| Probable Starting Pitchers |
| Day |
Illinois |
Opponent |
| Fri. 6 p.m. CT |
RHP Andrew Hoffmann (0-0, 3.68) |
RHP Sam Benschoter (1-2, 9.24) |
| Sat. 1Â p.m. CT |
LHP Nathan Lavender (3-0, 2.45) |
LHP Nick Powers (3-1, 3.34) |
| Sun. 4Â p.m. CT |
RHP Riley Gowens (1-2, 6.52) |
RHP Cory Brooks (2-1, 8.10) |
| Mon. 3 p.m. CT |
RHP Aidan Maldonado (0-1, 5.87) |
RHP Jett Jackson (0-3, 8.25) |
SCHEDULE
Friday, 6 p.m. CT » Michigan State vs. Illinois
Saturday, 1 p.m. CT » Michigan State vs. Illinois
Saturday, 5 p.m. CT » Michigan State vs. Purdue
Sunday, 12 p.m. CT » Purdue vs. Michigan State
Sunday, 4 p.m. CT » Purdue vs. Illinois
Monday, 3 p.m. CT » Purdue vs. Illinois
Home team listed second.
PREVIEW
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Illinois baseball team will host Michigan State (11-11) and Purdue (6-15) this weekend in a pod at Illinois Field. Each team will have the opportunity to play four games, two against each team.
This is the second pod of the year for the Illini. They went 2-2 in their first pod of the season at Michigan in March. One of the opponents in that pod was Michigan State, who the Illini split a pair of games against. A 7-3 win in the final game of the weekend was led by LHP Cole Kirschsieper (4.2 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 SO) on the mound and RF Cam McDonald (2-for-2, 2B, 3 RBIs, 2 R, 2 BB) at the plate.
Illinois (8-12) is looking to rebound from a weekend that they dropped both of their games at Indiana. There were originally three games scheduled, but the final game was postponed due to weather.
Senior 3B Jackson Raper did hit another home run pushing his total to a team-best seven. He has hit six homers in his last eight games. Sophomore SS Branden Comia saw his career-best 37-game on-base streak come to an end on Saturday, but he is hitting .510/.556/.776Â (25-for-49), with seven doubles, two home runs, nine RBIs and 14 runs scored over his last 12 games.
LHP Nathan Lavender has put up strong performances on the mound this season. Lavender enters this weekend ranked ninth in the country in SO/BB ratio (11.33), also good for first in the Big Ten. He has 34 strikeouts compared to three walks. In 2019, Lavender finished the year with 37 strikeouts compared to 24 walks. He missed the 2020 season with an injury.
A limited number of families and approved guests will be allowed at home games this season. Consistent with Champaign County public health guidelines on social distancing at outdoor events, no general public admission will be permitted at this time. The current policy will continue to be evaluated as the spring season goes along.
All games this weekend will be broadcast on BTN+. Scott Beatty will have the radio call on the Fighting Illini Sports Network for Illinois' games.
SERIES HISTORY
vs. Michigan State
• Record: 81-71 (Home: 44-29, Away: 30-37, Neutral: 7-5)
• Last: W, 7-3 (3/21/21 at Ann Arbor, Mich.)
• Split the first two games this season in Ann Arbor
• Illinois won two of three at MSU in 2019
• Teams played two non-conference games in 2018
• MSU swept three-game series in 2017
vs. Purdue
• Record: 166-84-1 (Home: 94-38; Away: 69-44-1; Neutral: 2-1)
• Last: W, 6-4 (5/12/19 at Illinois Field)
• Illinois swept Purdue 5/10-5/12/2019
• Illinois has won four of last five series
• Illinois has won eight straight in Champaign
NOTES
• Illinois will host their one pod of the season at Illinois Field this weekend with Michigan State and Purdue coming to Champaign.Â
• Illinois' offensive rankings in the Big Ten through 20 games...
   » 2nd batting average (.285)
   » 3rd hits (200)
   » 3rd on-base percentage (.371)
   » 5th runs (122)
• Last weekend, the Illini encountered 8 hours and 53 minutes of weather delays in Bloomington, Indiana.
   » Friday: 1-hour, 48-minute lightning delay in the top of the eighth inning with the score tied 4-4
   » Saturday: 6 hours, 5 minutes from the originally scheduled start time when first pitch was thrown
   » Sunday: 1-hour delay before the game was eventually postponed
• Illinois has hit 13 home runs in their last eight games after only four home runs in their first 12 games.
• Illinois has scored at least six runs in all of their wins. The Illini are 8-4 when scoring six runs or more in a game.
• Illinois has 24 returning players and 11 newcomers. 86% of last season's hits and 83% of runs are back in the lineup.
   » Three of the four transfers on the team this season are coming from John A. Logan CC (RHP Andrew Hoffmann, C Ryan Hampe, INF Zak Hartleb). INF Jackson Raper transferred from Catawba College.
• SS Branden Comia is hitting .510/.556/.776 (25-for-49), with seven doubles, two home runs, nine RBIs and 14 runs scored over his last 12 games.Â
   » Big Ten rankings this season: 4th – batting average (.373), 4th – on-base percentage (.484), T-5th – doubles (7), T-6th – hits (28), T-7th – runs (20)
   » Comia snapped his career-long 37-game on-base streak that dated back to May 18, 2019 at Michigan State on Saturday night at Indiana. It was the third longest on-base streak by an Illini hitter since 2004 (Ben Troike-57 games in 2017-18, Kyle Hudson-38 games in 2008).
