Life in the Valley

College baseball is officially back today and 9 of the 10 Missouri Valley Conference teams (Murray State starts tomorrow) are scheduled for action on Friday at venues throughout the southeast. Here’s a look at today’s schedule with broadcast coverage where available. All times Eastern. …

Louisville at Indiana State, Underway (Video: FloSports)
* This game was scheduled for noon but got off to an early start, possibly for weather considerations, with Louisville out to a 7-5 lead in the 6th inning as of this writing. The Sycamores (45-17, 24-3) return to the field as defending MVC regular-season and tournament champs, having made Super Regionals last season before bowing out to TCU.

St. Thomas vs. Illinois State (at Port Charlotte, Fla.), Noon (Video: FloSports)
* The Redbirds start their rebuild off a 20-30, 9-18 MVC season with a matchup against St. Thomas, a relatively new program in Division I. The Redbirds will be in action again this evening against Saint Louis.

Bradley at Western Kentucky, 4 p.m. (Radio: The Varsity Network)
* The Braves (16-32, 7-20) have nowhere to go but up after last season’s 10th-place Valley finish. Bradley opens up at the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers this afternoon in a true road game.

Evansville at Oral Roberts, 4 p.m. (Video: Summit League Network)
* For Evansville (37-24, 15-12), it’s a notable opponent right off the bat, as the Purple Aces are in Tulsa for a opening-weekend series against an Oral Roberts bunch that won 52 games and made the College World Series last season, a trip which included a win over aforementioned TCU before they bowed out from Omaha. UE advanced to the MVC Tournament final last season before losing to Indiana State.

Kansas vs. Illinois-Chicago, 4 p.m. (Video: FloSports)
* It’s a Power-5 opponent to start the season for UIC (28-25, 13-14), as the Flames and Jayhawks meet in Corpus Christi, Texas. Valley teams went 4-3 vs. Kansas last season, including Valparaiso going 2-1 vs. the Jayhawks in this event to open the 2023 season.

Eastern Michigan at Belmont, 5 p.m. (Radio: iHeart)
* Unlike the rest of the Valley, Belmont gets a true home game to open the season, taking on the Eastern Michigan Eagles. The Bruins went 27-33, 10-17 last season in their Valley debut. EMU went 27-26 last season, 12-18 in the MAC.

Valparaiso at Alabama State, 7 p.m. (Video: Hornet Sports Network)
* The Beacons (20-27, 10-17) hit the road for a battle with Alabama State to open their season tonight. The Hornets will be no easy test for Valpo, having gone 41-18 a season ago, including 26-4 in the SWAC. But they were upset twice by Florida A&M in the SWAC Tournament and failed to make Regionals.

Missouri State at UL-Monroe, 7 p.m. (Audio: The Varsity Network)
* After showcasing a great offense last season en route to a 33-23 record and 18-9 in the Valley, good enough for 2nd place, Missouri State heads south to take on Louisiana-Monroe. ULM went 17 -37 lsat season, 5-21 in the very tough Sun Belt Conference. MSU is picked to again finish 2nd in the Valley this season behind Indiana State.

Southern Illinois at Northwestern State, 7:30 p.m. (Video: ESPN+)
* The Salukis were another team with a strong offense a year ago, and they will try and find that form again starting tonight in Natchitoches, La. NSU went 29-27, 12-12 in the perennially tough Southland Conference. But the Demons were a strong 19-7 at home.

Murray State, entering its second season in the MVC, will open up on Saturday at home against Purdue-Fort Wayne, the first of a 3-game, 3-day series.