Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Set to Face No. 15 Illinois in Champaign
4/2/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
| Northwestern (8-19, 2-1 B1G) vs. No. 15 Illinois (21-6-1, 2-1 B1G) |
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| Date | Time | Friday, April 3 (6 p.m. CST) Saturday, April 4 (3 p.m. CST) Sunday, April 5 (1 p.m. CST) |
| Location | Illinois Field | Champaign, Ill. |
| Media | Live Stats: Watch: Illinois All Access Listen: Illinois All Access |
| Social | @NUCatsBaseball | @NU_SportsLIVE |
| Notes | Northwestern | Illinois |
| Pitching Matchups | Game 1: LHP Matt Portland vs. LHP Kevin Duchene Game 2: RHP Joe Schindler vs. RHP Drasen Johnson Game 3: RHP Brandon Magallones vs. John Kravetz |
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern continues Big Ten action when it heads to Champaign, Ill., this weekend to battle conference rival No. 15 Illinois, April 3-5. The series, previously scheduled to take place at Rocky Miller Park, will be played at Illinois Field.
The `Cats opened league play with a series win (2-1) over Minnesota last weekend. NU dropped their opening game (March 27) before coming out on top of a classic pitcher's duel with a 2-1 victory on Saturday. Sophomore Joe Schindler, junior Reed Mason and classmate Jake Stolley combined for 11 shutout innings in the win. Led by a career-best five RBI from outfielder Kyle Ruchim, the Wildcats clinched the series with a commanding 19-7 victory over the Gophers on Sunday (March 29) afternoon. The 19 runs scored were the most by the `Cats since 2006.
On Tuesday, Northwestern returned to Chicago as Ruchim tallied his third home run in four games to lead the `Cats to their third-consecutive victory with a 7-2 win over crosstown rival Chicago State.
Fifth-year senior Scott Heelan, who is hitting .324 this spring, and junior Zach Jones, who is batting .306, lead the Big Ten in doubles with 12, while Ruchim (10) ranks third. Ruchim holds a team-best .351 batting average to rank sixth in the conference and leads the `Cats with 20 RBI.
The Wildcats are hitting .275 as a team - the sixth-best average in the Big Ten - and lead the conference in hits (277) and doubles (60). NU averages 2.22 doubles per game to sit 20th in the country.
Illinois enters the weekend backed with a 21-6-1 overall record and 2-1 mark in league play. The Illini pitching staff tops the Big Ten in opposing batting average (.222) and triples allowed (0) and are second in strikeouts (218), saves (9) and wins (21).
The Illini have won 10 of their last 12 meetings against the Wildcats, including a series sweep during the 2014 season.
Junior Matt Portland is slated to take the mound in the series opener on Friday. The southpaw is 1-4 on the year and has registered 29 strikeouts in 42 1/3 innings pitched. Schindler will back up Portland on the bump in Saturday's contest before senior Brandon Magallones closes out the set on Sunday afternoon. Schindler, who has fanned 28 batters so far this spring, will look for his second win of the year. Magallones holds a 2-1 record in 2015 and ranks second among Big Ten pitchers with 42 strikeouts in 41 innings pitched.
Left-handed pitcher Kevin Duchene, who owns a 0.82 ERA and a 4-1 record this spring, will take the ball on Friday for the Illini before fifth-year senior Drasen Johnson (3-2, 2.36 ERA) and senior John Kravetz (2-0, 3.22 ERA) follow up on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
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