Friday, May 9
Urbana-Champaign, IL
4:00 PM (PT)
UCLA
at
Illinois
Roch Cholowsky
Photo by: Luke Bourgeois
No. 18 UCLA Faces Illinois in Final Big Ten Road Series
May 08, 2025 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES - The No. 18-ranked UCLA baseball team will make its way to Champaign, Ill. to take on Illinois in a three-game set beginning on Friday, May 9 at 4 p.m. PT (6 p.m. CT), continuing on Saturday, May 10 at 4 p.m. PT (6 p.m. CT), and concluding on Sunday, May 11 at 10 a.m. PT (12 p.m. CT). Fans can also follow along with live stats (StatBroadcast) and X/Twitter updates (@UCLABaseball).
ย
SERIES INFORMATION
Venue:ย Illinois Field
Stream (Fri.): B1G+
Stream (Sat.):ย Big Ten Network
Stream (Sun.): B1G+
Live Stats:ย ucla.statbroadcast.com
ย
THE RUNDOWNย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
LAST WEEK'S RECAPย ย ย ย ย ย
In a thrilling series against USC at Great Park, No. 14 UCLA started strong with a narrow 7-6 victory in the opener, thanks to freshman Easton Hawk's clutch performance in the ninth inning. However, despite a valiant comeback effort featuring Roman Martin's grand slam, UCLA fell short 7-5 in the second game. The series concluded with a tough 11-5 loss, as USC overcame an early three-run homer by Martin with nine unanswered runs, handing UCLA its second weekend series defeat of the season. It became three defeats in a row for the Bruins after dropping their midweek affair at Long Beach State, 4-2. This is the first time this season UCLA has suffered three consecutive losses.
ย
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday, May 9 - 4 p.m. PTย
UCLA โ RS Jr. LHP Ian May (6-2, 4.38 ERA)
ILL โ Jr. RHP Tyler Schmitt (4-2, 4.88 ERA)
ย
Saturday, May 10 - 4 p.m. PTย
UCLA โ Jr. RHPย Michael Barnettย (8-1, 4.70 ERA)
ILL โ So. LHP Regan Hall (6-3, 4.96 ERA)
ย
Sunday, May 11 - 10 a.m. PTย
UCLA โ So. RHP Landon Stump (4-0, 5.23 ERA)
ILL โ TBA
ย
ABOUT THE FIGHTING ILLINIย ย ย ย ย
Illinois comes into the weekend ranked sixth in the Big Ten standings at 12-12. The Fighting Illini were swept in their weekend trip to Rutgers last weekend, but rebounded with their 6-4 win over Bradley on Tuesday night. Illinois has been impressive at home, boasting a 14-3 record at Illinois Field. In its one series against a team inside the Big Ten's top five, Illinois lost two of its three contests at Washington.
ย
CHOLOWSKY NAMED TO GOLDEN SPIKES AWARD MIDSEASON WATCH LISTย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Sophomore Roch Cholowsky was named to the USA Baseball Midseason Golden Spikes Watch List. Cholowsky, a sophomore from Chandler, Ariz., has been outstanding for UCLA as it reaches the halfway point in the season. The shortstop is hitting a team-best .367 with 16 home runs and 53 RBIs during his excellent campaign. Cholowsky boasts team-bests in on-base percentage (.511) and slugging (.728) to post an OPS of 1.239. The 2024 Freshman All-American has produced in the crucial moments for the Bruins with five go-ahead home runs on the season. He launched a grand slam to complete UCLA's comeback against Michigan State on Feb. 23 in what was just the beginning of his heroics at the plate in 2025.
In what was arguably UCLA's most exhilarating win of the season, Cholowsky hit a three-run home run in the top of the ninth inning, giving the Bruins the lead when they were down to their final out against Maryland on March 7. This dramatic moment helped secured UCLA's first-ever victory in the Big Ten Conference.
ย
CARDIAC BRUINSย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
UCLA has scored first just 18 times in its 48 games this season, racking up a total of 17 come-from-behind victories. Remarkably, the Bruins have pulled off three comebacks after trailing by five or more runs. UCLA is 17-1 when scoring first in 2025.
