Northwestern University Athletics
Friday, March 23
Evanston, Ill.
3 p.m.
Northwestern
vs
Illinois
Northwestern Hosts No. 24 Illinois to Open B1G Play
3/22/2018 12:29:00 PM | Baseball
Nothwestern Notes | Illinois Notes
EVANSTON, Ill. — After taking a road series from Central Michigan last weekend, Northwestern returns home to the friendly confines of Miller Park to open up Big Ten play against in-state rival No. 24 Illinois.
Northwestern enters the weekend 7-8 overall having won four of its last five contests, which includes a pair of home wins over MacMurray College and Judson in addition to taking two of three from the Chippewas.
THE OPPONENT
Illinois (12-5) comes to Evanston having collected eight wins in its last 10 games, including a 12-7 decision over Cal State Northridge on Wednesday. Illinois is ranked No. 24 in the country by Baseball America and No. 22 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper.
The Illini will throw RHP Quinn Snarskis (2-0, 3.46 ERA) in the series opener, before turning the ball over to LHP Andy Fisher (1-0, 3.60 ERA) in game two and RHP Ty Weber (3-1, 2.97 ERA) for the finale.
NORTHWESTERN'S ROTATION
The Wildcats will continue to roll a trio of young starters this weekend. First year
First year LHP Quinn Lavelle (2-1, 2.37 ERA) will get the ball in the opener. Lavelle has a pair of wins in four appearances this season, including wins over Omaha (Feb. 18) and Central Michigan (March 16). The southpaw has tossed 19.0 innings, only allowing five earned runs, while striking out 13 batters. The opposition is hitting .233 at the plate. His 2.37 ERA ranks eighth-best in the Big Ten.
Sophomore RHP Hank Christie (2-2, 5.56 ERA) has settled into a groove as the season has progressed. After not going longer than 4.0 innings in his first three starts, Christie has tossed a pair of 6.0-inning outings without allowing a run. Christie fanned a season-high six batters in his last appearance at Miller Park on March 10 vs. MacMurray. Christie picked up a win last time he faced the Illini in 2017, going 6.0 innings and striking out three.
First year LHP Jack Pagliarini (1-1, 3.26 ERA) has fully transitioned from the bullpen to the starting rotation. The rookie lefthander made four relief appearances to start the season before earning the starting nod in each of the last two weekends. Pagliarini leads Northwestern in strikeouts with 21 in 19.1 innings of work. He has been consistent around the plate, only surrendering seven walks this season, while holding batters to a .208 clip.
LAST MEETING
Northwestern dropped its road series last season at Illinois, winning game two of the set, 11-4, before falling in the rubber match, 10-8. The Illini won the opener by a 4-3 decision in 11 innings. Then-senior Joe Hoscheit hit .571 in the series with a 1.173 slugging percentage. He belted two doubles and a pair of home runs, finishing with seven RBI. Hoscheit was named Big Ten Player of the Week for his performance.
Willie Bourbon tallied four hits in the series and with a triple and three RBI. Hank Christie tossed 6.0 innings and fanned three to earn NU's lone victory, while Sam Lawrence picked up a save.
SWIPIN' BAGS
The Wildcats rank second in the Big Ten with 37 stolen bases this season, trailing only Michigan State (46) – a team that has played four more games this season than the #B1GCats. The next closest team to NU's 37 mark owns 27 steals.
Northwestern has a trio of players in the top 10 for stolen bases in the Big Ten. Alex Erro ranks second among all Big Ten players with 10 stolen bases and he is a perfect 10-for-10 on his attempts this season. Jack Dunn sits in third with eight steals, while teammate Ben Dickey is in a tie for seventh with six swipes.
BULLPEN EMERGENCE
Senior Tommy Bordignon has been lights out in his last three relief appearances, picking up a save in each outing. During the stretch, Bordignon has closed the door to allow NU to pick up wins over Texas (March 2), MacMurray (March 10) and Central Michigan (March 16). The righty has tossed a total of 8.0 innings in those outings, allowing just two hits and one run, while striking out eight and only walking a pair. Opponents are hitting .083 against him in those saves.
His three saves this season are the most he has had in a single-season and has raised his career total to seven saves.
Senior Richard Fordon picked up his first save of the season last time out when he threw 3.0 innings at Central Michigan on March 17. The lefty went 3.0 innings, holding CMU to four hits, two runs and a strikeout.
BOURBON IS BEASTIN'
Junior Willie Bourbon has been Northwestern most productive player at the plate to open the season. Bourbon is hitting .260 at the plate with 13 knocks, eight of which have gone for extra bases, and a team-best 15 RBI. His .620 slugging percentage ranks first on the team and sixth in the conference.
ERRO IS COMING ON
Alex Erro has been red hot in Northwestern's last seven games. The sophomore is hitting .236 on the season, but in the last seven outings Erro has posted eight hits – at least one in each game - and owns a .320 clip with a .440 slugging percentage. He has three doubles and five walks during the stretch with four stolen bases and four RBI.
Erro's seven-game hit streak and his nine-game streak of reaching base are NU's longest of the season. As a rookie, Erro posted a 17-game hit streak, longest for a Northwestern player since 2008.
TOASTING TRIPLES
Northwestern continues to lead the Big Ten in triples this season with eight. Rookie David Dunn is tied for the most in the league with three, while Willie Bourbon and Charlie Maxwell each have a pair and Casey O'Laughlin has one.
