Raiders ready to host SEMO for a three-game set

Friday, March 13

3 PM

Wright State University

Southeast Missouri State

Photo by: Alexis Sherman

3/12/2026 6:00:00 PM | Baseball

DAYTON- The Wright State baseball team (5-9) will return home to Nischwitz Stadium for its first home series of the year this weekend as Southeastern Missouri State (SEMO) comes to town. The two teams will meet at 3 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. on Saturday, and 1 p.m. on Sunday. Live stats will be provided all three days, with Saturday's contest being available to stream on ESPN+.

GAME INFORMATION
Friday, Mar. 13 – LIVE STATS
Saturday, Mar. 14 - WATCH (ESPN+) | LIVE STATS
Sunday, Mar. 15 - LIVE STATS

PROJECTED STARTERS
Friday- Cam Allen, RHP
Saturday- Griffen Paige, LHP
Sunday- Chet Lax, LHP

HISTORY VS. SEMO
This weekend's series will be the third three-game set between Wright State and SEMO, a series Wright State leads 4-2. The Raiders have taken the series over the Redhawks in both of their previous meetings. When the two teams met in Cape Girardeau in 2011, Wright State took the series opener 6-5 and the series finale 5-3 to secure the series win. The following season, the two squads met at Nischwitz Stadium. After dropping game one of that series 7-10, the Raiders would bounce back to win 2-0 on Saturday and 6-5 on Sunday to clinch the series.

SCOUTING THE REDHAWKS
SEMO enters the weekend at 11-7 on the season and is currently riding a six-game winning streak. During that stretch, the Redhawks have defeated Miami (OH), Evansville, Missouri State, and swept a three-game set with fellow Horizon League member Milwaukee. SEMO is 1-4 on the road this season, with its lone win coming in a four-game set at Western Kentucky.

Outfielder Joe Hall paces the Redhawk offense, leading the team in batting average (.411), hits (30), doubles (7), and total bases (49). Hall is second on the team in runs scored (18) and home runs (4). Mason Pennington is the ace of the SEMO pitching staff and is slated to start Friday's game. Pennington is 3-0 on the season and is pitching to the tune of a 2.95 ERA while leading the team in strikeouts with 24.

LAST TIME OUT
The Raiders clubbed three home runs but ultimately fell at Indiana 4-12 on Tuesday evening in Bloomington.

Indiana came out swinging and got on the board first, plating four runs in the bottom of the first inning. Jake Hanley opened the scoring with an RBI double before Caleb Koskie deposited a three-run homer over the wall in left.

Cy Turner got the Raiders on the board in the top of the second with a solo shot to right. The home run is Turner's first of the season.

The Raiders would get two more runs in the top of the fourth on two more solo shots. Hunter Warren blasted the first pitch of the inning over the wall in left, his third homer of the season. Braylen Blomquist would blast his second homer of the season over the wall in right to cut the Indiana lead to one.

Indiana would break the game wide open with three runs in the bottom of the sixth and five runs in the bottom of the eighth.

Wright State would bring across one more run in the top of the seventh on a JP Peltier RBI single.

It was a bullpen day on the mound for the Raiders with eight different arms seeing action on the mound, and nobody throwing over 1.1 innings. Keegan Holmstrom made his first collegiate start on the bump before turning the ball over to the bullpen. Abe Crall, Brody Papay, Michael Zielinski, Cooper Ashby, JJ Thompson, Matthew Johnson, and Caleb Ehling all saw action out of the Raider bullpen.

SWEEPING THE HL WEEKLY HONORS
Wright State left-handed pitcher Chet Lax and outfielder Cy Turner have swept the Horizon League weekly awards, earning HL Pitcher and Batter of the week honors, the League office announced on Wednesday

Wright State got a quality start on the mound from junior Lax in his home state Sunday afternoon, as the Raiders went on to shut out #19 Tennessee 6-0. The Hendersonville, TN native twirled seven shutout innings, allowing just five hits while striking out four Volunteers. Lax commanded the strike zone, throwing 63 strikes on 84 pitches and allowing no walks on the afternoon. The left-hander picked up the win, improving to 4-0 on the season. Lax leads the Horizon League in wins and is second in ERA (2.50).

Turner had a great week at the dish for Wright State, hitting to the tune of a .429 batting average while slugging .786. Turner has hit safely in his last five games, with a trio of extra-base hits, and has driven in a run in each of his last three games. The senior delivered a big RBI double in Sunday's win at #19 Tennessee. Turner continued to swing a hot bat at Indiana Tuesday night, clubbing his first home run of the season.

RANKED WINS
Wright State has picked up a pair of wins over ranked opponents so far this season. The Raiders upset No. 6 Georgia 6-4 during opening weekend, then defeated No. 19 Tennessee last weekend 6-0. This is the first time the Raiders have picked up multiple ranked wins since they won three ranked wins in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, defeating No. 1 Louisville 10-3 before defeating No. 11 Tennessee twice, taking the series opener 5-4 and the series finale 6-3

PRESEASON HYPE
D1Baseball placed four Raiders in its annual preseason positional rankings. Patrick Fultz led the bunch coming in as the 17^th-ranked third baseman. JP Peltier joined Fultz in the top 50, coming in as the 39^th-ranked first baseman. Cam Allen enters his junior campaign as the 115^th-ranked starting pitcher, and Cam Gilkerson rounds out the bunch as the #149^th-ranked outfielder.

BUY STOCK NOW
In its conference preview, D1Baseball selected a pair of Raiders to take home specialty awards in the Horizon League. JP Peltier was selected as the preseason Player of the Year, while Cam Allen was selected as the preseason Pitcher of the Year.

D1Baseball also identified 10 Raiders as top draft prospects out of the Horizon League for the 2025 and 2026 MLB Draft. Cam Allen was selected as the top prospect for the 2026 draft, along with Andrew Duncan, Griffen Paige, JP Peltier, Warren Hartzell, and Cam Gilkerson. Sophomores JJ Thompson, Abe Crall, and Malachi Paplanus were identified as top prospects for the 2027 draft.

RAIDERS RUNNING IT BACK
In the era of the transfer portal, where many teams lose so much talent year-to-year, Wright State has recruited talent and kept them in Dayton. The Raiders returned 65% of their total production from a season ago, when factored by total points (fantasy baseball points calculation done by D1Baseball), the Raiders rank ninth in total returning production. The Raidergang return 56% of their roster from a season ago, 64% of their plate appearances, and 55% of their innings pitched. Wright State has brought back six lineup mainstays from a season ago, as well as two of its three weekend starters.

SCOUTING THE 2026 SQUAD
The Raidergang returns 20 players from a season ago while adding 19 newcomers (10 transfers and nine true freshmen). The squad consists of five seniors, nine juniors, nine sophomores, and 16 freshmen.

The roster features a strong in-state contingent, with 54% (21 players) from Ohio. But the Raiders also recruit well nationally, with 13 other states being represented in the roster. The other 13 states include California, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia.

UP NEXT
Wright State will take a quick trip up to northeast Ohio for a midweek matchup with Kent State. First pitch at Schoonover Stadium is slated for 3 p.m.