ย
ROCH AND THE ADVANCED STATISTICS
Roch Cholowsky has undoubtedly been one of the nation's most valuable players, and the advanced statistics prove it. According to data compiled by 643 charts, Cholowsky leads the nation in wins-above-replacement (WAR) with a mark of 5.23. UCLA's shortstop has particularly stood out defensively with a defensive-runs-saved (DRS) mark of 14.38 and defensive WAR of 1.08, ranking second in the nation for both metrics. At the plate, Cholowsky has been equally impressive, boasting an offensive WAR of 4.01 and offensive runs-above-replacement (ORAR) of 53.53.
ย
DAZZLING DOUBLE PLAYSย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
The UCLA defense has turned 49 double plays this season which is the top mark in the country. The Bruins also lead the country in double plays-per-game, averaging 1.02 per contest. Roch Cholowsky and Phoenix Call have combined to turn 30 of the 46 twin killings. It is worth noting that all 49 double play turns have taken place in the infield as first baseman Mulivai Levu has been involved in all of them. The Bruins have been excellent defensively in 2025, posting a fielding percentage of .979 which ranks 16th nationally.
ย
CLOSING IN ON HISTORYย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Head Coach John Savage recently reached a significant milestone, eclipsing the 700-win mark at UCLA with a Friday night win over San Diego. With 710 wins at UCLA, he ranks second all-time, trailing only Gary Adams (1975-2004) who finished his career with 984 wins. Savage began his head coaching career at UC Irvine, where he notched 88 wins in his first three seasons, bringing his career total to 798, which ranks 23rd among active Division I coaches. His winning percentage of .599 with the Bruins is the highest among UCLA coaches with over 100 games coached.
ย
QUITE THE INTRODUCTIONย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Sophomore Grant Gray received his first career start in UCLA's midweek matchup with LMU on Tuesday night, and he made the most of it, launching a two-run home run in what was his first career hit. Gray is a two-way athlete, as he also competes as a wide out for the UCLA football team.
ย
BRUINS PICKED TO FINISH FOURTH IN BIG TEN PRESEASON POLLย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Big Ten Preseason Poll
1. Oregon
2. Nebraska
3. Indiana
4. UCLA
5. Michigan
6. USC
ย
FRIENDLY CONFINESย ย ย ย ย
UCLA clinched its 10th consecutive season with a winning record at Jackie Robinson Stadium. The Bruins have had a losing record at home just twice over the last 21 seasons, last occurring in 2014 (11-20).
ย
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCKย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
UCLA added 11 newcomers ahead of the 2025 season, including eight freshmen and three transfers. Coach Savage has bolstered his pitching staff with three pitchers joining via the transfer portal. Left-hander Ian May (California) will look to occupy a spot in the starting rotation after logging 20 starts and 90.0 total innings for the Golden Bears. Fellow southpaw Ryan Rissas (UC San Diego) helped lead the Tritons to their first-ever Big West title in 2023. August Souza (Santa Clara) brings 43 appearances worth of experience after spending a total of five seasons (including 2020 Covid-shortened season) at Santa Clara.
