Northwest Baseball Season Stats (PDF) | MIAA Tournament Bracket (PDF)

The Northwest Missouri State baseball team prepares to launch its 2019 postseason campaign during the first round of the MIAA tournament Thurs., May 9, against Missouri Southern. The contest will be played at Al Ortolani Field in Pittsburg, Kansas, at 12:30 p.m.

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With a win over the Lions, the Bearcats would advance to the second round of the winner's bracket to play the victor of No. 6-seed Lindenwood and No. 3-seed Central Oklahoma. With a loss, Northwest would drop to the consolation bracket to face the loser of the Lions and Bronchos. The tournament is a double-elimination format.

The Bearcats earned the No. 7 seed after completing MIAA play at 18-15. It's the third straight season that Northwest has finished with an above .500 record in league play and the first time the Bearcats have done that since the 2008 season.

On the year, the Bearcats (23-25, 18-13 MIAA) are 1-3 in the season series against the No. 2-seeded Lions. The first matchup came Feb. 14 in Joplin with Missouri Southern coming out on top, 12-5. During the series March 22 and March 24, Northwest took the middle game from Missouri Southern, but dropped the three-game set in Joplin, 2-1.

The Bearcats finished the regular season controlling the No. 3 slot in the MIAA for team batting average (.286), three spots ahead of the Lions at No. 6 (.279). The Bearcats are led in the batter's box by junior first baseman Connor Quick (.382), who continues to sit among the MIAA's top-10 best individual batting averages at No. 4. Quick enters the series riding a team-high 32-game on-base streak. Quick also ranks among the MIAA leaders in triples (2nd - 4), slugging percentage (3rd - .597), RBI (3rd - 49), batting average (4th - .382), hits (5th - 71), on-base percentage (6th - .459).

On the mound, junior pitcher Quintin Van Ackeren leads Northwest pitching with 75 innings pitched, allowing 57 runs (44 earned) on 96 hits and has struck out 57 batters on the year in 14 outings. He has allowed three earned runs or less in 10 of his 14 starts. Van Ackeren and junior Joe Funkhouser have both tallied a team-high 57 strikeouts.

Missouri Southern enters the MIAA Tournament coming off a 2-1 series victory over Lindenwood.