Alabama Baseball vs Illinois-Chicago Weekend Series Preview & Notes. Roll Tide!!

March Slate for Alabama Baseball Starts with Series against UIC

The Crimson Tide and Flames will meet for the sixth time in series history on Friday

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama baseball welcomes the University of Illinois-Chicago to Sewell-Thomas Stadium for a three-game series from Friday through Sunday. Game one is scheduled for 3 p.m. CT followed by a 2 p.m. start on Saturday and a Noon first pitch in Sunday’s series finale. All three games will air live on SEC Network+.

The series finale on Sunday will resume ‘Kids’ Day at The Joe’ after last weekend’s brief break. All kids 18-and-under can purchase a $5 general admission ticket. Children will also have the chance to run the bases postgame.

Follow the Tide                            

Fans can follow the series via the below outlets:

Watch: SEC Network+

Listen: 100.9 FM / CTSN / The Varsity App

Twitter: @AlabamaBSB

Live Stats: RollTide.com

Probable Starting Pitching Matchups

FRIDAY: UA – Grayson Hitt (Jr., LHP) vs. UIC – Kade Lancour (Gr., RHP)

SATURDAY: UA – Ben Hess (So., RHP) vs. UIC – TBA

SUNDAY: UA – Jacob McNairy (Gr., RHP) vs. UIC – TBA

Leading Off

• Alabama and UIC will meet for the sixth time in history when the two teams open the series on Friday afternoon at The Joe. The Tide holds the all-time advantage with a perfect 5-0 mark.

• The two teams last met for a three-game series in Tuscaloosa from Feb. 26-27, 2010. Alabama came away with a 9-4 win in the series opener followed by a doubleheader sweep the next day. That twinbill saw the Tide clinch the series with a 25-1 win before a 4-3 victory in game three completed the sweep.

• Alabama will call on its same rotation from the previous two weekends for the series with UIC. Junior lefty Grayson Hitt will take the mound Friday followed by right-handers Ben Hess and Jacob McNairy on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

• UIC will send graduate righty Kade Lancour to the hill in Friday’s series opener. The starter for the Flames in games two and three is still to be announced.

About Alabama

• Alabama enters this weekend at a perfect 9-0, including a 4-0 record across the past week. The Crimson Tide swept High Point at Sewell-Thomas Stadium last weekend before downing Jacksonville State on Tuesday in Tuscaloosa.

• A dominant day at the plate powered Alabama to a 17-3 win over JSU on Tuesday afternoon.

• The Tide set season-highs for hits, walks and runs in the midweek. The offense posted seven runs in the second and added three in the third, six in the fourth and one in the eighth for 17 total.

• Camden Hayslip and Bryce Eblin tied for the team-high RBI total with four apiece. Eblin finished 3-for-5 with a double and three runs scored to go with his RBI. Hayslip entered midway through the game and notched his four RBI on a grand slam, Alabama’s first of the season. The sophomore went 2-for-3 and added one run scored.

• Luke Holman earned the win, his second in as many starts. The right-hander tossed 4.0 innings, allowing one run on two hits and two walks with a career-high seven strikeouts.

• Consistent offense and a solid showing from the bullpen helped UA to a 9-4 win over High Point last Friday at The Joe.

• Both teams got on the board with one run in the first. The Tide then took the lead with another tally in the second before a two-run top of the fourth put the Panthers back in front. Alabama answered again, scoring two apiece in the fourth and fifth to go with three in seventh for the series-opening win.

• The Tide’s offense totaled double-digit hits for a sixth straight game, finishing with 12 by day’s end. The bats were led by Ed Johnson, who homered twice and tallied a team-high five RBI to go with two runs scored. Mac Guscette also homered in the game, finishing 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored.

• Brock Blatter picked up the first win of his career, entering out of the bullpen for 2.2 innings of one-run baseball. The freshman gave up two hits and walked one while striking out six in a row at one point – all swinging.

• Despite falling behind, the Tide battled to a 10-6 comeback victory over High Point last Saturday.

• High Point got out front with a six-run third inning. The Crimson Tide was blanked in each of the next two frames before a seven-run fifth gave UA the advantage. Alabama maintained the lead from that point on, adding three more insurance runs in the eighth to secure the win.

• The fifth was highlighted by a go-ahead three-run home run from Dominic Tamez with Drew Williamson adding a three-run homer in the seventh.

• Alabama’s bullpen was solid once again. The trio of Connor BallZane Probst and Braylon Myers kept the HPU offense at bay, limiting the Panthers to just three hits and three walks over the final 6.0 scoreless frames. Ball picked up the win with 2.1 innings while Myers earned his second save in as many chances with 2.1 innings to close out the game.

• The Crimson Tide completed the series sweep of High Point with a 4-2 win last Sunday afternoon.

• A low-scoring affair saw the Tide get on the board first with a run in the third. Alabama added two more in the fourth with High Point countering for two of their own in the top of the fifth. The Tide then returned the lead to two with a single tally in the home half of the fifth for the eventual 4-2 final.

• Jacob McNairy picked up the win on Sunday, tossing 5.0 innings and allowing two runs on five hits with three strikeouts. The bullpen then took over, with Hagan BanksKade Woods and Riley Quick blanking the Panthers the rest of the way. Woods struck out five of the six batters he faced with Quick earning the save thanks to a scoreless ninth.

• The Tide offense was highlighted by Colby Shelton who recorded a solo home run, one RBI, a run scored and one walk from the leadoff spot.

About UIC

• Sean McDermott is in his second year as the head coach at UIC. He took on the lead role after 15 seasons as an assistant coach followed by eight as an associate head coach for the Flames. A 1993 graduate of Lincoln Memorial University, McDermott is joined on staff by associate head coach John Flood, assistant coach Brendon Hayden and volunteer assistant Jimmy Frankos.

• UIC wrapped up the 2022 campaign at 22-25 overall, including a 14-11 mark in Horizon League play.

• The Flames were selected to finish eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference in the league’s preseason poll, as voted on by the conference’s head coaches. This is UIC’s first season as part of the MVC.

On Deck

Next up for the Crimson Tide is a pair of midweek contests, first at Samford on Tuesday, March 7. The Crimson Tide and Bulldogs are scheduled for a 6 p.m. start at Joe Lee Griffin Field in Birmingham. Alabama will then return home to host Alabama State on Wednesday at The Joe. First pitch between the Tide and Hornets is slated for 6 p.m. with the game airing on SEC Network+.

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