East Peoria, Ill. - For the first time in program history, the Illinois Central College baseball team will be hosting the Region 24 Tournament---Region 24 C---this weekend at Thome Field. The Cougars have earned the #3 seed in the three-team tourney, which also features #4 seeded John Wood and #6 seeded Lincoln Land.

It's the first time post-season baseball will be played at Illinois Central College in the 45-year history of the program.

ICC (21-34 overall, 19-13 in Region 24) opens play on Friday, May 8 against Lincoln Land (21-28, 12-20) at 12:00 pm. The Cougars will also play later that evening against John Wood (25-24, 17-15) at 6:00 pm. 

In the event that all three teams end with a 1-1 record on Friday, John Wood and Lincoln Land would play in the 11am game on Saturday and then the winner would play ICC for the championship at 2:00 pm. 

During the regular season, ICC won both of their series against the Loggers and the Blazers in high scoring affairs. John Wood swept Lincoln Land back in early March.

"We've swung the bats well all season and have prepared for post-season with our tough schedule," coach Brett Kelley said. "We put ourselves in good position by playing well most of the year and are excited to be hosting." 

Freshman Micah McCoy leads the team in several offensive categories, including batting average (.420), RBI (76), and home runs (16). Redshirt sophomore is also a key contributor, hitting .408 with 50 RBI.  As a team, the Cougars have a .322 batting average. 

Pitchers Wyatt Jaeck and Brady Bolen anchor the pitching staff. Both hurlers have four wins apiece on the season while Jaeck has 50 strikeouts in 47 innings.

Region 24 has three tournaments---A, B, and C. Heartland earned the #1 seed and is hosting Lewis & Clark and Spoon River in the "24-A" bracket at the Corn Crib in Normal. Parkland is the #2 seed and will host Danville and Vincennes in the "24-B" bracket at Dodds Field in Champaign. 

The winners of the Region 24 A, B, and C Tourneys will advance to the Central District Tournament on May 14-16, which will be played at the highest remaining Region 24 seed. The fourth team will be the Region Champion from Region 16 out of Missouri.

The Central District Champion will advance to the NJCAA Division II World Series on May 23-30 in Enid, OK at David Allen Memorial Ballpark. 

REGION 24-C BASEBALL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE (at Illinois Central College; 1 College Drive, East Peoria, IL)
Friday, May 8
12:00 pm: (3) Illinois Central vs. (6) Lincoln Land
  3:00 pm (4) John Wood vs. (6) Lincoln Land
  6:00 pm (3) Illinois Central vs. (4) John Wood

Saturday, May 9 at Illinois Central College
11:00 am: Teams TBA
  2:00 pm: If necessary
***Winner advances to Central District Tournament on May 14-16