Yes, Illinois has a chance for redemption.
The Illini will travel to West Lafayette, Indiana for a three-game set versus Purdue this weekend. This series comes on the heels of Illinois’ home pod weekend which ended with two losses against the Boilermakers.
With a split last weekend, the Illini are now 10-14. Purdue (10-15) improved their record last weekend with a sweep of both Michigan State and Illinois (4-0). Currently, they are a half game back of the Illini.
On the mound
Coaches Hartleb and Allen are going with a similar rotation this weekend. Andrew Hoffmann (0-0, 4.68 ERA) will start Friday night. Nate Lavender (4-0, 3.25 ERA) has been a consistent bright spot in the pitching staff. He’ll be looking for win #5 on Saturday.
Riley Gowens (1-2, 5.92 ERA) who had a decent outing last weekend, will take the mound on Sunday.
| Indiana Hoosiers | |
| Bert Kaufman Field | Bloomington, Indiana |
| Friday, April 29 | 11am CT Saturday, April 30 | 1pm CT Sunday, May 1 | 12pm CT |  |
| WDWS AM-1400 | B1G+ | Live Stats |
Random Ramblings
Last Friday, Illinois held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Susan and Clint Atkins Baseball Training Center. Those who drive by Illinois Field will see the construction has already begun just west of Illinois Field.
Coach Hartleb is excited about the Atkins Baseball Training Center:
The Susan and Clint Atkins Baseball Training Center will position Illinois Baseball with one of the premier indoor baseball training facilities in college baseball. This facility will give us an around-the-clock training center that will allow our athletes to excel at the highest level.
There is no player better to speak about this than Connor Milton. A freshman from Champaign Central, Milton will be able to enjoy the benefits of the Training Center for a couple years. He feels it will be an excellent place for Illini baseball players to congregate and train close in proximity to the ball field.
The 26,000 square feet Atkins Training Center is scheduled to be ready for use by early 2022.
While the Illini have struggled with pitching in 2021, offense has not been an issue. From FightingIllini.com come these stats:
Illinois’ offensive rankings in the Big Ten through 24 games…
» 1st hits (242)
» 2nd batting average (.289)
» 3rd on-base percentage (.379)
» 4th runs (160)
Go Illini!