4/18-Illini baseball splits doubleheader with Minnesota

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois split a doubleheader with No. 23 Minnesota to win the series with the Gophers, two games to one, behind a 10-7 victory in game one Saturday and a 12-8 loss in game two in front of a season-high 1,501 fans. Left fielder Casey McMurray (Willow Springs, Ill.) went 5-for-10 with three RBIs and three runs, and first baseman Matt Dittman went 3-for-6 with a triple, two RBIs and three runs. Illinois scored 33 runs on the weekend to win their second series against a ranked team this season. The Orange and Blue stand in third place and will remain there at the end of the weekend - which is the halfway point of the Big Ten season - because the only two games to be played tomorrow will not affect the top of the standings. Illinois is now 23-11 overall, 8-4 in the Big Ten, which puts them one game behind Ohio State (29-8, 9-3) and a half-game behind Indiana (18-18, 8-3). "We played well today offensively and defensively, we just didnt pitch well in the last three innings of the second game," Illinois head coach Dan Hartleb said. "Im pleased with how we played this weekend. You can never be disappointed when you win a series against a ranked team." In the opener, Minnesota strung together three hits to start the game, but Gopher DH Matt Nohelty was tagged out at the plate when he slid past the dish without touching it for the first out on a great throw from right fielder Pete Cappetta (Lisle, Ill.) and a heads-up play by catcher Aaron Johnson (Sussex Corner, New Brunswick). Illini starter Will Strack gave up a sacrifice fly but got a groundout to escape the inning with minimal damage. The Gophers added a run in the second on a leadoff home run to go up 2-0 and tacked on two runs on three hits in the fifth to go up 4-0. But Illinois got a run in the fifth when third baseman Dominic Altobelli (Oak Forest, Ill.) drew a leadoff walk and moved to second on a wild pitch. Johnson singled him home to cut the deficit to 4-1. The Illini kept plugging away with two more runs in the sixth when center fielder Joe Bonadonna (Buffalo Grove, Ill.) ripped a one-out double down the left-field line and scored on McMurrays base hit to right. Shortstop Brandon Wikoff (Peoria, Ill.) reached when Gopher pitcher Tom Buske mishandled his sacrifice bunt and, one out later, Johnson walked to load the bases. Dittman walked to force home McMurray and cut Minnesotas lead to 4-3. The Golden Gophers got a run back in the seventh on a leadoff home run but Illinois exploded for six in the bottom half of the inning. DH Willie Argo (Davenport, Iowa) knocked a leadoff single and second baseman Josh Parr (Chillicothe, Ill.) sacrificed him over. Bonadonna reached on catchers interference and McMurray singled home Argo. After a pitching change, Wikoffs sacrifice fly brought home Bonadonna and Altobelli singled up the middle. Johnson drove home McMurray with a base hit to center and Dittman walked. Cappetta lined a single to right that brough home Johnson and Altobelli and Argo drove in Dittman with a base hit through the right side to put the Illini on top 9-5. Minnesota got a run on two hits in the eighth but Illinois got the run back in the bottom half. Bonadonna led off with a single and stole second. He moved to third on McMurrays groundout and Wikoff was intentionally walked. Altobelli brought home Bonadonna with a sacrifice fly to push the Illini lead to 10-6. The Gophers got a run in the ninth after a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly, but reliever Aaron Martin got a groundout to Altobelli to end the game for his team-leading third save by a 10-7 score. In game two, Minnesota scored two in the first inning on a pair of solo home runs but Illinois tied the game in the fourth. Altobelli singled up the middle and stole second, then moved to third on Johnsons groundout. Dittman then laced a triple to the wall in right-center to bring in Altobelli, and Cappettas groundout to third scored Dittman to tie the score at 2. The Gophers regained the lead with two runs in the fifth but Illinois grabbed its first lead of the game with a three-spot in the bottom half. With one out, Bonadonna doubled to left-center and McMurrays single brought him home. McMurray moved to second on a balk and, one out later, Altobelli singled to right-center to drive him in. Altobelli stole second and advanced to third on a poor throw by the catcher before scoring on a fielding error by the shortstop for a 5-4 lead. But Minnesota tagged Illini starter Bryan Roberts for three more runs in the seventh and got another off reliever John Anderson in that inning to go up 8-5. Illinois got a run in the eighth when Dittman walked and Cappetta singled. After an out, Parr singled to center to load the bases and Dittman scored on Bonadonnas fielders choice grounder, bringing the Illini within 8-6. The Gophers slammed the door with four runs in the ninth, though, taking advantage of five hits and two walks to go ahead 12-6. Illini looked to mount a rally in the ninth when Wikoff led off with a double to right-center and moved to third on Altobellis flyout. Johnson then ripped a two-run homer down the left-field line to cut the Minnesota lead to 12-8, but that was all Illinois could muster. In addition to the strong days by McMurray and Dittman, Bonadonna was 3-for-8 with four runs, two doubles and an RBI. Altobelli went 3-for-7 with two RBIs and four runs, and Johnson was 3-for-8 with a homer, four RBIs and two runs. On the weekend, Bonadonna went 7-for-13 (.538) with two doubles, six runs, an RBI and a .600 on-base percentage. Altobelli hit .500 (6-for-12) with a double, a home run, seven RBIs and seven runs, and McMurray hit .467 with a double, four RBIs and five runs. Lee Zerrusen, Aaron Martin and Mike Stankiewicz combined to pitch 4 1/3 innings of scoreless relief across the three games and Illinois made only one error compared to Minnesotas nine. Up Next: Illinois returns to action on Wednesday at Saint Louis in a 6:30 p.m. start before flying east to face Penn State in a weekend series. The three-game set starts with a 5:35 p.m. (CT) start on Friday before playing a 3:35 p.m. game on Saturday and a Sunday game that will begin at 10:05 a.m..