GAME DAY LINKS --
McKENDREE vs. ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD
Friday, April 12, 2019, 2 p.m.
Saturday, April 13, 2019, 11 a.m. (DH)
Hypes Field -- Lebanon, Ill.

WATCH LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network)
LIVE STATS
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD SEASON STATISTICS3
GLVC STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., April 12)--The McKendree University baseball team returns to Hypes Field to host the University of Illinois Springfield in a three-game, Great Lakes Valley Conference series. The Bearcats and Prairie Stars have made an adjustment in the weekend schedule due to the weather forecast, and will now play a single game Friday at 2 p.m. before closing with a doubleheader on Saturday at 11 a.m.

McKendree, 9-23 overall and 6-15 in the GLVC, will play six of its next eight games on the home turf. In addition to this weekend's series with UIS, the Bearcats will entertain Missouri S&T next weekend in conference play. McKendree will head to Bolivar, Mo., on Tuesday for a non-conference doubleheader at Southwest Baptist University, who will join the GLVC next fall. 

In the Bearcats' road loss on Tuesday at the University of Southern Indiana, three players homered in the contest. Senior outfielder Drew Reich (Charlestown, IN/Charlestown) and senior infielder Drake Hampton (Godfrey, IL/Alton) hit back-to-back solo shots in the second inning before senior infielder Andrew Aydt (Wildwood, MO/Eureka) added another in the fourth inning. Reich added to his team lead by blasting his seventh homer in Tuesday. Aydt moved into second on the squad with his fifth round-tripper of the year .

Bryce Emery (Harrisburg, IL/Harrisburg) leads McKendree in average this season at .344, while Matt Klosterman (Belleville, IL/Belleville West) (.307) and Hayden Schaefer (O'Fallon, IL/O'Fallon) (.305) are both above the .300 line for the Bearcats. Seven different players have driven in at least 10 runs for McKendree this season, led by Reich with 21 RBI. 

ABOUT ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD
The Prairie Stars opened the 2019 season by posting an 8-0-1 record in their first nine games. Illinois Springfield brings a 21-11-1 overall record and 12-9 league mark to Lebanon this weekend. UIS leads the conference in batting average at .338. The Prairie Stars have scored a league-best 298 runs. 

Seven different UIS players are batting above the .300 mark. Chris Monroe leads the pack at .433 to go along with a team-best 40 RBI. Monroe is also tied for the team lead with six home runs. Ruben Markham also sits above the .400 mark at .403 with five homers and 30 RBI.

On the mound, Andrew Dean is a perfect 6-0 in eight starts with a 3.02 earned-run average. Dean has struck out 59 batters in 50 2/3 innings pitched. Brock Immke and Justin Revels also have notched four victories for the Prairie Stars. 

The Prairie Stars won all four games played against McKendree last year. Due to weather, the series was split between McKendree's Hypes Field and CarSheild Field in O'Fallon, Mo.