ย
ย
SERIES INFORMATION
Venue:ย Illinois Field
Stream (Fri.): B1G+
Stream (Sat.):ย Big Ten Network
Stream (Sun.): B1G+
Live Stats:ย ucla.statbroadcast.com
ย
THE RUNDOWNย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
- UCLA enters the week ranked No. 18 in the D1Baseball national poll
- The Bruins are also ranked in the Baseball America poll at No. 24
- UCLA has won six of its eight conference series and currently sits in second place in the Big Ten standings
- The program has clinched another winning record, making it 16 winning records in 21 seasons under HC John Savage
- UCLA has won 10 of its 12 weekend series this season
- The Bruins have lost three consecutive games, marking their longest losing streak of the season
- UCLA are currently 15th in the RPI rankings
- UCLA is 24-6 at Jackie Robinson Stadium this season
- UCLA's defense leads the country in double plays (48) and double plays-per-game (1.02)
- UCLA has collected four weekend sweeps, including three during Big Ten play
- Roch Cholowsky was recently named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List
- Cholowsky powered UCLA to a weekend sweep over Penn State, hitting a home run in each of the three games
- According to data compiled by 643 charts, Cholowsky leads the nation in wins-above-replacement (WAR) at 5.13
- Cholowsky leads the team in hitting at .367, mashing 16 home runs, collecting 53 RBIs, and slugging .728
- Cholowsky boasts an OPS of 1.239 which ranks second in the Big Ten
- Cholowsky hit 10 home runs in April, slashing .403/.518/.881
- Roman Martin homered in back-to-back games in the series at USC, mashing a grand slam and a three-run shot
- Dean West hit a team-best .439 with 22 runs scored, 13 walks, and four HBPs (.554 OBP) in the month of April
- Mulivai Levu ranks 19th in the nation and second in the Big Ten with 61 RBIs
- At 23-5, UCLA achieved its best 28-game start to a season since 2010
- UCLA earned its first series win over Washington since 2019
- UCLA scored 37 runs in the sweep over Purdue, matching its tally from the three-game set against Cal Poly (Feb. 14-16)
- Cholowsky was hit by a pitch three times on Tuesday, a first for UCLA in over a decade
- Against Michigan, UCLA scored 20 or more runs in a game for the first time since its 23-0 win over Omaha (2/18/23)
- In 2023, the Bruins welcomed the top signing class in the country
- Roch Cholowsky returns for his sophomore season after receiving Freshman All-American acclaim (Perfect Game)
- Duce Gourson, Cody Schrier, and Luke Jewett were selected in the 2024 MLB Draft
- The Bruins were picked to finish fourth in the Big Ten Preseason Poll
- Roch Cholowsky, Cody Delvecchio, and Dean West were named Big Ten Players to Watch
- UCLA is coming off a 19-33 campaign, snapping a streak of seven consecutive winning seasons
- Three transfer pitchers (Ian May - Cal, Ryan Rissas - UCSD, August Souza - Santa Clara) bolster UCLA's pitching staff
LAST WEEK'S RECAPย ย ย ย ย ย
In a thrilling series against USC at Great Park, No. 14 UCLA started strong with a narrow 7-6 victory in the opener, thanks to freshman Easton Hawk's clutch performance in the ninth inning. However, despite a valiant comeback effort featuring Roman Martin's grand slam, UCLA fell short 7-5 in the second game. The series concluded with a tough 11-5 loss, as USC overcame an early three-run homer by Martin with nine unanswered runs, handing UCLA its second weekend series defeat of the season. It became three defeats in a row for the Bruins after dropping their midweek affair at Long Beach State, 4-2. This is the first time this season UCLA has suffered three consecutive losses.
ย
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday, May 9 - 4 p.m. PTย
UCLA โ RS Jr. LHP Ian May (6-2, 4.38 ERA)
ILL โ Jr. RHP Tyler Schmitt (4-2, 4.88 ERA)
ย
Saturday, May 10 - 4 p.m. PTย
UCLA โ Jr. RHPย Michael Barnettย (8-1, 4.70 ERA)
ILL โ So. LHP Regan Hall (6-3, 4.96 ERA)
ย
Sunday, May 11 - 10 a.m. PTย
UCLA โ So. RHP Landon Stump (4-0, 5.23 ERA)
ILL โ TBA
ย
ABOUT THE FIGHTING ILLINIย ย ย ย ย
Illinois comes into the weekend ranked sixth in the Big Ten standings at 12-12. The Fighting Illini were swept in their weekend trip to Rutgers last weekend, but rebounded with their 6-4 win over Bradley on Tuesday night. Illinois has been impressive at home, boasting a 14-3 record at Illinois Field. In its one series against a team inside the Big Ten's top five, Illinois lost two of its three contests at Washington.
