Bolivar, Mo. – The Southwest Baptist University baseball team returns to Dodson Field this weekend as it opens its home schedule against No. 2 University of Central Missouri on Friday, February 13. It will be two games instead of the original three that were scheduled due to weather concerns. Game 1 will be at 2pm with the second game to follow at 5pm. 

SBU enters the matchup after earning a 2–2 road split to open the season, highlighted by a dominant offensive performance in the series finale in which the Bearcats scored 25 runs.

Friday's contest renews a long-standing rivalry between the two programs. The team's most recent matchup came in 2019, when SBU joined the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) after leaving the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA). 

Southwest Baptist is coming off a four-game series split against Southern Nazarene University, with strong pitching performances setting the tone. Ryne Kaiser led the way in the opening game, throwing 5.2 innings, striking out 10, allowing just three hits, and giving up only one run.

Offensively, the Bearcats have gotten off to a fast start in 2026. Through four games, SBU is hitting .343 as a team with a 1.012 OPS, scoring 45 runs and collecting 48 hits, including seven home runs. The Bearcats are slugging .550 while reaching base at a .462 clip.

Individually, Ryan Ray has paced the lineup, batting .526 with a 1.360 OPS, 10 hits, six RBIs, and a home run. Cooper Burgess has reached base consistently, hitting .571 with a .727 on-base percentage, while Jared Pugrad is batting .455 with a 1.356 OPS. Reese Ruderman leads the team with seven RBIs, and Raydley Legito has added extra-base power with three doubles and a home run.

The Bearcats look to upset one of the best teams in all of DII baseball. First pitch is set for Friday at Dodson Field at 2:00p.m., as the Bearcats welcome No. 2 Central Missouri to Bolivar.