BALTIMORE, Md. – The 13th-ranked Fighting Illini men’s golf team maintained its position atop the team leaderboard after 36 holes at the 2025 Big Ten Championship behind a pair of strong rounds by the freshman duo of Jake Birdwell and Trey Marrion on Saturday at historic Baltimore Country Club.
Off-and-on rain and a 90-minute lightning delay before a windy afternoon finish led to shifting conditions, but Marrion’s 67 (-3) and Birdwell’s 68 (-2) anchored a team round of 282 (+2) that helped the Illini (-8) post a six-stroke lead over second-place Oregon (-2), and a seven-shot advantage over third-place Indiana (-1) heading into Sunday’s finale.
“We’re in the lead, and you’d rather be in the lead than not, but we lost some momentum on the back nine today,” head coach Mike Small said after the round. “We got a little soft before the rain came, and we made some unforced bogeys on some easy holes. After the delay, the golf course changed right in front of our eyes with the hardest holes coming up that we had to face. Bogeys on 15? That’s just a hard hole. But the bogeys on 13, 14 and 16, those are the ones that bother you as a coach because those were unforced. Tomorrow we will stay steadfast, stay hardened, stay in the moment, and embrace the challenge. It will be a good day.”
Birdwell’s 68 matched his opening-round effort, and put him in position to challenge for the individual title. With a two-round tally of 136 (-4), Birdwell is just three shots off the pace of 36-hole leader Omar Morales (-7) of UCLA in a tie for third.
Marrion’s team-low 67 was a nine-stroke improvement over his opening 76 on Friday, and vaulted him 50 spots up the individual leaderboard into a tie for 32nd at 3-over.
“They (Trey and Jake) were huge, today,” added Small. “We’ve challenged them all spring to really grow and be a part of this, and they answered the bell with what they did today. They were a big, big part of it today, but as I’ll tell the team, today is over and we will start again tomorrow.”
Junior Ryan Voois carded the Illin’s third score on the day, battling to a 3-over 73 to sit at even-par in a tie for 17th, while sophomore Max Herendeen and senior Jackson Buchanan each finished with scores of 74 (+4) in Round 2.
Herendeen (-3), who paced the field after Round 1, also remains in the medalist hunt in a tie for seventh. Buchanan is six-over, overall, and enters the final round in a tie for 63rd in the 90-player field.
Sunday’s final round is set tee off beginning at 8 a.m. ET/7 a.m. CT. Illinois, paired with Oregon and Indiana, will open Round 3 starting at 9:40 a.m. ET/8:40 a.m. CT. The Orange and Blue are in search of their 14th victory in the last 16 league championships dating back to the 2008-09 season, and the program’s 21st Big Ten crown overall.
Live scoring is available via Clippd Scoreboard, and live television coverage is slated to begin on Big Ten Network at 1 p.m.ET/12 p.m. CT. For more information, visit the 2025 Big Ten Men’s Golf Championship Central.