ย
CHOLOWSKY NAMED TO GOLDEN SPIKES AWARD MIDSEASON WATCH LISTย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Sophomore Roch Cholowsky was named to the USA Baseball Midseason Golden Spikes Watch List. Cholowsky, a sophomore from Chandler, Ariz., has been outstanding for UCLA as it reaches the halfway point in the season. The shortstop is hitting a team-best .367 with 16 home runs and 53 RBIs during his excellent campaign. Cholowsky boasts team-bests in on-base percentage (.511) and slugging (.728) to post an OPS of 1.239. The 2024 Freshman All-American has produced in the crucial moments for the Bruins with five go-ahead home runs on the season. He launched a grand slam to complete UCLA's comeback against Michigan State on Feb. 23 in what was just the beginning of his heroics at the plate in 2025.
In what was arguably UCLA's most exhilarating win of the season, Cholowsky hit a three-run home run in the top of the ninth inning, giving the Bruins the lead when they were down to their final out against Maryland on March 7. This dramatic moment helped secured UCLA's first-ever victory in the Big Ten Conference.
ย
CARDIAC BRUINSย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
UCLA has scored first just 18 times in its 48 games this season, racking up a total of 17 come-from-behind victories. Remarkably, the Bruins have pulled off three comebacks after trailing by five or more runs. UCLA is 17-1 when scoring first in 2025.
ย
ROCH AND THE ADVANCED STATISTICS
Roch Cholowsky has undoubtedly been one of the nation's most valuable players, and the advanced statistics prove it. According to data compiled by 643 charts, Cholowsky leads the nation in wins-above-replacement (WAR) with a mark of 5.23. UCLA's shortstop has particularly stood out defensively with a defensive-runs-saved (DRS) mark of 14.38 and defensive WAR of 1.08, ranking second in the nation for both metrics. At the plate, Cholowsky has been equally impressive, boasting an offensive WAR of 4.01 and offensive runs-above-replacement (ORAR) of 53.53.
ย
DAZZLING DOUBLE PLAYSย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
The UCLA defense has turned 49 double plays this season which is the top mark in the country. The Bruins also lead the country in double plays-per-game, averaging 1.02 per contest. Roch Cholowsky and Phoenix Call have combined to turn 30 of the 46 twin killings. It is worth noting that all 49 double play turns have taken place in the infield as first baseman Mulivai Levu has been involved in all of them. The Bruins have been excellent defensively in 2025, posting a fielding percentage of .979 which ranks 16th nationally.
ย
CLOSING IN ON HISTORYย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Head Coach John Savage recently reached a significant milestone, eclipsing the 700-win mark at UCLA with a Friday night win over San Diego. With 710 wins at UCLA, he ranks second all-time, trailing only Gary Adams (1975-2004) who finished his career with 984 wins. Savage began his head coaching career at UC Irvine, where he notched 88 wins in his first three seasons, bringing his career total to 798, which ranks 23rd among active Division I coaches. His winning percentage of .599 with the Bruins is the highest among UCLA coaches with over 100 games coached.
ย
QUITE THE INTRODUCTIONย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Sophomore Grant Gray received his first career start in UCLA's midweek matchup with LMU on Tuesday night, and he made the most of it, launching a two-run home run in what was his first career hit. Gray is a two-way athlete, as he also competes as a wide out for the UCLA football team.
ย
BRUINS PICKED TO FINISH FOURTH IN BIG TEN PRESEASON POLLย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Big Ten Preseason Poll
1. Oregon
2. Nebraska
3. Indiana
4. UCLA
5. Michigan
6. USC
ย
FRIENDLY CONFINESย ย ย ย ย
UCLA clinched its 10th consecutive season with a winning record at Jackie Robinson Stadium. The Bruins have had a losing record at home just twice over the last 21 seasons, last occurring in 2014 (11-20).
ย
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCKย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
UCLA added 11 newcomers ahead of the 2025 season, including eight freshmen and three transfers. Coach Savage has bolstered his pitching staff with three pitchers joining via the transfer portal. Left-hander Ian May (California) will look to occupy a spot in the starting rotation after logging 20 starts and 90.0 total innings for the Golden Bears. Fellow southpaw Ryan Rissas (UC San Diego) helped lead the Tritons to their first-ever Big West title in 2023. August Souza (Santa Clara) brings 43 appearances worth of experience after spending a total of five seasons (including 2020 Covid-shortened season) at Santa Clara.
ย
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