ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Golden Grizzlies baseball team is set to embark on the Horizon League Tournament tomorrow (May 22), slated for May 22-25 at Nischwitz Stadium in Dayton, Ohio, as the No. 3 seed Golden Grizzlies take on the No. 6 seed Youngstown State Penguins, with first pitch set for 3:00 p.m. ET.
 
The Golden Grizzlies look to build off its previous two years of success in the conference tournament as it has made the championship game in back-to-back seasons as the team vies for its first ever conference tournament title.
 
The Golden Grizzlies (31-25, 18-12 HL) wrapped up the regular season with a series win at Purdue Fort Wayne in three tightly-contested games against the Mastodons. Oakland held off Purdue Fort Wayne in the series opener as it held a 10-5 win heading into the bottom of the ninth and thwarted a comeback as the Mastodons scored four but came up short, 10-9. Brandon Heidal, who was named #HLBASE Batter of the Week after his performance, led the team with a trio of hits and five RBI.
 
Oakland fell in extra innings, 4-3, the following game before it rallied back and won, 9-7, highlighted by three RBI from John Lauinger and six strikeouts from Horizon League Pitcher of the Year Brandon Decker. The team wrapped up the regular season with its most wins in a regular season and are tied for most wins in program history with 31 (DI).
 
Six Golden Grizzlies earned all-league honors as Decker was named Pitcher of the Year and named First-Team, as Heidal was named Second-Team at the catcher position, while Lucas Day, Shane McAlinden, Aidan Orr and Trent Rice were named to the All-Freshman Team. For the complete release, click here.
 
Heidal leads the team with a .358 batting average as he's one of three Golden Grizzlies to have played in all 56 games. The senior ranks second on the team in hits, one behind Bussey, with 72 as Heidal leads with 121 total bags. Carter Hain holds a team-high 50 RBI, four ahead of Day who paces the team with 10 home runs. Rice, who was named to the All-Freshman Team, leads the conference and the team with 41 stolen bases, good for third in the NCAA. On the mound, Decker leads the starting rotation with seven wins in 102.0 innings pitched as he's totaled 104 strikeouts with a 5.47 ERA and seven saves.
 
The Golden Grizzlies had a historic regular season as it set the record for Most runs scored (457), most RBI (412), most walks (325), most stolen bases (157), most triples (24) and most hits (563) in a season. The team holds a .296 batting average and allows a .309 batting average, as its opponents have 608 total hits and 406 RBI.
 
SCOUTING THE PENGUINS
The Youngstown State Penguins (12-42, 9-21 HL) enter the tournament off a regular season ending win against Milwaukee, 12-11, for its first win in 10 games (May 3 vs. NKU, 10-0). The Golden Grizzlies and Penguins split its season series, 3-3, as all six games were played at Eastwood Field in Niles, Ohio. The two teams were originally slated to play at the Oakland Baseball Field March 22-24, but due to weather, the series was moved to Youngstown State.
 
The Golden Grizzlies took the first series, 2-1, as it dropped its first game against the Penguins, 3-2, but came back and won a doubleheader by a total score of 27-4. The teams met up once again April 26-28 on Eastwood Field as Youngstown State took the series in its first two games as it beat Oakland, 10-4, followed by a tight 7-6 win, but the Golden Grizzlies capped off the series with a win, 11-2.
 
This marks the third time the Golden Grizzlies and Penguins will face each other in the Horizon League Tournament and first since 2022. The team's are even, each with one win, as the No. 2 seed Oakland beat the No. 5 seed Youngstown State, 2-0, in the first round of the winners bracket. The two teams met for the first time in 2018, its last meeting in the first round, as the No. 5 seed Penguins bested the No. 4 seed Golden Grizzlies, 4-1.
 
The Penguins have won the Horizon League Championship two separate times, as its first title came in 2004 as it ran the table as a seven seed, the lowest seed of the tournament, and won the title over Cleveland State, 10-1. Its last tournament title came in 2014, as it was the lowest seed once again at six, as it took down Wright State, 5-4.
 
The Penguins placed three separate players on the All-League team as outfielder Alejandro Covas was named Freshman of the Year, All-League Second Team at the outfield position and on the All-Freshman Team. Both Trey Law (SS) and Jacob Gehring (SP) were first team selections.
 
The Penguins hold a .267 batting average with 473 hits, 81 doubles, 21 triples, 41 home runs and 258 RBI. Its opponents hit at a .326 average with 594 hits, 117 doubles, 14 triples and 70 home runs for 515 RBI. Its pitching core holds a 10.46 ERA while its opponents have a 4.81, as the Penguins pitching core has totaled 336 strikeouts, 110 less than its opponents, and have walked 371 batters.
 
Law is one of two Penguins to hold a batting average over .300 at .349 as Covas is the other with a .343. Law holds the team lead in hits with 76 and has the most doubles on the team with 12, as Covas leads the Penguins with 37 RBI, six home runs and nine triples with his 68 hits. On the mound, Gehring leads the pitching rotation with a 7.14 ERA and four wins in 14 games started, as he has two complete games and has totaled 52 strikeouts.
 
First pitch from Nischwitz Stadium is slated for 3:00 p.m. ET Wednesday, May 22. For all information about the Horizon League Baseball Championship Tournament, click here.