*UPDATED 5/8/12*
Galesburg, IL – The Prairie Fire has two more regular season home games remaining in the 2012 season after all.
Knox and Millikin University were scheduled to play a doubleheader on May 2 at Blodgett Field. The games were postponed because of rain, and without making them up, the Fire would have finished the regular season on the road.
The doubleheader against Millikin, however, will be played – at home. The games are rescheduled for today (5/8). The first of the two seven inning contests starts at 3:00 p.m.
Millikin has struggled this season, especially on the road. The Big Blue (12-26, 7-14 CCIW) is 3-15 away from home. The wins were at Robert Morris University of Springfield 7-4 back on March 17 and conference foe Augustana College 12-5 on May 5 and 8-6 on May 6.
Millikin has played better lately with a 4-2 record in the last six games, and also has an early season win against Grinnell College. The Pioneers won their third straight Midwest Conference South Division title on May 6.
The Prairie Fire (14-17, 7-5 MWC South) has played only 11 of its 31 games so far this season at Blodgett Field. The team's 14 wins matches the totals from 2008 (14-25) and 2007 (14-18). The Fire is seeking 16 victories in a season for the first time in two decades and 15 since the 2008 season.
Millikin and Knox have played five common opponents this season. MU opened the campaign with a 6-5 loss to Grinnell College in a tournament on March 3 near St. Louis. Millikin and the Pioneers met again on May 4, and the Big Blue came away with an 8-5 win.
The other common opponents are Robert Morris University, Illinois Wesleyan, Augustana College, and Illinois College. The Big Blue is 6-7 against the teams Knox has also played this season. The Prairie Fire’s record against those schools is 5-7. Knox lost to both CCIW teams, Illinois Wesleyan (9-3) and Augie (7-2), in April.
Millikin split with IC in Decatur (W 2-1, L 3-0) on March 15 and lost 9-8 in 11 innings on April 25 in Jacksonville. The Big Blue beat RMU twice, 7-4 in Springfield on March 17 and 4-3 on April 18 in Decatur. Illinois Wesleyan, like Millikin a member of the CCIW, beat the Big Blue in all three games the teams played: 11-1 and 8-3 in Decatur on April 3 and 14-4 on April 11 in Bloomington.
Knox is coming off a 12-11 come from behind victory on May 6 at Grinnell College. The Prairie Fire trailed by as many as seven runs (11-4) in the game before rallying to win.
The Prairie Fire qualified for the Midwest Conference Tournament for the first time since 2008 with a second place finish in the MWC South Division behind Grinnell. Knox takes on South Division top seed St. Norbert College (23-12, 14-2 MWC) on Friday, May 11 at 9:00 a.m. at William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa.
After Friday's game, all tournament action will take place at Grinnell College. The host Pioneers (16-18, 8-4 MWC), the #1 seed in the South, plays the North's #2 seed Beloit College (17-19, 9-7 MWC) Friday at 9:00 a.m. at Grinnell.
TEAM COMPARISONS
Batting Average: Knox .290/Millikin .253
Opponent Batting Average: .306 against Knox/.328 against Millikin
Home Runs: Millikin17/Knox 9
Runs per game: Knox 6.6/Millikin 4.7
Stolen Bases: Knox 49/Millikin 20
ERA: Millikin 6.78/Knox 6.93
TEAM LEADERS - KNOX OFFENSE
Caleb Weaver (Galesburg, IL, Galesburg): .371, 5 HR, 34 RBI, 43 HITS, 10 DOUBLES, 26 RUNS
Jackson White (Grayslake, IL, Grayslake Central): .391, 1 HR, 17 RBI, 36 HITS
Phil Tallman (Park Ridge, IL, Maine South): .341, 0 HR, 8 RBI, 15 HITS, 19 RUNS
Ryan Hoffman (Sugar Grove, IL, Marmion Academy): .333, 1 HR, 14 RBI, 32 HITS, 23 RUNS, 20 BB
Michael Schroeder (Glenview, IL, Glenbrook South): .322, 0 HR, 23 RBI, 29 HITS, 11 HBP
Erik Smoy (Hoffman Estates, IL, Hoffman Estates): .316, 0 HR, 20 RBI, 30 HITS, 19 RUNS, 13 BB
TEAM LEADERS - KNOX PITCHING
Gabe Ayers (Hanna City, IL, Farmington Community): 3.35 ERA, 16 APP, 40.1 IP, 19K, 1-2 RECORD
Bryan Leslie (Richmond, IL, Richmond-Burton): 3.93 ERA, 11 APP, 3-0 RECORD
Nathaniel Grady (Antelope, CA, Oakmont): 4.06 ERA, 10 APP/4GS, 31 IP, 2-3 RECORD
Peter Marquardt (Clarendon Hills, lL, Hinsdale Central): 11 APP/8 GS, 40.1 IP, 19K, 3-3 RECORD
Kenny Blanchard (Morton Grove, IL, Niles West): 13 APP/4GS, 4-2 RECORD
Dustin Armstrong (Cincinnati, OH, Country Day): 14 APP/6 GS, 28.2 IP, 24K, 2 SV
TEAM LEADERS - MILLIKIN OFFENSE
Dan Weber: .317, 3 HR, 22 RBI, 44 HITS, 22 RUNS, 21 BB
David Peters: .301, 2 HR, 18 RBI, 43 HITS, 32 RUNS, 20 BB
Brian Ekiss: .281, 0 HR, 10 RBI, 27 HITS
Theo Facer: .271, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 32 HITS
Jared Dosien: .269, 3 HR, 14 RBI
Kollin Haws: .268, 4 HR, 16 RBI, 34 HITS, 21 RUNS
TEAM LEADERS - MILLIKIN PITCHING
Logan Bolton: 4.70 ERA, 14 APP/9GS, 3-8 RECORD, 3 CG, 1 SV, 61.1 IP, 28 K
Evan West: 5.65 ERA, 14 APP/8GS, 6-4 RECORD, 1 CG, 63.2 IP, 36 K
John Steele: 5.68 ERA, 14 APP/8GS, 2-4 RECORD, 1 CG, 1 SV, 63.1 IP, 44 K
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