BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - With the end of the regular season quickly approaching, the Illinois Wesleyan University baseball team will make their final push for a College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin playoff position. Prior to the CCIW action, IWU will host Blackburn College for the program's final non-conference game of the year, Thursday, May 4, at 6 p.m. The Titans will then travel to Decatur for a single game against Millikin University, Friday, May 5 with a 3 p.m. first pitch at the Workman Family Baseball Field. Finally, the Green and White returns home to wrap up the regular season with a doubleheader against North Central College, who is receiving votes in the latest top-25 poll, Saturday, May 6. The home twinbill is set to begin at 12 p.m.

Entering the final stretch of the 2023 regular season season, the Titans own an overall record of 15-20 (7-8 CCIW), while Blackburn will travel to Bloomington with their 7-29 record. Millikin, who is currently in a tie for third in the conference standings, sits at 23-14 (9-6 CCIW). North Central, who has already grabbed a spot in the conference tournament and who ranks second in the league, holds a record of 23-11 (10-5).

Thursday's matchup will mark the 21st meeting between the Titans and Beavers since 2000, with IWU owning the 14-5-1 all-time series advantage. After winning eight straight from 2014-2016, BC stunned Illinois Wesleyan in the team's last meeting, May 3 of last year. With a 4-1 lead in the fifth, Blackburn rattled off eight consecutive runs in the final four frames to seal the 9-4 win. 

IWU and Millikin have a much deeper history, as the two foes have squared off a total of 118 times dating back to 1988. Illinois Wesleyan has claimed the 78-38 series lead that can be traced back, in large part, to a 28-game win streak from 2006-2015. However, the most recent history has been on the side of the Big Blue as MU is currently riding an eight-game winning streak. IWU's last victory over Millikin came on May 11, 2019 in the CCIW Tournament. 

With 112 encounters in the books, dating back to 1988, the Titans welcome the 63-49 series lead over North Central. Much like with the Millikin series, IWU used an 18-game winning streak, from 2004-2009, to create the separation between the two. Additionally, NCC has claimed the previous eight meetings as Illinois Wesleyan's last win over the Cardinals was on March 31, 2019. 

The Titans last took to the field Saturday, April 29 with a doubleheader date against nationally-ranked Augustana College. Augie, who claimed a share of the CCIW regular season title, took both ends of the double dip by final score of 10-2 and 12-2. 

Blackburn is coming off of a 25-5 setback against Spalding University, Sunday, April 30 in a St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Association contest. Millikin most recently swept Carroll University in convincing fashion with scores of 13-3 and 16-4, respectively. NCC, who is scheduled to play North Park University on Friday, took on Webster University yesterday, May 2. Webster took down NCC by a final score of 17-4 as WU registered 20 hits in the contest. 

With 15 league games in the books, IWU has a pair hitting above the .400 mark. Sophomore Tristan Figus (Arlington Heights, Ill.-Buffalo Grove) leads the Titans with his .429 CCIW batting average. On the conference leaderboard, the sophomore owns the eighth-highest batting clip in the league.

Additionally, junior Louis Perona (Chicago, Ill.-Lane Tech) owns a .407 batting average. Perona tops the Titans with his team-leading 24 hits, five doubles, 34 total bases, and .576 slugging percentage. 

As a team, Illinois Wesleyan is hitting at a .308 clip, which is the third-highest mark in the league. North Central tops the CCIW (.349), while Augustana ranks second (.321). However, the Titans are tied atop the rankings with the program's seven three-baggers.

On the mound, freshman Jake Pullam (Palatine, Ill.-Palatine) is fresh off of his first CCIW Pitcher of the Week nod that was awarded Monday, May 1. Pullam took a no-hitter into the seventh and led IWU to a crucial, 4-0, victory over Carroll University. 

Sophomore Dalen Banks (Springfield, Ill.-Springfield) has logged the most conference victories thus far (three). Additionally, Banks leads the Titans with 33 innings pitched and two complete games.

As a staff, IWU owns the fifth-lowest team ERA with a 5.80 clip. The Big Blue (3.25 ERA) and Augustana (3.74 ERA), rank first and second, respectively.

Live stats and a live video will be available for all four games. Live stats for the three home games can be found here, while the live video for the three home contests can be accessed here. Live stats for the road game at Millikin can be found here and the live video can be viewed by clicking here.