Game 1 | at Bradley 7, Illinois State 3
A pair of Bradley freshmen came through with clutch hits late in the game and Elliot Ashbeck became just the fourth pitcher in Braves history to win 10 games in a season as Bradley (32-13, 10-6 MVC) opened Saturday's doubleheader with a 7-3 victory against rival Illinois State at Dozer Park.

Ashbeck (10-3) threw a career-high 129 pitches, allowing three runs on eighth hits with eight strikeouts in his 7.0 innings.

The Braves took a 4-3 lead in the sixth on freshman second baseman Mike Riesner's 2-out, RBI single and freshman designated hitter Ian Kristan gave Bradley some insurance with a 3-run double in the seventh inning.

Game 2 | Illinois State 8, at Bradley 0
Redbirds starter Jacob Hendren (10-1) threw a 4-hit shutout and Illinois State pulled away late for an 8-0 victory in Saturday's nightcap, but the game is more noteworthy for several oddities than the final score.

Both teams used twin brothers in Saturday's nightcap: Bradley pitchers Brent Stong and Nathan Stong appeared in the same college game for the first time in their three years together at Bradley. Brent Stong took the loss as the starter, despite allowing only one run through his first six innings. Nathan Stong surrendered three runs in the eighth inning as Bradley's second reliever. Jacob Hendren was joined on the diamond by his twin brother, right fielder Jared Hendren, who was 1-for-5 with a run scored.

Bradley turned a 2-5-6 triple play to end the sixth inning. Illinois State put runners on first and second with no outs on a single and an error to start the frame. Jared Hendren attempted a sacrifice bunt, but catcher Drew Carlile snagged the bunt on one bounce right in front of the plate and immediately tagged Hendren. Carlile then threw to third for the second out and Gaa threw to shortstop Tyler Leffler, who was covering second and applied the play's third tag out to complete the triple play.

The triple play was Bradley's first since May 21, 1947 at Wisconsin. According to this website - http://tripleplays.sabr.org/tp_sum.htm - there has been only one 2-5-6 triple play in Major League Baseball history and only 23 all-time started by a catcher.

This is where the note really gets fun: the only 2-5-6 triple play in Major League Baseball history was turned by the Pittsburgh Pirates against the St. Louis Cardinals May 24, 1893. In tonight's MLB action, the Pittsburgh Pirates have turned a triple play against the St. Louis Cardinals. Although not in at the time, former Bradley pitcher Rob Scahill appeared in tonight's Pittsburgh-St. Louis game, pitching a scoreless sixth inning to lower his season ERA to 0.68.

After earning the win as the starting pitcher in Saturday's doubleheader opener, Bradley's Elliot Ashbeck was the designated hitter in the night cap. The John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year candidate doubled in the ninth inning. The true third-year junior also received his Bradley degree in business management and administration during a special ceremony Wednesday morning.