CHICAGO -- The UIC baseball team returns to Horizon League play this weekend with a pair of doubleheaders. The Flames will first play Milwaukee on the road in a twinbill before returning home for a doubleheader on Sunday against Wright State.

FIRST PITCH
• The Flames picked up its second win of the season against Purdue last time out, using a three-run eighth inning to pick up the 9-6 victory. Rayth Petersen had a career-day, finishing 4-for-5 with four RBI, including the go-ahead two-run single in the eighth to break a 6-all tie.
• UIC has excelled at laying down the sacrifice bunts, ranking first in the Horizon League and 11th nationally with 25 on the season.

FLAMES HEAT UP
• UIC has started to heat up, having won the last two series played and five out of the last six contests.
• The Flames took  2-of-3 from Oakland, winning the final two games of the series, before winning 2-of-3 against Wright State and a single game against Purdue. Entering this weekend, Wright State and Oakland are the top two teams in the Horizon League standings.
• Over the last six games, UIC's pitchers have combined for a 3.67 ERA while opposing pitchers have a 5.37 earned run average.
• Rayth Petersen is hitting .417 during the stretch while Ryan Lin-Peistrup has a .304 batting average in the last six games played.

SHUTDOWN SHEARS
• Tanner Shears has evolved into one of UIC's most consistent bullpen arms of late.
• Shears is a perfect 6-for-6 in save opportunities, with all six saves coming in the month of April.
• Dating back to March 23, Shears has made 10 appearances and has been nearly lights out, allowing just two runs (one earned) on three hits while striking out 19 batters and allowing just five walks over 13.2 innings of work. Shears has a 0.66 ERA during the run while opposing hitters combined to hit just .067 off the righty.
• Shears was named the Horizon League Pitcher of the Week on April 19.

FLAMES STUN NO. 16 BOILERMAKERES
• UIC came from behind in stunning fashion on March 29, erasing a 9-0 deficit after six innings to top 16th-ranked Purdue by a 10-9 score.
• The Flames scored three runs in the seventh, four in the eighth and added three more in the ninth to complete the comeback.
• UIC excelled under pressure, as nine of the 10 runs scored in the comeback came with two outs in the inning.
• The win marked UIC's first win over a ranked opponent since winning 2-of-3 at then No. 7 Vanderbilt Feb. 24-26, 2017.
• The Flames then completed the season sweep of the Boilermakers with a 9-6 victory on April 19.

SMALL BALL
• UIC is one of the best teams in the Horizon League in manufacturing runs, as the Flames rank atop the League in sacrifice bunts and second in sacrifice flies.
• The Flames have recorded 25 sac bunts this year, ninth-most in Division I baseball, and have driven home 13 players via the sac fly.
• Breck Nowik and Clay Conn share the team lead with five sacrifice bunts this year to rank 60th nationally.