It will be yet another exciting week in the world of Division II baseball, as some leaders in some of the most competitive conferences in the country will take each other on, while in other conferences, teams are looking for sweeps to get back in to the race against top-notch competition. We will also point out in the post who this week's "Marquee Match-Up of the Week" will be.
Before we get in to the multitude of Division II contests this weekend that will have a huge impact on both the conference and national scale, we would like to point out the series that will be our "Marquee Match-Up of the Week" for this week, and it is a Texas-sized showdown between the two top teams in the Lone Star Conference so far this season:
#9 Angelo State (18-4, 8-3 LSC) @ Texas A&M-Kingsville (15-7, 9-2 LSC) (3/20, 3/21 (DH), 3/22): Despite Angelo's incredible record so far this season, TAMU-Kingsville has the one-game lead in the Lone Star Conference right now, so about halfway through the season, this should go a long way in determining the favorite. They both have appeared to separate themselves from West Texas A&M and the rest of the conference, and a sweep or 3-1 advantage either way should put that team comfortably in the driver's seat. Come back Thursday night for a more in-depth preview of this series.
Below are a plethora of other series' to keep an eye on this weekend around the country:
Henderson State (13-7, 6-5 GAC) @ #25 Southern Arkansas (18-9, 8-4 GAC) (3/20, 3/21 (DH)): The top two teams in the Great American Conference, overall record-wise, face off in a three-game series. These two teams will most likely be the top two squads in the conference come the end of the season, so this will go a long way in telling who will be the favorite the rest of the season.
Chico State (9-9, 8-7 CCAA) @ #11 Cal Poly Pomona (16-6, 8-4 CCAA) (3/20, 3/21 (DH), 3/22): Both these teams are chasing Cal State-Monterey Bay and UC San Diego in the conference standings, but they are two of the most talented teams in the country. Chico State has had a tough start to the year, while Pomona has been one of the more surprising groups of the season. The four-game set, should it go Pomona's way, will put them right in the middle of the title race in the conference.
Central Missouri (10-10, 6-6 MIAA) @ Missouri Southern (16-1, 8-0 MIAA) (3/20, 3/21 (DH), 3/22): Missouri Southern carries a gaudy record in to this series with a perennially strong Central Missouri program, although like many of the teams with some ridiculous records at this point in the season, it comes with the caveat of a less-than-stellar schedule. The toughest opponent they have faced, by far, was Arkansas-Fort Smith, who they split with. Washburn came down to Earth with a split against Emporia State over the weekend, and we will see if MSSU will be in the same situation following this weekend.
#10 Columbus State (15-9, 4-8 PBC) @ Lander (12-14, 5-10 PBC) (3/20, 3/21 (DH)): This was a huge series on the docket during the pre-season, with the chance that this could be a match-up of a pair of top 10 teams. Columbus State has hung right around that area, but Lander has struggled more than expected this season. They are still a talented squad, but both teams need a sweep in this series if they want to try and keep pace with Armstrong State and Flagler. I don't think anyone could have guessed that these two teams would be 10th and 12th in the PBC out of 13 teams around 15 conference games in to the season.
Lynn (20-5, 4-2 SSC) @ Barry (13-10, 2-4 SSC) (3/20, 3/21 (DH)): Lynn is a squad just on the edge of breaking their way in to the top 25, and they will certainly do that if they can win this series over an always-competitive Barry team. Barry is usually a team fighting for a regional spot, and although it doesn't look like that will be the case this year, this would still be a resounding result for Lynn if they can do what needs to be done on their end.
Missouri Western (14-7, 9-3 MIAA) @ Washburn (16-3, 10-2 MIAA) (3/20, 3/21 (DH), 3/22): Washburn is still near the top of the MIAA despite their split with Emporia State last weekend. Missouri Western has put together a handful of very good victories so far this season. Washburn, after looking like a top 10 team in Division II, split with ESU and than inexplicably dropped a game to Newman this week, and will be looking to bounce back. If either team can take a 4-0 or 3-1 result in this series, they should cement themselves as a favorite in the conference going forward.
East Stroudsburg (12-2, 3-1 PSAC) vs Millersville (13-5, 2-2 PSAC) (3/20 (DH @ Millersville), 3/21 (DH @ East Stroudsburg)): Millersville is constantly near the top of both the PSAC standings and the regional tournament seedings, but they will get a tough test this weekend in East Stroudsburg, another one of those teams that is seeing some incredible early-season success.
#1 Tampa (19-5) @ Palm Beach Atlantic (14-7) (3/20, 3/21 (DH)): This is an intriguing non-conference match-up for the weekend to keep tabs on. PBA has been a pleasant surprise so far this season, while Tampa has shown some vulnerabilities in the last couple weekends. I expect Tampa to do what they are expected to do, but I wouldn't be shocked to see PBA steal a game, as well, if Tampa is caught looking ahead to next weekend's Eckerd series.
#13 Southern Indiana (3-7, 0-4 GLVC) @ Missouri-St. Louis (8-0, 4-0 GLVC) (3/20, 3/21 (DH), 3/22): This is more or less included here to show that the defending champions' schedule isn't getting any easier this weekend. While UMSL hasn't faced anyone of importance yet this season, they have defeated who is on their schedule, and catching USI while stumbling may be just what they need to keep their success rolling. For USI, it is almost already time to call for desperate measures, but if they can rebound and pull off a series victory, I would expect them to be right back in the thick of things on the national scene.
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