OVC Baseball Championship field set; Skyhawks earn No. 3 seed

The 2023 OVC Baseball Championship field is set as the event will be held on May 24-27 at Mtn Dew Park in Marion, Illinois.

This year marks the 44th OVC Baseball Tournament (the first elimination-style event was held in 1979).

UT Martin is the No. 3 seed in the tournament, which marks the best finish in the OVC standings in school history.

The Skyhawks went 14-10 in league play this spring, winning six of its eight series against league competition. UT Martin will make its fifth all-time appearance in the OVC Championship event and first since 2019 (ironically the last time the tournament was held in Marion).

The Mtn Dew Park venue opened in 2007 and was previously known as Rent One Park. It is now home to the Prospect League Team the Thrillville Thrillbillies, who begin play at the end of May.

The event has been held at five neutral-site locations after moving from the campus of the regular season champions in 2001. The event has been held in Paducah, Ky. (2001-09), Jackson, Tenn. (2010-16, 2021), Oxford, Ala. (2017-18), Marion, Ill. (2019) and Lexington, Ky. (2022).

Tickets will be $10 per adult per day and $5 per day for children (12 and under). College students with a valid ID can be purchased in-person at Mtn Dew Park. All seats are general admission for the OVC Championship.

This year’s bracket is the same for the second straight year and includes four single-elimination games on Wednesday, with the winners advancing to the double elimination portion of the bracket which will include the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds (who receive a bye until Thursday games). Saturday’s championship game will be a one-game “Winner Take All” matchup.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Wednesday, May 24
Game 1: #5 Eastern Illinois vs. #8 Southern Indiana, 9 a.m. (ESPN+)
Game 2: #6 Tennessee Tech vs. #7 SIUE, 12:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 3: #4 Southeast Missouri vs. Winner of Game 1, 4 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 4: #3 UT Martin vs. Winner of Game 2, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN+)

Thursday, May 25
Game 5: #1 Morehead State vs. Winner of Game 3, 11 a.m. (ESPN+)
Game 6: #2 Little Rock vs. Winner Game 4, 3 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 7: Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6, 7 p.m. (ESPN+)

Friday, May 26
Game 8: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 2 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 9: Winner Game 7 vs. Loser Game 8, 6 p.m. (ESPN+)

Saturday, May 27
Game 10: Winner Game 8 vs. Winner Game 9, 12 p.m. (ESPN+)

NOTE: The first four games are single elimination. The championship game (Game 10) is winner-take-all. All times are Central.