Illini of the Week: Freshman birdies team to victory
By Brendyn Jones, Contributing Writer
October 4, 2018
Since the Illini men’s golf team is young, it’s fair to question who the emerging leaders are. Last year, Illinois graduated two players, Nick Hardy and Dylan Meyer, who were extremely impactful and accomplished a lot, not also with their performance but with their leadership. “I like to thi...
Illini of the Year: Illinois baseball’s Bren Spillane
By Gavin Good
May 7, 2018
Coming into the 2018 season, there was not a lot of hype surrounding junior Bren Spillane and the Illinois baseball team. The Illini make up a team returning much of its talent, and Spillane was merely a player with potential. He had struggled to play well consistently in his first two years while ...
Nick Hardy setting the course
By Meghan Rest, Assistant Sports Editor
May 3, 2018
Senior Nick Hardy’s backdrop over the past 20 years has looked awfully green. The two-time individual Big Ten Champion is about to wrap up his record-breaking career on the Illinois men’s golf team and he has a lot to reflect on. Hardy helped lead the Illini to four consecutive Big Ten Championshi...
IOTW: Alex Diab and Illini men’s gymnastics
By Miles Powers-Huang, Staff writer
April 12, 2018
Athletic talent cannot be bought; it is given. For Illinois gymnast Alex Diab, this idea is ingrained within him by his coach, which Diab then passes down to his teammates as well. The Illini men’s gymnastics team captured the Big Ten championship on Friday with a team total of 413.900. Accordin...
From California, Oestreich finds her home with Illinois softball
March 15, 2018
Being “the new girl” can be scary. But for junior pitcher Emily Oestreich, it wasn’t so bad. Oestreich’s journey to Illinois began in at Vintage High School in Napa, California. By her senior year, she had collected two All-State honors, an MEL Pitcher of the Year title and a spot in Fl...
Illini of the Week | A rematch one year in the making
By Jared Farmer, Staff Writer
March 8, 2018
Isaiah Martinez’ matchup against Penn State’s Vincenzo Joseph was a battle 351 days in the making. This was the fourth time these two would meet. Going in, Martinez was 2-1 against Joseph. Their previous matchup was in last year’s NCAA Championships, where the then-freshman Joseph pinned the two-time cham...
Illini of the Week: Prince gets her time to shine
By Meghan Rest, Staff writer
September 25, 2017
Redshirt sophomore Beth Prince is just getting started on her collegiate volleyball career. In high school, the Avon, Indiana native was named a PrepVolleyball.com All-American four consecutive times and found her home at the University of Illinois after she broke into the top 60 on the website’s...
Illini of the Week: Bobby Roundtree
By Jacob Diaz, Staff writer
September 14, 2017
Bobby Roundtree isn't very comfortable with the media yet. The 6-foot-5, 245 lb. true freshman defensive end is very polite, always calling everyone sir, a little shy and speaks slowly because he is very careful of what he wants to say. For someone with such a physical presence, his demeanor during...
Consistency propels Meyer to success
By Daily Illini Staff Report
May 3, 2017
Junior Dylan Meyer continues to rack up awards. Coming off of his third consecutive title of the season and earning the Big Ten individual championship, Meyer was named the Big Ten Player of the Year. Looking back to his freshman year, Meyer had a 73.08 stroke average and has since brought it down to 70...
Illini Of The Week: Aleks Vukic
By Brian Binz, Staff writer
April 26, 2017
When Illinois men’s tennis head coach Brad Dancer first met Aleks Vukic, it wasn’t love at first sight. In fact, the first time Dancer ever saw Vukic play, he lost. “I watched (former Illini) Jared (Hiltzik) beat up on him pretty good,” Dancer said. “I gave him a business card and said ‘hey,...
IOTW: With no captains, McInerney just leads
By Stephen Cohn, Staff writer
April 5, 2017
Illinois first baseman Pat McInerney’s mindset is not looking for a first-pitch fastball or to shorten up his swing with two strikes — although, he is brilliant at both. Instead, his key to success is swagger. “Just having the feeling of showing up to the field every day knowing you’re going...
Breanna Wonderly leads on and off the field for Illinois softball
By Erich Fisher, Staff writer
March 29, 2017
Senior Breanna Wonderly commands the mound like no other pitcher on the Illinois softball team. Every time she steps on the mound, she places the ball on her hip and then rolls it three times before she slides it into her glove. This assures that she is fully in sync before she throws her pitch. She...
