Bret Bielema and the Illinois coaching staff continue to remain busy on the recruiting front after offering three-star tight end Ben Hynek on Thursday. And why shouldn’t they? The Illini have been on a roll lately.

Hynek, a junior tight end out of Stanley (North Dakota), is ranked No. 23 in the nation at his position and third overall in the state in the class of 2027, according to 247 Sports’ composite rankings. Hynek has eight offers so far, including two from Big Ten programs (Wisconsin and Minnesota) and two more out of the SEC (Auburn and Missouri).

The next step for the Illini will be lining up a visit to Champaign sometime this summer with Hynek, who went on two unofficial visits last month, to Minnesota and Iowa State. Hynek has excellent size for his age and position (6-foot-6, 245 pounds) and is a well-rounded athlete. He is also a pitcher on his high school baseball team and a shot-putter on the track squad.

Just as with any junior-to-be recruit, Hynek shouldn’t be expected to commit anytime soon. He has plenty of time before he needs to make a decision and will probably wind up fielding more offers from Power 4 programs over the summer.

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BOWBELLS, N.D. — More cases of

measles

have been identified in North Dakota, including in a previously uninfected county.

The North Dakota Health and Human Services Department announced on Thursday, May 29, the state’s 28th case, up seven from last week.

The latest case was the first reported in Burke County in far northwest North Dakota. The release did not identify the age of the infected individual but said they traveled frequently to

Williams County, where the first case was reported.

Williams County has nearly half the state’s cases with 13 infections, according to Health and Human Services.

The state has reported 23 cases in people who are less than 20 years old, including three in children 5 years old or younger.

Burke is the fourth county in North Dakota to have a measles case. Cass and Grand Forks counties reported seven cases each as of Thursday. At the end of last week, Cass County reported six cases and Grand Forks County reported two.

People in Divide County may have been exposed to the virus, Health and Human Services said. Places of possible exposure in Crosby include Lindsey’s Grocery Store at 211 Main St. S. from 3 to 5:30 p.m. Monday and Dollar General, 1108 Fourth St. SE, between 3:20 and 5:45 p.m. Monday, the release said.

“This is the highest number of measles cases reported in North Dakota since 1978, when 211 cases occurred,” state Immunization Director Molly Howell said in a statement.

North Dakota has a vaccination rate of almost 90%. The risk of measles to vaccinated residents is low, Health and Human Services said.

Measles is highly contagious since it can spread through the air and linger in rooms for up to two hours, the release said.

“People with measles are contagious before and after symptoms appear, increasing the risk of unintentional spread,” the release said.

The state recommends two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine — the first between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years old.

Two doses of the vaccine provide 97% protection, while one dose is 93% effective, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The MMR vaccine is effective for life.

Residents who were born before 1957 are considered immune.

Those who have contracted the virus should monitor symptoms for 21 days, while unvaccinated people who are exposed to measles should quarantine for the same time period, the release said.

Information on measles and the vaccine can be found at

hhhs.nd.gov/immunizations/measles.

The postseason has arrived for North Dakota high school baseball.

The playoffs begin in the Peace Garden State in Class A and Class B, with a handful of games getting underway this week. Region semifinal and finals will be played throughout the state of North Dakota, with a chance on the line to advance to the next round.

Stick with High School on SI North Dakota for all of the matchups, game times and scores throughout the 2025 NDHSAA baseball playoffs.

Here are the NDHSAA high school baseball playoff brackets, with matchups and game times from NDHSAA’s Class A and Class B:

No. 4 at No. 1 Mandan

No. 3 Legacy at No. 2 Sheyenne

No. 4 Jamestown at No. 1 Fargo Davies

No. 3 West Fargo Horace at No. 2 Minot

BYE: Thompson

Bishop Ryan at No. 3 Northern Cass

Rugby at No. 1 Park River/Fordville-Lankin

No. 5 Shiloh Christian at No. 4 LaMoure/Litchville-Marion

Follow SBLive North Dakota throughout the 2025 high school baseball season for Live Updates, the most up to date Schedules & Scores and complete coverage from the preseason through the state championships!

Be sure to Bookmark High School on SI for all of the latest high school baseball news.

To get live updates on your phone – as well as follow your favorite teams and top games – you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App| Download Android App

— Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi