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No.5 Illini Face No. 4 Gophers In Big Ten Tournament
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Junior Shawn Roof and the Fighting Illini kick off the Big Ten Tournament on Wednesday at 11 a.m. CT when they face the Golden Gophers of Minnesota
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May 22, 2006
Champaign, Ill. -
Illinois-Minnesota Game Notes in PDF Format
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Game 1: Minnesota • Ray Fisher Stadium
Wednesday, May 24 • 11 a.m.
TBA vs. Cole DeVries (RHP)
Live Audio: WDWS 1400-AM and streaming on fightingillini.com
(PBP-Dave Loane, Analysis-Ben Taylor)
Live Stats: Gametracker on fightingillini.com
Minnesota Series: Minnesota leads 96-87-1
This Season: Illinois won the series 3-1
Streak: Illinois, 2
Illini Storylines
• Illinois is...
...15-5 when scoring first
...24-4 when ahead through 7 innings (5 in DH games)
...20-6 when out-hitting its opponent
...12-7 when the bullpen gets the decision
...12-4 when making fewer errors than its opponent
...26-11 when scoring four or more runs
...9-3 when the final margin is two runs
...10-3 when not making an error
...11-2 when hitting a triple
• Roof is On Fire: Shawn Roof showed why many see him as the heart of this Illinois team, pushing the Illini into the Big Ten Tournament by hitting .643 with a .929 slugging percentage at Michigan State last weekend. Roof never hit below .500 in any game vs. the Spartans and also flashed some power with two doubles and a triple.
• They're Alive: After a tough offensive weekend at Indiana, the Illini bats came alive to the tune of a .384 team average at Michigan State. Three Illinois hitters hit better than .500 in the series and five hit above .400. The .384 team average was the best in any series this season and the 11 extra-base hits are the most for the Illini since facing Minnesota April 28-30.
• Turn Back the Clock: In the last Big Ten regular season start of his career, Brian Blomquist looked like the Illini ace he was in 2005. The fifth-year senior threw eight shutout innings, giving up just three hits and a walk while striking out a career-high eight Spartan hitters. Blomquist retired 11 straight batters after giving up two hits in the first inning, then set down 10 MSU hitters from the fifth inning to the eighth. Even more impressive, Blomquist only went to a three-ball count on two hitters.
• We're Going Streaking: Even while the Illini offense struggled over the past few weeks, Mike Rohde has been a rock offensively. Rohde has an eight-game hitting streak, his second-longest of the season after a 14-gamer that carried over from 2005. Ryan Snowden has also been impressive of late, tying his career-best six-game hitting streak.
• Rohde Goes Five (or Four)-Hole: Since moving to the No. 5 spot in the batting order in the April 14 game against Northwestern, Mike Rohde has caught fire. Rohde is hitting .369 (24-for-65) in 20 games since being moved down in the order, with 14 RBI and 14 runs. He has also rediscovered his pop, blasting a pair of homers and slugging .508 with a .453 OBP in that span. However, the line-up that really clicked at MSU included Rohde hitting clean-up. In that role, Rohde hit .364 with five runs and an RBI over the final three games against the Spartans.
• The Milkman Delivers: Chaseburg, Wis., native Dave Schultz came through in a big way in the series finale at Michigan State after struggling for the past two weeks. The senior first baseman drilled two home runs into the Red Cedar River over the short porch in right field in Sunday's game at MSU, driving in five runs. Prior to that game, Schultz was 1-for-13 in the series and had gone just 3-for-21 (.143) since injuring his left elbow in the first game against Michigan after running into Wolverine first baseman Nate Recknagel.
• Bloomie Blossoms: After scuffling for much of the season, senior righthander Brian Blomquist appears to be rounding back into the form he showed in 2005 as Illinois' staff ace. Blomquist threw eight shutout innings at Michigan State to spur the Illini onto a win that clinched a Big Ten Tournament berth. He struck out a career high eight batters and recorded 17 of 24 outs on strikeouts or ground balls. Blomquist gave up just three hits and walked one.
• Impact Frosh: Three freshmen pitchers have made their presence felt with the Illini this season, Tanner Roark, Ben Reeser and Aaron Martin. Roark has been exceptional from his No. 3 spot in the rotation, going 5-0 with a 4.86 ERA in 46 1/3 innings. Reeser is right behind him, throwing a complete-game five-hitter against Michigan, but allowing a solo homer that was the difference in a tough 1-0 loss. Roark followed with five solid innings in the nightcap against Michigan, picking up the win, 7-4. Roark and Reeser also combined to win both games of the Saturday doubleheader against Iowa. Martin is 1-2 with a 6.85 ERA in 10 appearances - and four starts, including last Friday at Michigan State - and has a save.
• And They're Off: Through the 56-game regular season, Illinois has averaged 1.5 steals per game. Illinois has averaged 5.75 steals per Big Ten series, and has been successful on 70 percent of steal attempts in conference action. Shawn Roof is the surprising steals leader for the Illini, taking 24 bases in 32 tries. In Big Ten play, Roof is 16-for-19 on the basepaths, falling just short of the conference steals record of 18 that Michigan's Eric Rose broke against Iowa last weekend. He is currently tied for ninth on the Illinois single-season steals list.
• NCAA Leaders: The Illini rank in the top 50 nationally in two different categories as of May 15. As a team, Illinois ranks 37th in batting average at .314 and 45th in stolen bases at 1.61 per game. Ryan Snowden currently ranks 26th in doubles per game with 0.4, and Shawn Roof's 0.32 steals per game is 43rd in the country.
