NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State baseball team is scheduled to close the regular season at Duffy Bass Field against Missouri Valley Conference-leading Southern Illinois from Thursday-Saturday. The games will be on ESPN+/3.
GAME INFORMATION
Illinois State (19-28, 6-12 MVC; 175th in RPI) at Southern Illinois (38-13, 14-4 MVC; 70th in RPI)
Day/Time (CT):
Thursday, May 19; 5:00 p.m. CT
Friday, May 20; 3:00 p.m. CT
Saturday, May 21; 1:00 p.m. CT
Field: Duffy Bass Field
ESPN+/3: https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/0d96af39-c092-4f19-b2bd-27fefacce11c (game one); https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/18be16f2-e751-4c1f-877d-09f1a5fb6313 (game two); https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/7573cd18-3f2f-491e-acd8-47c345485aa3 (game three)
Live Stats: bit.ly/RedbirdStats
PROJECTED ILLINOIS STATE STARTING PITCHERS
LHP Jared Hart (2-2, 1.98 ERA, 45 K, 13 BB)
TBA
TBA
ABOUT THE SALUKIS + SERIES HISTORY + LAST MEETING
SIU went 40-20 overall during the 2021 campaign, going 26-10 at home. The Salukis are 38-13 so far this season, including a 23-7 home record. IU took 2/3 from Evansville earlier in the season and is coming off a series win against Minnesota. Southern Illinois and Illinois State have common opponents outside of the MVC: Western Illinois, SIUE, Arkansas State, UT Martin, Illinois, Murray State. JT Weber has 18 HR while Kaeber Rog has 12 to lead a powerful SIU offense. series history.
The Redbirds and Salukis have met 194 times previously, with ISU up 99-94-1. Their first meeting was in 1948. Illinois State won in Carbondale on 4/4/2021 by a 14-11 margin. SIU's JT Weber had 8 RBIs as ISU improved to 2-1 since 2000 when an opposing player has 8+ RBIs (see page 5 of game notes). ISU won 3/4 games in the series.
TOOK THE LAST AT MISSOURI STATE
ISU dropped the first two games at Missouri State. It looked to be more of the same on Sunday, but third-year sophomore Ryan Cermak and fifth-year junior Jake McCaw hit back-to-back homers in the 8th inning to lead ISU to its first such comeback in 54 tries as ISU had lost 53-straight games when trailing at the conclusion of the 6th inning.
GAME OF INCHES AT INDIANA
ISU led 7-5 through the top of the 8th but IU tied the game with back-to-back bases-loaded walks. A close call with two outs that ultimately resulted in 4th-year head coach Steve Holm's ejection gave the Hoosiers the lead. Replay was not available as IU hit a grand slam in the next AB to put the game out of reach.
HART AND HIS STARTS
Fifth-year Jared Hart, who recorded a combined 8 starts at Temple College and Wabash Valley College (both JUCO), prior to coming to ISU, made his first Redbird start at DBU back on 5/7/2021
• 2021 starts (1): 40.50 ERA, 2.2 IP, 11 H, 12 ER, 4 K, 3 BB
• 2022 starts (5): 2.28 ERA, 27.2 IP, 23 H, 7 ER, 18 K, 8 BB
• ISU stretched out the bullpen ace on 4/15, making his first start of 2022 (against Valparaiso).
4-3 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
Illinois State is now 3-2 in extra-inning games in 2022 after beating DBU on 4/29 on ESPNU. All three wins have come by a 4-3 final while both losses have been 7-6.
CER-SMACK: NATIONAL POW x4 (QUICK HITS ON RYAN CERMAK'S WEEK - 4/11)
- Named National Player of the Week from Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, Perfect Game, D1Baseball, and NCBWA
- 11-for-21 (.524)
- .600 OBP
- five home runs, two doubles
- home runs in four-straight plate appearances (hit 470-foot home run for fourth-straight home run)
- three home run game on 4/6 with grand slams in back-to-back innings
- 14 RBIs; broke a 37-year old school RBI record on 4/6 (10 now - was nine by Mike Prior in 1985)
- nine runs scored; tied the school record for runs scored in a game on 4/6 (five - most recent was Brett Kay in 2012)
- recorded 100th career hit via home run on 4/10
- scaled the center-field wall and appeared to have taken away a home run on 4/10
- celebrated the honors by lining a HR over the LF wall to lead off 4/12's game at Illinois
TOP-2 TAKEDOWN
Illinois State took down second-ranked Arkansas to open the 2022 campaign by a 3-2 score. Arkansas had not previously lost a home or season opener since 1994. The 11 runs the Razorbacks scored were tied for the fewest plated by an SEC team and tied for the third-fewest scored by a top-25 (D1Baseball top-25).
The 'Birds were competitive all series, outhitting the Razorbacks in game two and trailing by a run in the 8th inning of game three.
Illinois State is no stranger to the national stage, upending #1 Vanderbilt and #7 Louisville in 2019 as the team made the program's first NCAA Regional final. Likewise, ISU is no stranger to success in Fayetteville as the 2020 team knocked off the 13th-ranked Razorbacks, 8-7.
TOUGH TESTS IN 2022
Illinois State is scheduled to play six games against preseason ranked opponents (three at No. 2 Arkansas, three vs No. 22 Dallas Baptist). Purdue has also exceeded expectations in 2022, earning a No. 19 ranking from Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and was bumped up to 17th after taking two-of-three from ISU. Illinois State is also scheduled to play a program-record 16 games against Power Five schools, including 10 contests against the Big Ten. 2022 marks the first time ISU has opened against a Power Five since 2004 (win at Louisville). 2022 marks the first time ISU has ever opened against a ranked opponent.
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