CHAMPAIGN, Ill. --  The Illinois baseball team leaves Saturday for its week-long foreign trip to Curaçao and Aruba. The Illini will play six games in six straight days Sunday-Friday, while also hosting baseball clinics and community service events.

The trip is being funded by the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics and through the generous support of the Fighting Illini Dugout Club. The trip will serve three purposes: baseball, education and community service. In addition to baseball, the Illini will learn about the culture and donate their time through service activities.

"One of the main things we will do is spend time with kids in the community," said head coach Dan Hartleb. "It will be a great opportunity for our student-athletes to gain experiences and give back to the game of baseball."

Illinois will play games in the evening each day against local amateur and professional players. The games will be 9-inning contests with standard baseball rules. The Illini are taking their entire roster.

NCAA regulations allow teams to make foreign trips once every four years. This will be the Illini's second foreign trip in program history following its week-long trip to the Dominican Republic in 2014. Illinois followed the Dominican trip with its best season in program history, winning 50 games and advancing to the NCAA Super Regional in 2015.

WEATHER

Weather forecasts for Curaçao are nearly identical every day of the trip: partly cloudy with a high of 83° and a low of 80°. It is predicted to be a bit colder in Aruba with lows reaching down to 79°.

FOLLOW

Illinois will provide live updates from @IlliniBaseball on Twitter. There will be no radio or video broadcasts from the islands. Recaps of each days' events and games will be published on IlliniBaseball.com.

In addition to coverage on @IlliniBaseball, the Illinois baseball team and the Champaign News-Gazette have agreed to produce a diary-style report from the trip each day. A different player will write a recap of the day's events to be published in the News-Gazette. 

SCHEDULE

Saturday, November 17

• Arrive in Curaçao
• Batting practice

Sunday, November 18

• Baseball Clinic and Showcase at Tio Daou Ballpark 
• Game #1 vs. Curaçao National Team at Tio Daou Ballpark  (3 p.m. CT)

Monday, November 19

• Climb Mt. Kristoffel and Beach Barbeque at Knip Beach
• Game #2 vs. Curaçao National Team at RIF Field (5:30 p.m. CT)

Tuesday, November 20

• Morning Tour of Hato Cave
• Game #3 vs. Curaçao National Team at Tio Daou Ballpark (5:30 p.m. CT)

Wednesday, November 21

• Fly to Aruba
• Game #4 vs. Aruba (5:45 p.m. CT)

Thursday, November 22

• Team Thanksgiving Meal
• Game #5 vs. Aruba at Winston Stadium (5:45 p.m. CT)

Friday, November 23

• Beach Workout
• Special Olympics Volunteer Event and Baseball Clinic
• Game #6 vs. Aruba at Winston Stadium (5:45 p.m. CT)

Saturday, November 24

• Fly back to the United States

ABOUT CURAÇAO

Curaçao is located just off the coast of Venezuela and is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Located in the tropics, just 12° north of the Equator, Curaçao and neighbors Aruba and Bonaire make up the 'ABC' islands. The 171 square mile island has a population of 160,000.

Notable Players from Curaçao
• Didi Gregorius
• Kenley Jansen
• Andruw Jones
• Jurickson Profar
• Jonathan Schoop
• Andrelton Simmons
• Randall Simon

ABOUT ARUBA

Aruba is located about 70 miles west of Curaçao and also just north off the coast of Venezuela. The 70 square mile island is also part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and is home to more than 100,000 residents. 

Notable Players from Aruba
• Xander Bogaerts
• Sidney Ponson