Friday’s Preview: Georgia Tech Hosts Illinois-Chicago

ATLANTA (Interstat) — The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (46-9-1), one of the nation’s top teams, host the Illinois-Chicago Flames (27-27-1) in a nonconference matchup Friday afternoon at Russ Chandler Stadium.

First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m. The weather forecast for game time was not immediately available.

Georgia Tech enters the game on a five-game winning streak after a 13-6 victory over North Carolina on Sunday. The Yellow Jackets have won 12 of their last 13 contests and boast a potent offense that has scored at least nine runs in eight of their last nine games.

Outfielder Alex Hernandez is a key player for Georgia Tech. In Sunday’s win against North Carolina, he went 3-for-5 with four RBIs. Hernandez has been productive in recent action, though he has shown some inconsistency, batting 1-for-5 against Virginia on May 21 and going hitless in back-to-back games at Boston College on May 15 and 16 before rebounding with a home run and an RBI on May 14.

Illinois-Chicago, coming off a 7-2 win over Southern Illinois on Sunday, has alternated wins and losses over its last six games. The Flames took three of four at Bradley earlier this month and split a four-game series with Illinois State.

Pitcher Kendall Lyons is a player to watch for Illinois-Chicago. In his last outing against Southern Illinois on May 24, he threw six innings, allowing three hits and one earned run with two strikeouts. Lyons has been effective in his recent starts, tossing six shutout innings against Bradley on May 16, though he surrendered eight hits and three earned runs in four innings against Illinois State on May 10.

In Sunday’s win for Illinois-Chicago, designated hitter Ashton Kampa went 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs. Jared Lessman threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings in relief.

For Georgia Tech in its Sunday win, center fielder Drew Burress went 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs, and third baseman Ryan Zuckerman was 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs.

Interstat’s game simulator projects an 8-6 victory for Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets are installed as a pregame favorite with a run line of minus-7.5.