Big Ten-leading Illini face another critical series

May 10—CHAMPAIGN — Illinois' lead atop the Big Ten baseball standings is ... tenuous.

Just a single-game lead on Purdue. And Nebraska. And Indiana.

The Illini's lead on fifth-place Iowa isn't much bigger. Just 1 1/2 games on the Hawkeyes, who head to Champaign for a three-game weekend series that starts with a 6 p.m. Friday first pitch at Illinois Field. Iowa is tied with the Illini in the wins column but has three more losses going into its final Big Ten series.

So there's a little pressure on league-leading Illinois (28-16, 13-5 Big Ten), which still has six conference games to play. Of immediate concern is Iowa (28-18, 13-8) before a critical three-game set at Purdue (32-17, 12-6) next week to wrap the regular season.

Pressure the Illini don't mind considering a 5-10 start to the season that's turned into five Big Ten series wins in six opportunities.

"We've got some pressure, and pressure is a privilege," Illinois redshirt senior catcher/designated hitter Jacob Schroeder said. "We're excited for it. It's another Big Ten series, and we're going to have to grind through it. They're not easy. ... There's a lot of teams right on our tail. That just makes it that much more fun for us."

Not letting the pressure become overwhelming in the final two weekends of the regular season is the goal. Illinois coach Dan Hartleb has made that clear with his team. The Illini can't be worried about themselves — the team comes first — and they can't worry about what else is happening in the Big Ten around them.

"All you can do is compete," Hartleb said. "If we compete, everything falls into place. We just have to get rid of the outside noise and compete, and that's been the message to them. Early in the year, we didn't do a good job of that."

Ample worries came through in that 5-10 stretch. Illinois had played several good teams, but certainly didn't play well. Batting averages were bottoming out. Earned run averages were skyrocketing.

"You just can't worry about it," Hartleb said. "You just have to go take one pitch at a time, compete as hard as you can, and if you break it down like that, you take all the pressures off. Our guys have done a great job adjusting after the first 20 games."

That's when Illinois' turnaround began in earnest with a Big Ten series win at Indiana in late March. Three more followed, including home sweeps of Penn State and Northwestern, before the Illini dropped their final two games at Maryland in late April. Another Big Ten loss followed in last Friday's opener against Ohio State before the Illini rallied for two decisive victories against the Buckeyes and another series win.

"We struggled early out of conference, for sure," Schroeder said. "We did play a tough schedule, but going into Big Ten play, we always say we're 0-0. Last year we played well out of conference and were going into it feeling good and things kind of spiraled for us. This year was the opposite."

Schroeder doesn't sense his team is pressing down the stretch either. Even sitting atop the Big Ten standings getting chased by half the league. The vibe is more about relaxing, continuing to have the type of fun that win after win fueled by home run after home run has delivered and let the results take care of themselves.

"I don't think we're going to try and change anything up," Illinois right fielder Ryan Moerman said. "Just do exactly what we've been doing every weekend series we've played so far in the Big Ten. Being in the hunt toward the end makes it a lot of fun."