Baseball Faces NIU For Last Time as MAC Opponents

Eastern Michigan Baseball at Northern Illinois
Date	Friday-Sunday \| April 24-26
Venue	Ralph McKinzie Field \| DeKalb, Ill.
Preview Info	EMU Notes \| Record Book (PDF).
Watch	Game One \| Game Two \| Game Three
Live Stats	Si dearm Stats
Social Media	X: @EMU _Baseball \| @EMUAthletics IG: @emu_baseball \| @emuathletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University baseball team travels to DeKalb, Ill., for the final Mid-American Conference series against the Northern Illinois University Huskies Friday-Sunday, April 24-26, at Ralph McKinzie Field.

Friday's game starts at 4 p.m., Saturday's will begin at 3 p.m., and first pitch is set for 2 p.m. Sunday.

Fans can tune into a live stream and access live stats on EMUEagles.com, where a post-game recap will be posted. Stay tuned to EMU baseball socials including EMU_Baseball on X and emu.baseball on Instagram for live in-game updates and additional EMU baseball content.

FIRST PITCHES
» The Eagles and Huskies will meet for the 144-146th times, with the 146th game being the final competition against one another in the Mid-American Conference as Northern Illinois is departing following the season. Eastern holds a 84-59 record when facing Northern Illinois, and a 21-18 record when facing it on the road since 1999.
» Eastern lost the series to the Huskies in Ypsilanti last season as NIU took 2-of-3 games, May 2-3.
» EMU has thrived in late-inning situations as five of its last eight wins have come in either walk-off or go-ahead fashion.
» Eastern most recently defeated Oakland, 11-10 (10) in a midweek tilt on the road, April 22.
» Eastern next hosts Washington for Education Day, April 28, at 12 p.m.
» Eastern totals 22 newcomers, including seven freshmen and 15 transfers. The Eagles bring back 18 players from the 2025 season.
» Eastern returns key players in Devan Zirwas and Ty Stecko. Zirwas was named a top-150 outfielder by D1 Baseball and Stecko earned Preseason All-MAC honors from Perfect Game.
» Following the departure of Robbie Britt to the Boston Red Sox, former assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Trevor Beerman was promoted to interim head coach for the 2026 season.
» At 30 years old, Interim Head Coach Trevor Beerman is the youngest known coach at the NCAA Division I level.

IN THE SERIES: NIU
The Eagles and Huskies will meet for the 144th-146th times. Eastern holds a 84-59 record when facing NIU, and a 21-18 record when facing them on the road. In the decade so far, the series tips Northern Illinois' way by just one game, 9-8. The game on Sunday will be the final meeting between the schools where both are members of the MAC as NIU baseball heads for the Horizon League following the season.

LAST TIME VS. NIU
Eastern last faced NIU in a three game series during the 2025 campaign, dropping 2-of-3 games at home to the Huskies. In the first game of the series, Eastern lost, 12-9 in a game that saw Devan Zirwas and current assistant Harrison Travis blast homers. Drew Jones and Bruce Jellison tallied one RBI each in the form of a single and a bases-loaded walk. Eastern took game two by run-rule, 13-3. Travis had a two-hit game where he knocked in two runs and Logan Hugo added three RBI. The game was highlighted by a great start from Tyler Kapa who threw 6.1 innings and allowed two runs while striking out eight batters in a 122-pitch outing. The game was finished after John Hale walked with the bases loaded, bringing in the run to make it a 10 run lead. The Eagles dropped game three by a 17-1 margin. Eastern's lone run came from a Ty Stecko home run in the second inning. The Eagles had four hits in the final game, all four were recorded by current Eagles, Zirwas and Stecko.

GOODBYE HUSKIES
Northern Illinois is leaving the MAC for the Horizon League for all sports besides football, which will join the Mountain West Conference in the 2026-27 season. During this series, EMU baseball will be the final Eastern Michigan Athletics team to compete in the regular season against the Huskies. The teams first met for baseball in 1951 and in the end, 144 games will have been played between the two programs. Eastern Athletics boasts a 5-2 record against Northern Illinois' Athletics when facing the program for the final time as MAC members.

MOST RECENTLY: AT OAKLAND
Eastern downed Oakland in a thriller, claiming an 11-10 extra-innings non-conference victory Wednesday, April 22, at the Oakland Baseball Field. Ty Stecko hit a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the 10th while Landon Mueller (1-2) earned his first win of the season and sealed the deal, retiring the side in order in the bottom half of the frame. Tristan Crane led the EMU offense with a 4-for-6 showing at the dish, knocking one home run and one double for three RBI.

