Illinois baseball looks to be Brave against Bradley
Junior infielder Cal Hejza swings at a pitch during a game against Eastern Illinois on April 18. On Tuesday, Illinois will face off at Bradley.
April 25, 2023
Illinois (18-18) was originally scheduled to travel to Peoria earlier this season, but poor weather forced the game to be played in Champaign. However, the opposing Bradley Braves (12-23) get the chance to host a game this time.
For the Illini, they are coming off of their best and most memorable performance of the season. The Illini swept the Golden Gophers over the weekend and did so in epic fashion. On Friday, the Illini thoroughly dominated the visitors in a 9-3 win.
However, it would be the matinees on Saturday and Sunday that brought drama. A late go-ahead home run from senior third baseman Branden Comia gave Illinois a 5-3 win in the second game of the series. On a cold day, coach Dan Hartleb summed up the win with a one-liner.
“It’s warm when you win,” Hartleb said.
In the last game of the series, Illinois did not take a lead until the final swing. However, things looked bleak before junior first baseman Drake Westcott took a pitch to straightaway center field, which was caught for the final out, or so the teams thought.
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The ball fell out of the glove of the centerfielder, dropping over the fence for a home run. Sophomore left fielder Ryan Moerman raced to beat a throw to first for an infield hit. Senior catcher Jacob Schroeder then took one look at the plate and sent the first pitch into another dimension, walking it off for the Illini. All of these happened with two outs and Illinois was fired up, boding well heading into the final weeks of the season.
The last time these two teams matched up, Illinois won 6-4. The Illini have been inconsistent since that game, but after this past weekend, the team looks ready to take a huge step as the season winds down.
“We still have a ways to go,” Hartleb said. “All we’ve got to do is get ourselves in the postseason, you get into the tournament anything can happen. This team is capable of winning in the tournament.”
Both teams have a batting average of around .270 with Illinois having a slight advantage. Illinois maintains an on-base plus slugging percentage around .850 compared to Bradley hovering around .800. As for pitching, Illinois has an earned run average of 5.76 while Bradley’s is at 7.14.
The Illini will head on the road again after this game as well. The first pitch on Tuesday is scheduled to be thrown around 6 p.m. in Peoria.
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