Nick Mingione talks Kentucky’s NCAA tournament draw
Nick Mingione’s Kentucky baseball program advanced in the 2023 Lexington Regional by defeating the MAC champions before facing a Big Ten program. The Bat Cats would lose game two to Indiana, but would win three games in a row to advance to the super-regionals.
This same potential path is on the table again.
Friday night at Kentucky Proud Park, No. 3 seed Illinois advanced to the winner’s bracket after defeating No. 2 seed Indiana State 4-1. The Illini earned their first NCAA Tournament victory since 2015. The Big Ten regular-season champions advanced without needing much work from the bullpen.
Head coach Dan Hartleb got eight innings from starting pitcher Jack Crowder as the No. 2 Sycamores generated just three hits. Crowder struck out five batters with zero walks on 106 pitches. The innings eater helped save the bullpen for a pitching staff that entered the postseason ranked 133rd overall in ERA (5.89).
Illinois (35-19) has now beaten Indiana State twice this season after clinching its fifth Quad 1 game this season.
Saturday’s action at Kentucky Proud Park begins at noon ET when No. 2 Indiana State takes on No. 4 Western Michigan. Kentucky’s first pitch against Illinois is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET at Kentucky Proud Park. The Wildcats will look to win Game 2 of the Lexington Regional this time around.
More Kentucky postgame coverage on KSR’s YouTube channel
KSR’s Daniel Hager quickly posted a recap of Kentucky’s 10-8 win over Western Michigan on Friday afternoon. The story of the afternoon was the big 3.1 inning the Wildcats got from Robert Hogan out of the bullpen.
Before we turn the page on Illinois, let’s look back at the Bat Cats’ first NCAA Tournament victory. Press conferences and our latest Rapid Reaction video are now live on the KSR YouTube channel.
Subscribe to the KSR YouTube channel for press conferences, interviews, original shows, fan features and exclusive content.
News Source : www.on3.com
Gn sports
