The proximity of Northwestern and Illinois makes for a heated rivalry between the conference rivals in all sports and baseball is no exception.
The fact that players on both teams competed against each other in high school just adds fuel to the fire.
Add in the result from last year’s series – Illinois was the only Big Ten team to sweep Northwestern – and you’ve got an inferno.
“There’s a lot of guys here who have a lot of that silent energy penned up right now,” coach Paul Stevens said. “We’ve got a score to settle here.”
From 2002-04, Northwestern owned Illinois, taking nine out of 11 games from the Illini.
Illinois, who finished first in the conference, outscored NU, 59-18 in the four-game series last year.
“I wouldn’t have bet on that in a million years,” Stevens said. “It was the most unbelievable exhibition of hitting I had ever seen. Balls were flying everywhere. I honestly had never seen anything like that. It was impressive.”
The Illini hit .455 and NU’s pitching staff left Illinois with a 16.20 ERA.
The Cats haven’t forgotten.
Junior pitcher George Kontos, who gave up seven runs in 4.1 innings in a 9-2 loss, said the team is taking this weekend’s series as a challenge.
“It kind of got out of hand,” he said. “It’s motivated us and makes us prepare harder. There’s definitely a grudge there for us.”
This year, NU is tied for first in the conference play behind the strength of its pitching staff.
The team has a 2.29 ERA against Big Ten opponents.
Kontos and junior Dan Brauer have pitched complete games in two consecutive sets of doubleheaders and senior Julio Siberio has found a niche as the team’s third starter, giving up only four earned runs in 13.2 innings.
Left-handed reliever Dan Schwartz said the consistency of the starting pitching has been a key factor in building the team’s confidence.
“Any regularity just shows confidence by the coaches,” he said. “That helps you go out and try to be aggressive out there.”
Schwartz has been Stevens’ main man out of the bullpen this year, throwing 24 innings in the Cats’ first 27 games.
In conference play, Schwartz has allowed no runs and only four hits in seven innings.
With Brauer and Kontos going the distance, Schwartz said it’s easier for him to be more effective.
“Having two horses go out there Saturday and rest my arm, it’s always nice news for me,” he said, “so you can throw Friday and Sunday and be fully rested.”
Illinois lost some firepower this offseason, including second baseman J.R. Kyes, who drove in 13 runs against the Cats last year.
But Kontos said this was no reason to take them lightly.
“They were a lot more dominant last year,” he said. “But they’re definitely not going to be pushovers. They’re going to come out swinging the bats.”
The Illini are 3-5 in the conference and Schwartz said he thinks the Cats are ready to repay their intrastate rivals for their actions last year.
“I think our pitching is better than their hitting and that’s all that matters,” he said. “If we stick to our gameplan and do what we need to do, then there’s no reason why we can’t win.”
Reach David Morrison at [email protected].