Notables
» The Eagles struck out a season-low three times, improving their record to 6-1 when striking out five times or less. It's the fewest strikeouts in a game since EMU struck out just once against Western Michigan, March 14, 2025.
» EMU played its fourth extra-innings game of the year, improving to 3-1.
» Eastern improved to 8-2 in one-run games, its most one-run victories since it notched 12 in the 2011 campaign. The eight one-run wins tie Akron for the most in the conference.
» Ty Stecko homered for the sixth time this season and first time since he did so in a 9-1 win at SIUE, Feb. 28. He notched his 10th multi-hit game of the season and third time with multiple extra-base hits. Stecko has 17 extra-base hits this season, two away from tying his 2025 total. He hit the go-ahead sacrifice fly in the 10th inning, bringing his season total to 25 RBI while marking his eighth game with multiple RBI.
» Landon Mueller earned his first win of the season, tossing 2.1 innings of shutout ball for his fourth scoreless appearance of the year.
» Tristan Crane extended his hitting streak to five games as he collected a career-high four hits for his fourth multi-hit day. The sophomore drove in a trio of runs, his fourth time with multiple RBI this season as all four of those occurrences have come in his last 10 games. Crane homered for the fourth time with a two-run bomb to left field in the fourth inning.

OUCH!
Eastern was hit by seven pitches in the 11-10 win at Oakland, April 22, tying for the most by an EMU team in the modern statistical era (1999-present). The total ranks second in the MAC single-game leaderboards this season and fifth in the nation. The figure tied EMU's program record set in a 5-4 loss at Arizona State, March 5, 2016.

ZIRWAS 100 RBI
Devan Zirwas reached the 100 career RBI mark as he drove in two runs against Western Michigan, April 18. The left-handed bat totals 94 RBI as an Eagle while he drove in seven at VCU in the 2024 season. He is the first Eagle to reach the mark this season as Ty Stecko and Nathan Borchardt are the next Eagles slated to reach the milestone. Stecko currently totals 86 RBI while Borchardt posts 87.

CLIMBING CAREER LEADERBOARDS
With Devan Zirwas' third inning homer against Western Michigan, April 18, he totals 20 home runs as an Eagle, tying for 15th by value in program history and joining five other players. Zirwas needs three doubles to break into the career leaderboards for two-baggers as he currently posts 29, and 10 RBI to do so in runs driven in, holding 94 as an Eagle. He also compiles a .553 slugging clip, ranking narrowly outside of the program's top 10.

CRANE'S INCREASED PRODUCTION
Seeing an increased role lately, Tristan Crane has been productive as a catcher and shortstop, starting five of the last seven games he's played in. In those six contests, Crane is batting .500 (11-of-22) with three home runs, three doubles, and 10 RBI. His batting average, slugging percentage (1.045), OPS (1.567), hits, extra-base hits, and RBI lead the team in the stint. Prior to the stretch, Crane batted .140 (6-of-43) in 17 games played (12 starts), with one double, one homer, and five RBI while striking out 16 times and walking three.

BORCHARDT'S EYE
Junior Nathan Borchardt has excelled in working walks as of late. He has earned one base-on-balls in each of the last seven games, highlighted by a career-best four walks against UMass, April 11, the second-most in one game by an individual Eagle since 1999 and the second-most in the MAC. Overall, Borchardt has walked 12 times in the previous seven contests, producing a team-best .615 on-base percentage. Borchardt's 25 walks leads the Eagles and ranks ninth in the MAC by value as he is one of three Eagles with more walks than strikeouts (25 to 21), joining TJ Williams (22 to 20), Bruce Jellison (21 to 20), and John Hale (19 to 18).

STRIKING OUT ONE OF THE NATION'S BEST
EMU struck out Western Michigan's Tanner Mally twice in the series finale against the Broncos, April 19, making EMU the only team to strikeout the nation's batting average (.485) and on-base percentage (.599) leader twice. Mally also slots second in toughest to strikeout as he fans once every 26.0 at-bats. Mally had struck out just three times prior as Fischer Hendershot K'd the right-handed bat on a 2-2 count in the fourth inning before Brian Henson caught him looking on a 2-2 breaking ball to end the WMU half of the seventh.

SUCCESS WITH LESS STRIKEOUTS
EMU has success when striking out five times or less this season, holding a 6-1 record when doing so. Eastern most recently struck out less than five times with a season-low three strikeouts in the 11-10 extra-innings win at Oakland, April 22. Conversely, the Eagles are 6-25 when striking out six times or more.

