The Braves opened the season with three losses on the road at no. 1 Southeastern University. last weekend. OU finished the series with a .155 batting average, a .237 on base percentage, and a .286 slugging percentage. OU scored six runs and hit three home runs.

OU is ranked 44th in the NAIA in at bats (84), 23rd in home runs (3), 40th in hit by pitch (3), 40th in at bats against (90), and 50th in opponent batting average (.322).

Blaine Thomas leads the Braves with a .375 batting average. He has a .875 slugging percentage, and has a .500 on base percentage. Zack Melendez is OU's leader in ERA (4.50) and strike outs with seven. Opponents have a .214 batting average against him.

This is the first time that Ottawa University and the University of Tennessee Southern have played against each other.

Ottawa was selected to finish fifth in the KCAC by the conference coaches. Last season OU finished the season with an overall record of 36-17 and tied for third in the KCAC with a mark of 23-10. Those 36 wins are the third most in program history.

University of Tennessee Southern finished the 2023 season with an overall record of 33-18 and a 14-11 mark in the Mid-South Conference. The Firehawks rejoin the Southern States Athletic Conference after spending three years in the MSC.

The Firehawks' 33 wins are the most by the program since the 2019 season when they won 28.

UT Southern was picked to finish sixth, receiving one first place vote, in the SSAC.

The Firehawks return NAIA Honorable Mention All-American, Landon Rogers. He finished 2023 with a .403 batting average, 11 home runs, 56 RBI, 72 runs scored, and 30 stolen bases.

As a team in 2023, UT Southern had a .327 batting average, a .441 on base percentage, and a .534 slugging percentage. The Firehawks hit 65 home runs, and scored 477 runs in 51 games.