The history of college baseball in the state of Illinois cannot be told without mention of Richard “Itch” Jones. In 15 years as Head Coach at the University of Illinois, Itch led the Illini to 474 wins, two Big Ten regular season titles, a Big Ten tournament title and two NCAA tournament appearances.

But before taking the job with Illinois in 1991, Itch was the winningest coach in school history at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, where he led the Salukis to 10 NCAA tournaments, three College World Series and a 738-345-5 record in 21 seasons.

After the 1990 campaign in which Itch's Salukis went 49-14 to earn a top-15 national ranking, the legendary coach was named Head Coach at Illinois. Going with him to Champaign was the then-24-year-old Dan Hartleb, who played two seasons for Itch and was his graduate assistant for two more at Southern Illinois. At Illinois, Hartleb would serve as Itch's associate head coach and pitching coach for the next 15 years.

When Itch retired after the 2005 season, Coach Hartleb was promoted to head coach – the 10th in 136 years of Illinois baseball – and has continued his predecessor's winning tradition ever since. In nine seasons, Coach Hartleb has led the Illini to as many NCAA Tournament appearances (two) as Itch did in his 15 years at Illinois.

The program reached new heights under Coach Hartleb in 2014, going 17-7 in Big Ten play to secure the school's best record during the conference's 24-game schedule era. Coach Hartleb's pitching staff led the way, posting a school record 3.25 ERA.

Returning nearly all key pieces from last year's squad, the 2015 Illini are flying high. Much like their sweep of the nationally-ranked Gators early last year in Gainesville, Fla., Illinois stole two of three games from the nationally-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys in Stillwater, Okla. two weeks ago to stake their claim as one of the country's top programs.

“From a recognition standpoint, it was a big series against a very good Oklahoma State team,” Coach Hartleb told Perfect Game over the phone last week. “But our guys went in there with the idea that we were going to win games.”

In their Friday night matchup, lefthander Kevin Duchene tossed seven innings of three-hit ball. Perfect Game Second-Team All-American, Tyler Jay, recorded the final five outs to nail down his fourth save and set the tone for a thrilling series. Shortstop Adam Walton led the offense from the leadoff spot, going 3-for-5 with three runs scored, a home run, three RBI and a stolen base.

Redshirt senior Drasen Johnson (1.75 ERA in five starts) took the series-tying loss in game two on Saturday. Junior catcher Jason Goldstein homered, but defensive miscues cost Illinois, setting the stage for the Sunday rubber match.

Senior righthander John Kravetz (1.83 ERA in five starts) continued his dominance in game three with seven strong innings. He turned the mound over in a tie game to Jay, who tossed 3.0 scoreless innings. Jay was eventually credited with the win – his third of the season – after David Kerian's two-run home run in the 10th inning sealed the game – and the series – for the Illini.

Jay's dominance vs. Oklahoma State – in addition to the three scoreless innings he tossed March 2 at Coastal Carolina – earned him the Big Ten Pitcher of the Week Award. But Jay deflects the recognition, however deserving, to his teammates.

“I'd rather have one of my teammates win that award instead of me,” Jay said. “Duchene threw one hell of a game on Friday. But it's cool. It's something I'll look back on when I'm older. But right now I'm just focused on playing.”

While Jay serves primarily as the team's closer, he earned a win in his first career start on February 15 at Lamar, striking out six in five scoreless innings.

“I like starting, but it's two different games for me,” Jay said. “Closing, you're the big bad guy coming in to shut things down. And when you're starting, you get to toy around and use more of your pitches. I enjoy doing both. But with the way our starters have been throwing, there should be no adjustments. I have no problem doing whatever the coaches ask me to do.”

“That's the thing that impresses me so much about Tyler,” Coach Hartleb said. “He has the desire to do whatever it takes for our team to be successful.”

Ranked as the No. 19 college junior on Allan Simpson's Top 100 College Juniors list, Jay is considered Illinois' top prospect. The 6-foot-1 lefthander gained national attention after his dazzling sophomore season, being named to the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team. On the same roster as Vanderbilt's Carson Fulmer, among others, Jay worked under pitching coach Rob Childress, a former lefthanded pitcher and current head coach at Texas A&M. Jay worked with another lefty, coach Kyle Hallock, in the Cape Cod League last summer. He credits much of his success this year to Childress and Hallock for helping him develop and refine his changeup, a pitch that his catcher at Illinois, Jason Goldstein now calls Jay's best secondary pitch.

Jason Goldstein (Photo: University of Illinois Athletics)