Spartans Downed By Redbirds Friday Night

Friday, May 15

6:02 PM

Michigan State University

21-31

Illinois State

33-21

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Illinois State	1	0	2	0	0	0	3	0	0	6	13	2
Michigan State	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	3	9	1

Senior outfielder Nick Williams action photo

Photo by: Erin Grady/MSU Athletic Communications

5/15/2026 11:10:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score ISU 6, MSU 3 Box Score

MSU dealt defeat in penultimate game of regular season and final home night game of season.

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State baseball was downed by Illinois State Friday night at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium in MSU's final home night game of the season in the penultimate contest of the regular season, being doubled up by the Redbirds, 6-3, in game two of the three-game non-conference weekend series.

Prior to the game, MSU kicked off its Spartan Senior Celebrations weekend, honoring recognizing part of the 2026 Spartan Senior Class, who are all making their final appearances at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium this weekend. On Friday evening, the Spartan seniors recognized were a pair of players, in pitchers JD Greeley and Andrew Siler, along with Student Managers Frank Lollo, Sedona Bassler and Becca Gawenda.

The remaining portion of the 2026 Spartan Senior Class: Carter Monke, Nick Williams, Tommy Szczepanski, Noah Bright, Randy Seymour And Nolan Higgins, will be recognized prior to Saturday's game at approximately 12:30 p.m., before first pitch at 1:02 p.m.

MSU drew its bye in the Big Ten Conference schedule on the final weekend, and is hosting ISU from the Missouri Valley Conference, as the Redbirds also had a bye in their league schedule, this weekend in a three-game weekend series.

Friday night's loss snapped MSU's three-game win streak in the series, as this weekend's Spartans and Redbirds match-ups are the meeting between the two teams since 2016. This weekend is also the first meetings on campus and also first match-ups outside of Florida, as before this weekend, the three previous meetings, with two games in 1999 and one in 2016, were played in Florida. With Friday's 10-0 win, the Spartans had out-scored the Redbirds, 25-0, in the previous two games after a 15-0 win in 2016 in Port Charlotte, Fla., but Illinois State scored six runs Friday night to put an end to their scoring drought in the series.

The Redbirds scored their six runs on 13 hits, including four home runs, while the Spartans scored three runs on nine hits.

Despite it being Spartan Senior Celebrations weekend, a pair of underclassmen led the MSU offense Friday night, as sophomore outfielder Khamaree Thomas and freshman infielder CJ Deckinga both tallied two hits. Seniors Williams, Bright and Seymour had one hit apiece, along with junior infielder Ryan McKay and sophomore pinch hitter Isaac Sturgess also each had a hit. Williams knocked a double for MSU's lone extra-base hit of the night.

Williams continued his hitting streak and ran it to 12-straight games, tied for the longest of the season by a Spartan for the third 12-game hitting streak, matching earlier streaks of a dozen games this season by Seymour and Sturgess.

Bright, Deckinga and Sturgess drove in a run each, while Williams, Thomas and Seymour scored the runs.

Former Redbird, current Spartan graduate senior starting pitcher Carter Monke went 3.0 IP, scattering seven hits in yielding three runs and one strikeout in being dealt the tough-luck loss against his former team.

Junior Logan Pikur fired a career-high seven strikeouts in 4.1 IP, spraying five hits and three runs. It was the second time this season that Pikur chalked up a career-high, topping six Ks which came vs. Michigan on April 12.

Senior Tommy Szczepanski tossed the final 1.2 IP with only one hit,no runs, one walk and two strikeouts.

The Redbirds got on the board in their first at bat, as leadoff hitter Ryan Bakes hit a solo home run to left center. ISU tacked on two more in the third, as Ryan Bakes led off with a single, then his twin brother, Brayden Bakes, belted a home run of his own for a two-run homer and a 3-0 Redbird lead.

MSU got on the board with two runs in the bottom of the third as Williams led off with his hit-streak continuing double to center. Bright then followed with a single to center to drive Williams in, and Thomas then knocked a single. Junior outfielder Parker Picot then hit into a fielder's choice with Bright being out at home, and two batters later, Deckinga delivered an RBI single to left center to tally the Thomas run.

The visiting Redbirds increased their lead to 6-3 in the top of the seventh with three runs, on a solo homer by Payton McHarg and a two-run homer by Graham Mastros.

The Green & White got a run back in the eighth, as Seymour started the stanza by smacking a single to right center, Deckinga advanced Seymour to second with a single, then McKay reached on a fielder's choice that erased Deckinga from the basepaths. Sturgess then pinch hit and drilled his RBI single to plate Seymour and pulls the Spartans within, 6-3, but that was all the scoring on the night to deal defeat to the home team.

MSU and ISU wrap up the three-game series with Saturday's regular-season finale slated for a 1:02 p.m. first pitch, with pre-game Spartan Senior Celebrations recognition starting at approximately 12:30.

Michigan State's schedule is subject to change, fans can stay tuned to MSUSpartans.com and @MSUBaseball on Twitter for schedule updates, along with follow action with "Watch Live," "Listen Live" and "Live Stats" links where available.

Michigan State baseball tickets for games at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium, are available online, at msuspartans.evenue.net, by contacting the Spartan Ticket Office at 517-355-1610 or by email at tickets@msu.edu for questions or more information, or fans can visit the MSU Ticket Office in person, located in 1855 Place.