Fighting Illini freshman pitcher Aidan Flinn was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week for the first time in his career, according to a May 11 announcement from the conference office.
The recognition highlights Flinn’s recent performance and adds to a season in which Illinois has seen multiple players receive conference honors. The University of Illinois Fighting Illini baseball program competes in intercollegiate athletics and is part of NCAA Division I and the Big Ten Conference, offering student-athletes opportunities for competition, development, and academic achievement, according to the official website.
Flinn earned this honor after pitching five scoreless innings with five strikeouts and allowing only one hit during Illinois’ 4-3 win over Northwestern on Saturday night. The Mokena, Illinois native allowed just two baserunners across his outing and retired the final nine batters he faced, including consecutive perfect innings in both the fourth and fifth frames.
This start marked Flinn’s third straight game pitching at least five innings. As a result, he lowered his earned run average (ERA) to 2.57 over 13 appearances this season. He is also noted as being “the second Illini to be named Big Ten Freshman of the Week this season,” following AJ Putty who received recognition on Feb. 23. The team has now had multiple players earn this weekly award for the first time since 2017.
The regular season will conclude with a three-game series at Indiana beginning Thursday at 5 p.m. Central Time.
