Wednesday, May 20
Kennesaw, Ga.
9:00 AM
vs
Louisiana Tech
CUSA Tournament Preview
5/19/2026 5:06:00 PM | Baseball
Pool B - Game 1 | Mickey Dunn Stadium (Kennesaw, Ga.)
Sam Houston (24-32, 13-17 CUSA) vs Louisiana Tech (33-23, 19-11 CUSA)
Pool B - Game 2 | Mickey Dunn Stadium (Kennesaw, Ga.)
Sam Houston (24-32, 13-17 CUSA) vs Liberty (38-18, 21-9 CUSA)
Projected Starters
May 20 – 9:00 a.m. CT
SHSU: RHP Ryan Peterson (6-5, 2.86 ERA, 85.0 IP, 102 K, 21 BB)
LT: RHP Declan Dahl (7-4, 3.20 ERA, 78.2 IP, 96 K, 19 BB)
May 21 – 9:00 a.m. CT
SHSU: TBA
LIB: TBA
KENNESAW, Ga. – The Sam Houston Bearkats will look to make some noise in the Conference USA Tournament this week with games set for Wednesday and Thursday morning in pool play against both Louisiana Tech and Liberty.
Each game of the Conference USA Tournament will be aired on ESPN+ with Sunday's championship set to be shown on CBS Sports Network.
All Bearkat Baseball games can be followed via live stats on Statbroadcast. Fans are encouraged to follow @BearkatsBSB on Instagram and X for in-game content, scores and updates.
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The Bearkats are making their second appearance in the tournament, going 1-2 in 2024. That year they sandwiched a win over Middle Tennessee around losses to Liberty and LA Tech. This season the Kats enter as the No. 8 seed and will be joined by the Bulldogs and Flames in Pool B of the newly-formed pool format. Sam Houston will need to go 2-0 to advance to the semifinals, which would begin on Saturday.
SERIES vs the BULLDOGS
- LA Tech owns an 13-8 all-time record against the Bearkats, including a 1-0 mark in the CUSA Tournament
- Sam Houston closed the regular season in Ruston last week, dropping the first two games of the series on the Bulldogs' home field before earning a 6-0 win in the series finale
SERIES vs the FLAMES
- Liberty owns an 4-3 all-time record against the Bearkats, including a 1-0 mark in the CUSA Tournament
- The teams did not play during the 2026 regular season
NOTES
- A tournament win would give SHSU its 13th NCAA regional berth and first since 2023 when it won the WAC Tournament
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- Sam Houston is 50-31 in conference tournaments all-time as a Division I program. That total includes games beginning in 1987 and spans time in the Southland Conference, WAC and Conference USA
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- CUSA announced its all-conference teams on Tuesday with starting pitcher Ryan Peterson headlining things with his selection to the firs team. The league leader in ERA (2.86), strikeouts (102) and innings pitched (85.0), Peterson is the second Bearkat pitcher to earn all-league first team honors since the program joined CUSA. Coltin Atkinson was named a first teamer in 2024
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- The Kats also landed a pair of bats on the league's all-freshman team in catcher Wes Baker and first baseman Cade Corcoran. The pair rank 1-2 among league freshmen in both home runs and RBI with Baker leading both categories (8 HR, 39 RBI)
- The freshman offensive combo of Wes Baker, Cade Corcoran and Kirby Orth has been key to the Kats' offensive production in 2026. The trio has combined for 16 homers and 85 RBI, far and away the highest offensive production by a freshman class in CUSA. Baker (8 HR, 39 RBI) and Corcoran (7 HR, 33 RBI) currently rank Nos. 1 and 2 among CUSA freshmen in homers and RBI, while Baker's 8 home runs has pulled him into a tie with Andrew Fregia (2016) for the SHSU single-season freshman record
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- Sam Houston enters the tournament with 121 stolen bases on the year. That mark leads CUSA and has the Kats over the century mark in swipes for the second time in 4 seasons. The Kats have only hit the century mark in steals twice since 1987 with 102 steals in both 2017 and 2023. This is the most steals for a Kat squad since getting 128 in 1987. The program record is 150 in 1986
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- Jeric Curtis, Hunter Alvord and Caleb Cotton have all surpassed 20 swipes, while Jace Martinez has 19. With 1 more steal from Martinez, the Kats would have 4 players with 20+ steals in a single season for the first time in program history
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- Ryan Peterson was tabbed as the No. 79 prospect for the 2026 MLB Draft in MLB Pipeline's latest listing. Those draft projections put him in the realm of being the highest drafted pitcher in Bearkat history. Currently, Kevin Renz holds that spot when he was selected in the second round with the 54th overall pick by the Chicago White Sox in 1984. The last Kat pitcher drafted in the top 5 rounds was Cody Dickson in 2013 when he was chosen by the Pittsburgh Pirates (Rd 4, Pick 119)
Sam Houston (24-32, 13-17 CUSA) vs Louisiana Tech (33-23, 19-11 CUSA)
Pool B - Game 2 | Mickey Dunn Stadium (Kennesaw, Ga.)
