EAST LANSING, Mich. (Interstat) — Luke Stulga and the Illinois State Redbirds bring a potent offense to a key Big Ten series against Michigan State on Thursday afternoon.

Stulga, a center fielder, has collected hits in seven of his past 10 games, capped by a 3-for-5, two-home run, five-RBI performance in the Redbirds’ 15-4 win over Eastern Illinois on Tuesday. Over that eight-game span, Stulga has five homers and 12 RBIs. Illinois State (30-20) has won four of its past six games, averaging nearly 10 runs per contest.

Michigan State (20-30) counters with right-hander Kyle Rudolph, who threw three scoreless innings of relief in a 5-2 win over Eastern Michigan on Tuesday. The Spartans have dropped nine of their last 12 but took two of three at Ohio State last weekend. Rudolph has allowed three earned runs over seven innings in his past two appearances, with eight strikeouts.

The forecast calls for partly cloudy skies at first pitch.

Among other top performers for Illinois State in Tuesday’s win: first baseman Michael Carrano Jr. went 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs, and pitcher Brayden Zilis tossed four scoreless innings with five strikeouts.

For Michigan State, reliever Brady Chambers worked 1 2/3 scoreless innings with four strikeouts in Tuesday’s win, and left fielder Nick Williams went 2-for-3 with two RBIs.

The Redbirds, who sport a .600 winning percentage, are trying to solidify their position in the Big Ten standings. The Spartans, meanwhile, are looking to avoid a deeper slide. Michigan State has allowed 6.4 runs per game this season, though Rudolph and Chambers have been reliable options out of the bullpen.

The teams continue their series Friday and Saturday in East Lansing.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a 7-5 Illinois State victory.