Game Notes | Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats
NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State baseball team will welcome Dallas Baptist to Duffy Bass Field for a three-game series beginning Friday, in the first Missouri Valley Conference games of the season for both teams.
Friday's opener is set for a 3 p.m. start, and will be followed by games Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 12 p.m.
Illinois State (8-20) enters the weekend series following an 8-6 midweek loss at Valparaiso Tuesday. Jean Ramirez went 3-for-5 and Owen Miller contributed a two-run double, but it wasn't enough as the host Crusaders used a five-run third inning to build an early lead they would not relent.
Dallas Baptist (18-10) returns to action after a three-game sweep of Lipscomb last weekend and a midweek loss at Oklahoma Tuesday. The Patriots are receiving votes in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association Top 25.
Dallas Baptist gets strong starting pitching from Colin Poche (4-0, 1.48 ERA), Darick Hall (3-2, 3.05) and Jordan Martinson (2-0, 2.27), all three of whom are scheduled to pitch this weekend. Hall (.315/.409/.676) remains in the batting order when he pitches, and plays first base when he's not pitching, and leads the team with 11 home runs, a total that leads the Valley and ranks fifth in the country. Hall pairs with David Martinelli (.373/.464/.672) to form the heart of the Patriots' batting order.
Illinois State will counter with the pitching rotation of Steve Heilenbach (3-1, 2.64 ERA), David Meade (2-1, 3.38) and Jacob Hendren (1-6, 7.94) this weekend.
Illinois State has won just once in seven games against Dallas Baptist since the Patriots joined the Valley in 2014.
All Illinois State games at Duffy Bass Field are free to attend and the first 200 Illinois State students in attendance Saturday will receive a free hot dog. Illinois State students will also have the opportunity to purchase their Red Alert season pass for the 2016-17 school year, and will be entered into a drawing to win tickets to Country Thunder, Beyoncé or a Chicago Cubs game.
Links for live video, audio and stats for this weekend's game can be found at GoRedbirds.com. Fans can also receive live updates from the games via Twitter, by following @RedbirdBaseball.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