EVANSTON, Ill. — After taking a road series from Central Michigan last weekend, Northwestern returns home to the friendly confines of Miller Park to open up Big Ten play against in-state rival No. 24 Illinois.
Northwestern enters the weekend 7-8 overall having won four of its last five contests, which includes a pair of home wins over MacMurray College and Judson in addition to taking two of three from the Chippewas.
Rounding The Bases went live from the road this week to bring you all your @NUCatsBaseball takes, including our weekly interview with @CoachAllen_37. https://t.co/29H2yno9Dc
— WNUR Sports (@WNURSports) March 22, 2018
THE OPPONENT
Illinois (12-5) comes to Evanston having collected eight wins in its last 10 games, including a 12-7 decision over Cal State Northridge on Wednesday. Illinois is ranked No. 24 in the country by Baseball America and No. 22 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper.
The Illini will throw RHP Quinn Snarskis (2-0, 3.46 ERA) in the series opener, before turning the ball over to LHP Andy Fisher (1-0, 3.60 ERA) in game two and RHP Ty Weber (3-1, 2.97 ERA) for the finale.
NORTHWESTERN'S ROTATION
The Wildcats will continue to roll a trio of young starters this weekend. First year
First year LHP Quinn Lavelle (2-1, 2.37 ERA) will get the ball in the opener. Lavelle has a pair of wins in four appearances this season, including wins over Omaha (Feb. 18) and Central Michigan (March 16). The southpaw has tossed 19.0 innings, only allowing five earned runs, while striking out 13 batters. The opposition is hitting .233 at the plate. His 2.37 ERA ranks eighth-best in the Big Ten.
Sophomore RHP Hank Christie (2-2, 5.56 ERA) has settled into a groove as the season has progressed. After not going longer than 4.0 innings in his first three starts, Christie has tossed a pair of 6.0-inning outings without allowing a run. Christie fanned a season-high six batters in his last appearance at Miller Park on March 10 vs. MacMurray. Christie picked up a win last time he faced the Illini in 2017, going 6.0 innings and striking out three.
First year LHP Jack Pagliarini (1-1, 3.26 ERA) has fully transitioned from the bullpen to the starting rotation. The rookie lefthander made four relief appearances to start the season before earning the starting nod in each of the last two weekends. Pagliarini leads Northwestern in strikeouts with 21 in 19.1 innings of work. He has been consistent around the plate, only surrendering seven walks this season, while holding batters to a .208 clip.
LAST MEETING
Northwestern dropped its road series last season at Illinois, winning game two of the set, 11-4, before falling in the rubber match, 10-8. The Illini won the opener by a 4-3 decision in 11 innings. Then-senior Joe Hoscheit hit .571 in the series with a 1.173 slugging percentage. He belted two doubles and a pair of home runs, finishing with seven RBI. Hoscheit was named Big Ten Player of the Week for his performance.
Willie Bourbon tallied four hits in the series and with a triple and three RBI. Hank Christie tossed 6.0 innings and fanned three to earn NU's lone victory, while Sam Lawrence picked up a save.
SWIPIN' BAGS
The Wildcats rank second in the Big Ten with 37 stolen bases this season, trailing only Michigan State (46) – a team that has played four more games this season than the #B1GCats. The next closest team to NU's 37 mark owns 27 steals.
Northwestern has a trio of players in the top 10 for stolen bases in the Big Ten. Alex Erro ranks second among all Big Ten players with 10 stolen bases and he is a perfect 10-for-10 on his attempts this season. Jack Dunn sits in third with eight steals, while teammate Ben Dickey is in a tie for seventh with six swipes.
BULLPEN EMERGENCE
Senior Tommy Bordignon has been lights out in his last three relief appearances, picking up a save in each outing. During the stretch, Bordignon has closed the door to allow NU to pick up wins over Texas (March 2), MacMurray (March 10) and Central Michigan (March 16). The righty has tossed a total of 8.0 innings in those outings, allowing just two hits and one run, while striking out eight and only walking a pair. Opponents are hitting .083 against him in those saves.
His three saves this season are the most he has had in a single-season and has raised his career total to seven saves.
Senior Richard Fordon picked up his first save of the season last time out when he threw 3.0 innings at Central Michigan on March 17. The lefty went 3.0 innings, holding CMU to four hits, two runs and a strikeout.
BOURBON IS BEASTIN'
Junior Willie Bourbon has been Northwestern most productive player at the plate to open the season. Bourbon is hitting .260 at the plate with 13 knocks, eight of which have gone for extra bases, and a team-best 15 RBI. His .620 slugging percentage ranks first on the team and sixth in the conference.
ERRO IS COMING ON
Alex Erro has been red hot in Northwestern's last seven games. The sophomore is hitting .236 on the season, but in the last seven outings Erro has posted eight hits – at least one in each game - and owns a .320 clip with a .440 slugging percentage. He has three doubles and five walks during the stretch with four stolen bases and four RBI.
Erro's seven-game hit streak and his nine-game streak of reaching base are NU's longest of the season. As a rookie, Erro posted a 17-game hit streak, longest for a Northwestern player since 2008.
TOASTING TRIPLES
Northwestern continues to lead the Big Ten in triples this season with eight. Rookie David Dunn is tied for the most in the league with three, while Willie Bourbon and Charlie Maxwell each have a pair and Casey O'Laughlin has one.
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