Three Named to All-MVC Baseball Team as Racers Prep for Tournament First-Round

Murray State baseball had three players named All Missouri Valley Conference for the 2023 season. Outfielder Dustin Mercer earned first-team honors as first baseman Brennan McCullough and shortstop Drew Vogel picked up second-team recognition.

Mercer had one of the best single seasons in recent memory at MSU as his .333 batting average was the best for a full season since 2018 while his 59 runs scored are the most since 2016 and tied for the league-high. The redshirt sophomore was the lone Racer with double-digit home runs and doubles with 11 and 12 respectively. The outfielder started all 55 games this season put up a .958 OPS to lead the team this season.

McCullough garnered second-team all-conference honors after driving in 46 RBIs, the second most on the team, with 10 doubles and seven home runs. The graduate first baseman improved his batting average from last season by nearly 30 points for a .284 average. McCullough added 14 stolen bases and a .991 fielding percentage with 416 putouts.

After battling injury through the early stages of the season, Vogel finished the final 38 games of the year in a huge way. The White House, Tennessee native put up 12 doubles and seven home runs with 41 RBIs as the shortstop put up a massive .915 OPS this season, improving his tally by over 120 points.

First Round Preview
Dates (Times): May 23 ( 5 p.m. CT )
Site (Venue): Terre Haute, Ind. ( Bob Warn Field)
Opponent: Valparaiso
TV: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoRacers.com

Murray State baseball is set for its first MVC Tournament with a first-round matchup against Valpo at Bob Warn Field in Terre Haute, Indiana.

Scouting Report

Valpo enters the contest at 20-25 overall and hold the eighth seed in the MVC tournament with their most recent matchup in form of a series loss at the hands of Illinois State. Ryan Maka leads the Beacons, starting 45 games with a .343 batting average along with seven home runs and 40 RBIs.

Bobby Nowak leads the Beacons pitching staff with a 3.59 ERA across 47.2 innings pitched this season along with 58 strikeouts.

MSU Weekly Notes

Murray State picked up the series win over preseason favorites Southern Illinois over the weekend. The series win clinched the fifth seed for the Racers and gave them a winning record in the conference as first-year members. The Racers also clinched their fourth consecutive winning season overall after taking their 28th and 29th wins of the season this week.

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Three Named to All-MVC Baseball Team as Racers Prep for Tournament First-Round

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Players Mentioned

Brennan McCullough

Dustin Mercer

Drew Vogel

Murray State University