EXTRA-BASE JOHNNY
Senior John Hale erupted for a five-hit day against UMass, April 12, with all five hits going for extra bases. Hale hit three doubles and two home runs, both of which are career highs. He totaled 14 bases, the most from an individual Eagle since Wally Gerbus set the modern EMU record with four home runs and 16 total bases against Bowling Green, April 8, 2009, a game that saw Eastern score 27 runs, the second-most in program history.
» John Hale's 14 total bases rank third for the most total bases recorded in an NCAA game this season. His total is the most in a game by a MAC player this season and most since 2024 when Toledo's Garrett Pike also had 14 total bases in a game against Kent State, April 13, 2024.
» John Hale totaled five hits, all of which went for extra bases as he recorded three doubles and two home runs, all marking career highs for the senior. Both his doubles and homers totals tied EMU individual season-highs and are the second-most in one game in the MAC.
» John Hale is the first Eagle this season to have a game with five extra-base hits. His five hits tie for the most by an individual Eagle this season and the most in the MAC.
» John Hale joined Ty Stecko (at Austin Peay, Feb. 20) and Nick Weaver (at Ball State, March 15) as the only Eagles to record multiple home runs in one game this year.
» Overall, John Hale went 5-for-7 at the dish with a career-best five hits, five RBI, four runs, and kept busy in center field with a career-high seven putouts and one assist.

HALE: D1 BASEBALL WEEK 9 TOP-100 HITTER
John Hale was named to D1 Baseball's Week 9 Top-100 Hitters List. In 15 at-bats, Hale recorded seven hits, four doubles, and two home runs, totaling five RBI and five runs. He posted a .412 batting average, 1.474 OPS, and 0.691 weighted on-base average.

ALL HALE JOHN
John Hale has been seeing the ball well over his last 10 games. He is batting .421 while pacing the squad in runs (nine), hits (16), extra-base hits (seven), and ranking second in slugging percentage (.711). With 15 games remaining, the center fielder has already eclipsed his extra-base hit total from 2025, as he has 15 compared to 13. He is also on pace to surpass his walk total from last year as he has 19 this year, just two less than his 2025 total. Hale has made a 82-point improvement to his OPS (.837 to .922).

TWO WITH FIVE HITS
Both John Hale (vs. UMass, April 12) and TJ Williams (vs. Central Michigan, March 27) have recorded five-hit games this season, making EMU the only MAC team with two players who have each knocked five hits in a game in 2026. Furthermore, the achievement marks EMU's first time having two players with five-hit games in one season since 2013, when Sam Ott did so against Ohio, March 31, and John Rubino tallied five hits against Northern Illinois, May 12.

TWO HOMERS IN ONE INNING
Both Devan Zirwas and John Hale went yard in the second inning in the series finale against UMass, April 12. The outburst marked the second time this season EMU has homered twice in one inning. The first came at Austin Peay, Feb. 20, when Zirwas and Ty Stecko did so in the third inning in a 7-6 win.

MORE INNINGS, MORE STRIKES
Fischer Hendershot threw a career-high 4.1 innings out of the bullpen and recorded a career-high seven strikeouts against UMass, April 12. His previous career best for both statistics came March 8, 2025, at Akron, where he pitched 3.2 innings and recorded five strikeouts. The performance continues Hendershot's improvement in his second season as he has increased his strikeout total by 12, totaling 30 after recording 18 in 2025. He has more than cut his walks in half, issuing just eight this season after handing out 16 free passes last year. Hendershot has also improved on his save total, posting four thus far this season, the second most in the conference and one more than he had in 2025. He most recently earned a save with a scoreless 1-2-3 ninth inning in the win over WMU, April 17.

CONSISTENT CARMICHAEL
Friday starter John Carmichael has provided consistency in his first year as an Eagle. The McLennan C.C. transfer has gone at least five innings in eight of his 10 starts with his longest being a six-inning, four earned run outing at Toledo, April 3. Carmichael most recently went six innings for the second time this season and second time in his last three starts, allowing four hits and two earned runs while striking out seven and walking one, earning the 4-3 win over Western Michigan, April 17. Among qualified pitchers, Carmichael has issued the ninth-fewest walks in the conference (16) and allowed the ninth-fewest doubles (7). Overall, he posts a 6.52 ERA and has 42 strikeouts compared to 16 walks this season.

