Hawkeye Fan Shop — A Black & Gold Store | 24 Hawkeyes to Watch 2016-17 | Hawk Talk Monthly — March 2017
IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa baseball team will host Northern Illinois on Tuesday at 3:05 p.m. (CT) at Duane Banks Field.
The Hawkeyes enter the midweek contest with a 6-4 record after winning 2-of-3 games last weekend at the DQ Classic in Minneapolis. Iowa took down Hawai’i, 7-6, on Friday night, finishing with a season-high 17 hits. On Saturday, the hitting continued, as the Hawkeyes used three home runs from three different players to earn their sixth victory of the season.
The Huskies bring a 2-9 record into Iowa City after dropping four games to SIU Edwardsville over the weekend. Northern Illinois has three players hitting over .300 on the season, led by junior Jesus Tovar III, who is hitting .357 with five RBIs.
Hawkeye freshman Ben Norman and sophomore Chris Whelan shared the batting title at the DQ Classic, posting .500 averages in three games. Whelan is hitting a team-best .563 (9-of-16) since moving to the leadoff position.
Norman, juniors Matt Hoeg and Jake Adams, and sophomore Robert Neustrom were named to the DQ Classic All-Tournament Team. Adams was also named the Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday.
Iowa will start freshman Grant Judkins on Tuesday. The right-hander (1-0) will be making his second midweek start of the season. He has a 2.25 ERA in two appearances this season, allowing one run on three hits and fanning four.
Northern Illinois will counter with senior right-hander Aaron Rumfield. This will be the Lubbock, Texas, native’s first start of the season. He has appeared in three games this season, allowing only three hits over 5 2/3 innings.
Tuesday’s game will be streamed live on BTN Plus on BTN2GO. The game will also be audio streamed live on the Hawkeye Radio Network and will be available on Hawkeye All-Access with Zach Mackey on the call.
Following the midweek matchup, the Hawkeyes head to Florida this weekend for the Snowbird Baseball Classic. Iowa will play four games, facing Villanova, Bucknell, and Lehigh in a doubleheader.
