The Spartan baseball team was in high spirits Tuesday after their first outdoor practice of the season. Players were preparing for their Big Ten opening game this weekend against Illinois.

After winning two games against Ohio University on Sunday, the team is pumped up to challenge the Fighting Illini for four games this weekend.

“We really feel good against this team,” head coach Ted Mahan said. “We’ve made good progress through our 15 games.”

Illinois’ main strength, Mahan said, is its pitching, but the Spartans are not concerned. MSU junior starting pitcher Dylan Putnam is confident the team will play well, emphasizing previous success this season.

“I’m going to give us a good start,” he said “We’ve played every game on the road so far and we’re still over .500.”

The Spartans face Illinois sporting an 8-7 record so far this season, without a home game.

“We’ve played a very difficult schedule,” Mahan said.

With a season record topped by only three Big Ten teams, players feel good about keeping above .500.

They have reason to boast about improvement this season, after starting off with five losses in a row.

According to several team members, Illinois has lost several of their former key players, possibly giving the Spartans an edge.

“Our experience right now is our number one advantage,” junior pitcher Kyle Geswein said.

On top of experience, team spirit is better than ever.

“Team morale is outstanding, they haven’t let things bother them,” Mahan said.

Putnam exemplified this feeling, saying, “We played great all year even in our losses.”

Geswein said despite the team’s low profile, this will be the year for a break-out performance.

Mahan said with some improvements in pitching and defense, the Spartans have a chance to do well against the Illini.

After this weekend’s games against Illinois, MSU will face Eastern Michigan on Tuesday.