The daily pitch from Sports Editor Matt Daniels: June 13, 2025 | Sports

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Sports Editor Matt Daniels with a look at what’s happening around the area:

Three reasons we love sports today

➜ 1. The fourth annual Bret Bielema Invitational takes place on Monday at Atkins Golf Club in Urbana. The popular fundraiser put on by the Illini Quarterback Club sold out last year and will have Bielema, along with members of his staff, mingling with the hundreds of participants on hand.

➜ 2. Then, on Tuesday night, Bielema will sing ‘Take Me Out to the Ballgame’ during the seventh-inning stretch when the Cubs host the Brewers at Wrigley Field.

➜ 3. The 36th annual Kendall Gill golf outing to benefit Cunningham Children’s Home is set for Monday, July 14. The event, a staple on the summer calendar since 1990 when Gill just wrapped up his Illini basketball career, tees off at the University of Illinois Orange and Blue courses in Savoy.

Numbers game: 77

days until the Illinois football team kicks off its season against Western Illinois. The season opener against the Leathernecks is set for a 6:30 p.m. kickoff on Aug. 29 — 11 weeks from today — at Memorial Stadium in Champaign. Illinois is 3-0 all-time against Western Illinois, winning 21-0 in 2007, 44-0 in 2015 and 34-14 in 2018.

Crowd control

Three events I’m paying attention to

➜ 1. NCAA outdoor track and field Championships. Lucie Kienast and Melissa Wullschleger are set to compete Friday in the heptathlon for the Illinois women’s team, while Kam Garrett in the high jump and Viktor Morozov in the triple jump get their time in the spotlight for the Illini men at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

➜ 2. The U.S. Open. Former Illini Thomas Detry is near the top of the leaderboard after Thursday’s first round. Former Illini Jackson Buchanan and Brian Campbell, however, have work to do Friday if they hope to play the weekend.

➜ 3. Oklahoma City Thunder at Indiana Pacers. Pacers could go up 3-1 when Game 4 of the NBA Finals tips Friday night.

Ask an athlete

Three questions with Bismarck-Henning/Rossville-Alvin sophomore Raylynn Hearnley, who plays volleyball and basketball and also runs track with the Blue Devils:

➜ 1. Three athletes I’d like to have dinner with are … Harper Murray, Raina Terry and Laney Choboy.

➜ 2. The TV show I most like to binge-watch is … “Gossip Girl.”

➜ 3. My biggest pet peeve is … going to bed with a dirty room.