NORMAL, Ill. - Illinois State baseball is set to travel to Iowa on Tuesday before hosting Western Illinois on Wednesday. Both games have a scheduled TV broadcast (B1G+ on Tuesday; ESPN+ on Wednesday).
SCHEDULE (AT IOWA, AT ILLINOIS STATE)
Tuesday at 4:05 p.m. CT (at Iowa) |Â B1G+ |Â LIVE STATS
Wednesday at 5:00 p.m. CT (at Illinois State) |Â ESPN+Â |Â RADIO | LIVE STATS
ILLINOISÂ STATEÂ PROJECTED STARTING PITCHERS
Tuesday: RHP Carter Monke (7.39 ERA in 28 IP with 19 K over 10 appearances, four starts)
Wednesday: TBD
ABOUT THEÂ IOWA HAWKEYES
Iowa was 44-16 in 2023, going 22-3 at home. The Hawkeyes are 24-17 in 2024 with a 16-3 mark at home, coming off a road series loss at Nebraska.
The Redbirds and Hawkeyes have met 23 times previously, with Iowa leading, 14-9. Their first meeting was in 1975.
In the last meeting, Iowa picked up a 7-4 victory at home over the Redbirds to split the 2023 season series.
ABOUT THEÂ WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS
Western Illinois was 12-40 in 2023, going 6-28 on the road. The Leathernecks are 10-29 in 2024 with a 7-19 mark on the road. WIU comes into Wednesday after picking up a series win over Lindenwood and hosting MVC's Bradley on Tuesday.
The Redbirds and Leathernecks have met 169 times previously, with Illinois State leading, 92-76-1. Their first meeting was in 1925.
Western Illinois and Illinois State met on April 10 in Macomb as Carter Monke went 4.1 innings with six strikeouts in a 7-4 victory for ISU.
BARK IN THE PARK
Illinois State is set to host "Bark in the Park" on Saturday at Duffy Bass Field when Southern Illinois comes to Normal. All dogs can be registered online here.
'BIRDS IN MVC
Through 41 games, the Redbird defense sits top-five in the MVC for fielding percentage (.976) and double plays (36) while holding the third-fewest errors (35).
On offense, Illinois State is top-five in batting average (.290), hits (416), doubles (85), triples (8), hit by pitch (62), and sacrifice flies (20).
WALK IT OFF
Illinois State sophomore Daniel Pacella capped off a sensational performance versus Indiana State on April 19 with a walk-off home run to secure the 4-3 win for the 'Birds.
Pacella's home run is the first walk-off home run for the Redbirds since May 2010 (Ryan Court vs Wichita State).
The win also gave ISU their first series win over the Sycamores since April 2022 and handed the Sycamores their first MVC loss since April 5.
DANNY DINGERS (x2)
Sophomore Daniel Pacella tallied a two-homer, three RBI performance in the series finale at Missouri State on March 31.
With the pair of blasts, Pacella became the first Redbird to hit two home runs in a game since teammate Auggie Rasmussen at Indiana on March 13.
Pacella finished the weekend with eight RBIs against the Bears, as he sits with 47 RBIs this season.
'BIRDS WITH TWO-HOMER GAMES
Since 2004, there have been 24 instances where a Redbird has hit for two home runs in a game.
Of the previous 24 instances, only one Redbird has hit two home runs in the same inning: senior Auggie Rasmussen at Indiana on March 13.
Rasmussen joins Daniel Pacella, Ryan Cermak, Zach Amrein, and Ryan Court as the only Redbirds to have a two home-run game on multiple occasions.
For the latest updates on Illinois State Baseball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdBaseball) and Instagram (isuredbirdbaseball), and like the team on Facebook (Illinois State Baseball).Â
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App:  Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