Sam Houston (24-32, 13-17 CUSA) vs Liberty (38-18, 21-9 CUSA)
Projected Starters
May 20 – 9:00 a.m. CT
SHSU: RHP Ryan Peterson (6-5, 2.86 ERA, 85.0 IP, 102 K, 21 BB)
LT: RHP Declan Dahl (7-4, 3.20 ERA, 78.2 IP, 96 K, 19 BB)
May 21 – 9:00 a.m. CT
SHSU: TBA
LIB: TBA
KENNESAW, Ga. – The Sam Houston Bearkats will look to make some noise in the Conference USA Tournament this week with games set for Wednesday and Thursday morning in pool play against both Louisiana Tech and Liberty.
Each game of the Conference USA Tournament will be aired on ESPN+ with Sunday's championship set to be shown on CBS Sports Network.
All Bearkat Baseball games can be followed via live stats on Statbroadcast. Fans are encouraged to follow @BearkatsBSB on Instagram and X for in-game content, scores and updates.
Â
The Bearkats are making their second appearance in the tournament, going 1-2 in 2024. That year they sandwiched a win over Middle Tennessee around losses to Liberty and LA Tech. This season the Kats enter as the No. 8 seed and will be joined by the Bulldogs and Flames in Pool B of the newly-formed pool format. Sam Houston will need to go 2-0 to advance to the semifinals, which would begin on Saturday.
SERIES vs the BULLDOGS
- LA Tech owns an 13-8 all-time record against the Bearkats, including a 1-0 mark in the CUSA Tournament
- Sam Houston closed the regular season in Ruston last week, dropping the first two games of the series on the Bulldogs' home field before earning a 6-0 win in the series finale
SERIES vs the FLAMES
- Liberty owns an 4-3 all-time record against the Bearkats, including a 1-0 mark in the CUSA Tournament
- The teams did not play during the 2026 regular season
NOTES
- A tournament win would give SHSU its 13th NCAA regional berth and first since 2023 when it won the WAC Tournament
Â
- Sam Houston is 50-31 in conference tournaments all-time as a Division I program. That total includes games beginning in 1987 and spans time in the Southland Conference, WAC and Conference USA
Â
- CUSA announced its all-conference teams on Tuesday with starting pitcher Ryan Peterson headlining things with his selection to the firs team. The league leader in ERA (2.86), strikeouts (102) and innings pitched (85.0), Peterson is the second Bearkat pitcher to earn all-league first team honors since the program joined CUSA. Coltin Atkinson was named a first teamer in 2024
Â
- The Kats also landed a pair of bats on the league's all-freshman team in catcher Wes Baker and first baseman Cade Corcoran. The pair rank 1-2 among league freshmen in both home runs and RBI with Baker leading both categories (8 HR, 39 RBI)
- The freshman offensive combo of Wes Baker, Cade Corcoran and Kirby Orth has been key to the Kats' offensive production in 2026. The trio has combined for 16 homers and 85 RBI, far and away the highest offensive production by a freshman class in CUSA. Baker (8 HR, 39 RBI) and Corcoran (7 HR, 33 RBI) currently rank Nos. 1 and 2 among CUSA freshmen in homers and RBI, while Baker's 8 home runs has pulled him into a tie with Andrew Fregia (2016) for the SHSU single-season freshman record
Â
- Sam Houston enters the tournament with 121 stolen bases on the year. That mark leads CUSA and has the Kats over the century mark in swipes for the second time in 4 seasons. The Kats have only hit the century mark in steals twice since 1987 with 102 steals in both 2017 and 2023. This is the most steals for a Kat squad since getting 128 in 1987. The program record is 150 in 1986
Â
- Jeric Curtis, Hunter Alvord and Caleb Cotton have all surpassed 20 swipes, while Jace Martinez has 19. With 1 more steal from Martinez, the Kats would have 4 players with 20+ steals in a single season for the first time in program history
Â
- Ryan Peterson was tabbed as the No. 79 prospect for the 2026 MLB Draft in MLB Pipeline's latest listing. Those draft projections put him in the realm of being the highest drafted pitcher in Bearkat history. Currently, Kevin Renz holds that spot when he was selected in the second round with the 54th overall pick by the Chicago White Sox in 1984. The last Kat pitcher drafted in the top 5 rounds was Cody Dickson in 2013 when he was chosen by the Pittsburgh Pirates (Rd 4, Pick 119)
Players Mentioned
IF
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C
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IF
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OF
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
IF
/ Baseball
OF/LHP
/ Baseball
RHP
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