CHICAGO – UIC sophomore Reid Birlingmair has been named the Horizon League Pitcher of the Week, the conference office announced Monday, April 3. It is the first career #HLBase honor for Birlingmair.
 
Birlingmair took the ball in game two of a doubleheader against Milwaukee on April 1 and was simply sensational on the mound for the Flames. The Normal, Ill., native retired the first 20 Panthers in order as he was perfect through 6.2 innings of work. The right-handed pitcher's bid for a perfect game ended when he issued a base on balls with two outs in the bottom of the seventh.
 
Following the free pass, Birlingmair retired the next four Milwaukee batters in order to carry a no-hitter into the bottom of the ninth. The Panthers scratched out two singles in their last at-bat, but they could not score as Birlingmair and his defense preserved the shutout and UIC won the game, 5-0.
 
Birlingmair struck out seven batters in a career-high nine innings of work. It was the second time he provided the Flames with at least eight innings this season, having also done so in a 3-0 win over Youngstown State on March 19.
 
Hear what Birlingmair had to say to UICFlames.com following Saturday's spectacular outing:
 
 
 
Birlingmair ranks prominently in several Horizon League statistical categories in his first full season as a starter for head coach Mike Dee's squad. He ranks second in both innings pitched (21.2) and opposing batting average (.145) in League games. He's tied for fourth with 13 strikeouts in conference play and Birlingmair ranks sixth with a 1.25 ERA.
 
The sophomore is the third different pitcher and the fourth UIC player to garner a weekly Horizon League award this season. Pitchers Connor Ryan and Jake Dahlberg were recognized on Feb. 27 and March 13, respectively, while outfielder Scott Ota was named the conference's Batter of the Week on March 29. The Flames are the only Horizon League squad with four different individual honorees in 2017.
 
UIC, which has won 13 of its last 14 games, will close out an eight-game homestand under the lights on Tuesday, April 4, when Northwestern makes the trip south from Evanston for a 6:05 p.m. start. The Flames are 2-0 against the Wildcats this season with both victories coming on the road at Rocky and Berenice Miller Park.