BREAKOUT BRUCE
After struggling in the season's early going, Bruce Jellison has found his rhythm. In the last 13 games, he is batting .404 with 19 hits, two home runs, a 1.085 OPS, and more walks (eight) than strikeouts (six). All rank inside the top three on the team. Jellison recently recorded his second three-hit day of the season against Western Michigan, April 18. He has added more power compared to last season, totaling six extra-base hits through 34 games after knocking seven in 49 games last season.

Jellison First 20 Games of the Season
.158 BA, .525 OPS, 9 Hits, 3 XBH, 6 RBI, 14 SO, 12 BB

Jellison Last 13 Games
.404 BA, 1.085 OPS, 19 Hits, 2 HR, 15 RBI, 6 SO, 8 BB

CONFERENCE-ONLY STANDINGS
The Eagles are at or near the top in a number of statistics in conference games. Eastern boasts the third-most doubles (51), fourth-most hits (218) and walks (109), fifth-most total bases (337), and sixth-best batting average in MAC competition (.290). Pitching wise, EMU hurlers have 175 strikeouts, the fourth-most in the MAC. On defense, Eastern is tied for third in runners caught stealing with 11 and totals the third-most putouts (554). Individually, Devan Zirwas is tied for second in MAC play with seven homers and sixth in RBI with 26. Ty Stecko slots fourth in doubles (eight), while John Hale ranks fifth in doubles (seven), sixth in hits (28), seventh in on-base percentage (.489), and ninth in batting average (.368). TJ Williams holds the fifth-best batting average (.393) and ranks sixth with a .500 on-base clip as Nathan Borchardt's 17 walks and seven doubles are tied for fifth.

CARDIAC EAGLES
Eastern has four walk-off wins, tying for the third-most nationally, the most by a MAC team, and the most in one season since EMU walked off its opponent five times in the 2011 campaign. TJ Williams wore a bases-loaded hit by pitch to lift EMU to victory over Akron, 9-8 (10), March 21, before Tristan Crane worked a bases-loaded walk to seal the comeback against Youngstown State, 8-7, March 24. Leewood Molessa hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score Drew Jones from third base in the 15-inning series opener against CMU, ending the game in a 9-8 final, March 27. Ty Stecko possesses the most recent walk-off with a two-run double down the left-field line in game two against the Chippewas, concluding the contest in a 12-11 decision, March 28.

LETHAL ARM BEHIND THE PLATE
Nick Weaver continues to rank among the top defensive catchers in college baseball entering the series against Western Michigan. Weaver has thrown out 17 runners attempting to steal in 42 attempts. That total places him tied for sixth nationally by value in caught stealing, ranking second in the MAC to Northern Illinois' Ivan Dahlberg, who totals 19 this season. The national leader, LaSalle's Jayden Novak, sits at 23. Weaver most recently caught one Western Michigan Bronco stealing, April 18.

FIVE-HIT TJ
TJ Williams had five hits against Central Michigan, March 27. The five knocks are the second most in a single game for the Eagles since 1999. His five hits are a season-high for the team, tie for the most by a MAC player in one game this season, and stand second nationally.

ONE-RUN DUBS
Eastern thrives in close games as it is 8-2 in one-run games this season. Its last one-run contest was of the winning variety as EMU captured an 11-10 (10) win at Oakland, April 22. The eight one-run victories are the most since it also put up seven in the 2021 season. It last recorded nine or more in the 2011 campaign, a season that saw EMU post a 12-6 record in such contests. Eastern's eight one-run wins tie for the conference lead as Akron paces the MAC with eight one-run victories. Overall, EMU's 10 one-run contests slot third in the league while Akron leads with 13, and Western Michigan places second with 11.

BATS ARE BACK
After struggling offensively in the season's early-going, the Eastern bats have heated up significantly since.

EMU Offense Prior to BSU Series (17 games)
.193 BA , .336 SLG%, .323 OB%, .659 OPS

EMU Offense Since the BSU Series (17 games)
.293 BA, .440 SLG%, .406 OB%, .846 OPS

The improvement features a 100-point increase in batting average, 104-point jump in slugging percentage, 83-point surge in on-base percentage, and a 187-point advancement in OPS. The offense had its best weekend of the season against Central Michigan, March 27-29. It batted .341 with a .921 OPS, scoring 34 runs off 44 hits, 13 extra-base hits, while driving in 32 runs and totaling 62 bases. It was disciplined from top to bottom as EMU walked 20 times, was hit by six pitches, and struck out just 16 times. EMU most recently batted .271 with a .894 OPS, six extra-base hits, and 14 RBI in the series against Western Michigan, April 17-19.

