illinois. That number gradually decreased as they went deeper into the competition — five against both Murray State and Indiana State, with some of those coming when the game was largely out of reach.

UE’s bats returned against Missouri State, though, with 13 hits in the elimination game. The Aces got plenty of help from the Bears, who had more errors than runs and hits through the eighth inning, but getting the offense going before Championship Saturday could have major implications.

"I think it's just believing in ourselves. It's just letting it go, letting it fly and having fun," second baseman Kip Fougerousse said. "I think that's what we did. Maybe played a little tight first game but we had a conversation, 'Just go out there, have fun, let it fly.'"

Fougerousse and Chase Hug both hit home runs in Friday’s doubleheader.

Learning from the Sycamores and last season

As Denu said, UE was in the same position last season. The Aces faced top-seeded Southern Illinois and eventual champion Missouri State in the conference tournament a year ago and fell short of Championship Saturday.

The potentially demoralizing loss to Indiana State on Friday could have lent itself to another familiar finish but UE tamed the Bears in the second leg of the do-or-die doubleheader. Carroll credited Blunt and Deno for their efforts as being part of the reason.

"Our dugout. Our life, our energy, the character of our team showing up 45 minutes later after that loss really showed a lot," Carroll said. "We earned playing in this championship game on Saturday against a quality club."

Indiana State led 3-1 going into the sixth inning. The Sycamores scored four in the frame before adding three more to their tally. Carroll said the key going into Saturday was limiting big innings.

"We can't stack freebies on top of each other," Carroll said. "We know they're gonna come out with a lot of energy, a lot of life. We have to absorb whatever pressure they apply, but most importantly, we just gotta play against the baseball tomorrow and not against a uniform or a team. We just gotta play better overall baseball."

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Evansville Purple Aces: Baseball advances to MVC title game