McLean County Times

The Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU) baseball team is set to conclude their regular season with a series against Carthage College that will have significant implications for the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) championship. The series will begin with an away game on Friday, May 2, at Augie Schmidt Field, followed by a doubleheader at IWU's home venue, Jack Horenberger Field, on Saturday, May 3. The outcome of these games will determine the CCIW Regular Season Champion, who will also secure the No. 1 seed and hosting rights for the CCIW Tournament.

Carthage College currently leads the conference with a 28-9 overall record and a 14-3 standing in CCIW games. Meanwhile, Illinois Wesleyan holds an overall record of 23-13 and a 13-4 conference record.

In preparation for this crucial series, IWU recently secured a win against Carroll University, emerging victorious with a 6-3 score on Wednesday, April 30. Junior pitcher Jake Pullam was pivotal for IWU, delivering a strong performance by allowing just one run and striking out seven over seven innings. Relief pitcher Luke Costello also impressed by pitching the final 1.2 innings and adding two more strikeouts to secure the win.

Offensively, senior Cade Tomhave and sophomore John Philip Ferraro were key contributors. Tomhave scored two runs and Ferraro recorded five RBIs, including a critical home run.

Historically, Illinois Wesleyan holds a narrow advantage over Carthage in their matchups since 1989, leading the series 60-53. However, Carthage swept last year's regular season series and eliminated IWU from the conference tournament.

Several IWU players have distinguished themselves this season. Senior Justin Gadomski leads in several statistical categories, including batting average (.406) and doubles (26), the latter being the best in Division III. Freshman Matt Hudik leads in sacrifice bunts (7) and on base percentage (.500).

The upcoming games promise to be decisive in crowning the CCIW champion. Live stats and streaming options are available on iwusports.com.