May 1, 2006
NORMAL, Ill. -
Most mid-week baseball contests for Illinois State are an opportunity to get players an extra chance to compete and to see what the team needs to do before a crucial Missouri Valley Conference series. However, Tuesday's mid-week contest is a bit different and has a lot more meaning for the `Birds, as they will face their cross-town rivals, the Illinois Wesleyan Titans, in the third-annual Horenberger-Bass Classic at Horenberger Field on the IWU campus.
The game is named after the two longtime coaches of each team, Duffy Bass of Illinois State and Jack Horenberger of Illinois Wesleyan. Bass won 713 games in his coaching career, making him the winningest coach in Illinois State history. Horenberger posted at 37-year record of 509 wins against 401 losses (.559) with five ties at the helm of the Titans baseball program and was also a former athletics director at Illinois Wesleyan.
The "Classic" began in 2004 and switches between Redbird Field and Horenberger Field each year. The teams have split the series with one win apiece since it was renewed, with IWU winning at home 9-5 in 2004 and ISU winning last year's contest at Redbird Field 7-6 in 10 innings. However, the rivalry between the two schools dates back to 1890, with ISU holding an 80-69 advantage in the all-time series.
ISU head coach Jim Brownlee has played and coached in several of the rivalry games against IWU, and knows how important the game is to both schools.
"This game is always fun for the community, the players on both teams and the coaching staffs," said Brownlee. "I have been involved in this rivalry in one way or another many times, and each time we play its always exciting. This game also gives our fans the opportunity to watch a very good Division III baseball team in Illinois Wesleyan and see how they compare to a Division I team."
The game will have even more local flavor, as the Redbirds will put Normal Community graduate Luke Baughman (3-5) on the mound to help lead ISU to its second-straight victory in the series. Baughman will also be trying to erase the memory of a bad 16-2 loss to Valley foe Evansville on Sunday.
Brownlee knows that this is the type of game that could help the players get some confidence back.
"With the crowd (that will be in attendance) and the excitement surrounding the game in the community, it will be hard for the players not to get fired up," said Brownlee. "Wesleyan is having a good year and has won four straight coming into the game, so it will not be an easy game for us. But, a win in the rivalry game could help the players forget about the weekend and get back to playing with confidence."
Tuesday's game time is set for 6 p.m. In addition, the game will be broadcast on the flagship station for Redbird Athletics, AM 1230 WJBC, with Greg Halbleib calling the action.