• SS Branden Comia was the only underclassmen shortstop in the nation who hit .400+ with an OPS of 1.200+ in 2020.
• LHP Nate Lavender leads the pitching staff with three wins and 34 SO. His last two outings have been starts after beginning the year with four relief appearances. He sits on the leaderboard of several pitching categories in the country and Big Ten.
   » SO/BB Ratio: 11.33 – 9th in the nation, 1st in the Big Ten
   » SO/9 inn.: 13.91 – 20th in the nation, 4th in the Big Ten
   » BB/9 inn.: 1.23 – 2nd in the Big Ten
   » WHIP: 1.00 – 3rd in the Big Ten
   » ERA: 2.45 – 4th in the Big Ten
   » Wins: 3 – 6th in the Big Ten
• 3B Jackson Raper has hit six home runs in his last eight games. He leads the team in home runs (7) and RBIs (20).
   » Big Ten rankings: 5th – slugging percentage (.704), 7th – home runs (7), 9th – RBIs (20)
   » Hitting .338/.447/.704 (24-for-71), with 5 2B, 7 HR, 20 RBIs, 16 R, 12 BB in 20 games this season
• Dan Hartleb won his 450th game as a head coach on Feb. 28, 2020 against #13 Texas A&M to become the third coach in Illinois history to reach the milestone. Hartleb is 13 wins away from passing Illini legend Itch Jones (474) for second place on the all-time wins list.
• Head coach Dan Hartleb has made as many NCAA tournaments in his first 15 seasons as head coach (4) as the previous 42 Illini seasons combined.
• Illinois is picked to finish fifth in the conference by Baseball America, sixth by D1Baseball and sixth in the Big Ten preseason coaches poll.
• The combination of RHP Andrew Hoffmann, LHP Nate Lavender and RHP Jack Crowder struck out 17 Northwestern batters on March 26, the most in a game since the Illini set a program record on April 22, 2016 vs. Ohio State (15 inn., 23 SO).
   » It was the most in a 9-inning game since at least the 2004 season.
• Illinois won both games of their doubleheader on March 13, their first DH sweep since April 14, 2019 at Minnesota.
• On March 7, the Illini pitched a three-hit shutout. It was their first shutout in a conference game since May 3, 2019 vs. Indiana (4-0) and the first in a conference game away from Illinois Field since May 22, 2015 vs. Michigan State (2-0) in the Big Ten Tournament in Minneapolis.
   » The three hits allowed were the least in a conference game since May 4, 2019 vs. Indiana (3) and the least in a conference game away from Illinois Field since May 7, 2016 at Maryland (3).
• Illinois returned to play on March 5 against Ohio State for the first time in 362 days (8-7 win on March 8, 2020 at Elon).
   » The Big Ten suspended all sports beginning March 12, 2020 due to COVID-19. The fast-spreading virus was deemed a pandemic by the World Health Organization, prompting most collegiate and professional leagues in the United States to suspend all activities. The suspension of Big Ten sports ended Illinois' baseball season after only 13 games.
• Illinois' new $8-million, 26,000-square foot Susan and Clint Atkins Baseball Training Center is set to open in 2022.
• D1Baseball Big Ten top 2021 MLB Draft prospects: No. 11 SS Branden Comia, No. 17 RHP Aidan Maldonado, No. 27 C Ryan Hampe
• D1Baseball Big Ten Impact Freshmen: No. 17 LHP Payton Hutchings and No. 21 RHP Jack Crowder
• Baseball America Big Ten top 2021 MLB Draft prospects: No. 10 RHP Aidan Maldonado, No. 13 C Jacob Campbell, No. 17 SS Branden Comia, No. 20 RHP Andrew Hoffmann
• Perfect Game Preseason All-Big Ten team: SS Branden Comia and C Ryan Hampe
• Perfect Game Big Ten top 2021 MLB Draft prospects: No. 19 C Jacob Campbell, No. 22 RHP Andrew Hoffmann, No. 24 RHP Aidan Maldonado, No. 25 C Ryan Hampe, No. 29 SS Branden Comia, No. 32 INF Jackson Raper
• SS Branden Comia preseason awards: Perfect Game Preseason All-Big Ten team, No. 4 shortstop in the nation by D1Baseball, No. 11 MLB Draft prospect in the Big Ten by D1Baseball, No. 17 MLB Draft prospect in the Big Ten by Baseball America, "Best Defensive Infielder" in the Big Ten by Baseball America, Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award watch list
• Illinois opened the new decade last season following its best decade in program history.Â
   » Two Big Ten titles (2011, 2015) in the decade.
   » Four NCAA Regionals (2011, 2013, 2015, 2019), tied for the second-most in the Big Ten in the 2010s (IND 6, NEB 4).
   » Program record 50 wins in 2015 and the team's first ever Super Regional.
   » Head coach Dan Hartleb was named D1Baseball's Big Ten Coach of the Decade.
• Illinois finished in second at the Frisco Classic in 2020 with wins against #13 Texas A&M and #23 Oklahoma State.
   » SS Branden Comia and C Jacob Campbell were named to the Frisco Classic All-Tournament Team.Â
   » Comia had the game-winning hit Feb. 28 in a 1-0 win over #13 Texas A&M and a triple and homer against #23 Oklahoma State on Feb. 29. He also doubled against #1 UCLA.
   » Campbell had two hits against #23 Oklahoma State and added a big caught stealing behind the plate.
UP NEXT
Illinois will travel to West Lafayette, Indiana, to play three more games against Purdue. The Illini will play five consecutive contests with the Boilermakers.