HITTING CONSISTENCY
EMU has posted nine or more hits 18 times this season with 10 of those occurrences coming in the last 16 games. Eastern posted double-digit hits in three consecutive games for the first time this season with 21 hits against Central Michigan Friday, March 27, 12 Saturday, March 29, and Sunday, March 11. Eastern last recorded double-digit hits in three consecutive games in the 2025 season when it accomplished the feat in five straight contests, May 9-15. Eastern most recently recorded 12 hits in the win at Oakland, April 22.

ZIRWAS' INCREASED POWER
After knocking 20 doubles and eight home runs last season (fifth in program history), Devan Zirwas has added even more power to his bat in 2026. What was a double last year is a homer in 2026 as he leads the Eagles and ranks second in the MAC with 12 bombs, surpassing his season total from 2025 just 27 games into the 2026 slate as he has four more long balls than last season. The left-handed bat homered for the 12th time this season against Western Michigan, April 18, as his 12 homers are the most by an Eagle in one season since St. Louis Cardinals' prospect Josh Kross had 15 in 2023, a year that saw him earn MAC Freshman of the Year and Freshman All-American status from the CBN.

MUELLER OUT OF THE PEN
Junior righty Landon Mueller has excelled out of the bullpen in eight of his last nine outings, excluding his appearance against Central Michigan, March 28. Outside of his appearance against the Chippewas, he totals 18.0 innings pitched out of the pen, posting a 5.50 ERA while allowing 11 earned runs off 22 hits and striking out 22 opposing batters while walking nine. As a starter in his first three outings of the season, Mueller went 5.2 innings with a 17.47 ERA while striking out five and walking eight.

POWER PRODUCTION
Eastern Michigan has hit 38 home runs through 38 games, ranking sixth in the Mid-American Conference. Devan Zirwas and Ty Stecko lead the way with 12 and six home runs, respectively. John Hale and Tristan Crane have four. Nick Weaver has a trio of bombs, two that came at Ball State, March 15. Bruce Jellison, Nathan Borchardt, and Keegan Knupp, have each chipped in two long balls.

TJ'S BEST D1 SEASON
After seeing limited playing time at Kansas in the 2025 season, TJ Williams has been one of the most consistent contributors in the lineup. In 29 games played, he's hitting .315 with a .439 on-base percentage, both of which rank inside the top three on the team. He ranks fourth on the team with 34 hits and slots among the top offensive producers in total bases (40), while also showing plate discipline with 22 walks and 20 strikeouts, one of four Eagles with more walks than strikeouts. On the base paths, Williams has been a key weapon, leading the team with 10 stolen bases in 13 attempts. He has been effective situationally, hitting .390 (16-of-41) when leading off, .326 (15-of-46) with runners on base, and advances runners at a .509 clip (28-of-55).

STRONG PLATE DISCIPLINE
The Eagles have drawn 195 walks in 38 games. That total ranks 95th nationally and fourth in the Mid-American Conference. Thirty-eight games into the season, Nathan Borchardt's 25 walks leads the Eagles and ranks ninth in the MAC by value as he is one of four Eagles with more walks than strikeouts (25 to 21), joining TJ Williams (22 to 20), Bruce Jellison (21 to 20), and John Hale (19 to 18).

TEAM-LEADING ZIRWAS
Devan Zirwas leads the roster with 23 extra-base hits (nine doubles, two triples, and 12 home runs), 41 RBI, 84 total bases, two triples, 31 runs, and a .542 slugging percentage. Currently ranking second in the MAC in home runs (12), third in triples (two), fifth in RBI (41), and eighth in doubles (nine), Zirwas looks to build off a season where he totaled 69 hits, 20 doubles (fifth in program history), eight homers, and 53 RBI off a .337 batting average and .997 OPS.

ON THE HORIZON
Eastern next hosts Washington for Education Day, April 28, at 12 p.m. Admission is free at Oestrike Stadium and the game can be streamed on ESPN+.

FOLLOW US
Keep up with all things Eastern baseball by following the team on X @EMU Baseball, and on Instagram @emu baseball.

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Players Mentioned

Nathan Borchardt

John Carmichael

Tristan Crane

John Hale

Fischer Hendershot

Brian Henson

Logan Hugo

Bruce Jellison

Drew Jones

Tyler Kapa

Keegan Knupp

Leewood Molessa

Landon Mueller

Ty Stecko

Nick Weaver

TJ Williams

Devan Zirwas

Eastern Michigan Athletics