Feb. 27, 2004

Box Score

Starkville, Miss. - The University of Illinois baseball team opened its 125th season of varsity baseball this afternoon with a two-hit, 4-0 shutout win over Western Kentucky at the Mississippi State Challenge in Starkville, Miss. Ted Rowe threw seven innings of one-hit ball before giving way to Andy Sigerich, who finished it out for the Illini, who improve to 1-0 while WKU fell to 3-5.

"Ted Rowe did an outstanding job out there today," Illini head coach Itch Jones said. "He stayed ahead in the count and went after hitters. For the first game, we did a good job defensively and the pitchers did a great job keeping us in the game until the offense was able to put together a four-run inning."

After threatening in the fourth with runners in scoring position, Illinois broke a scoreless tie in the top of the fifth inning, putting four runs on the board against WKU starter Daniel Faulkner. Chad Frk (single), Trevor Frederickson (walk) and Chris Robinson (walk) loaded the bases with one out for lead-off man Vince DiMaria, who answered with a two-run single down the left field line. Freshman Ryan Hastings followed with his second hit of the day, a single to center, that plated Robinson to give Illinois a 3-0 lead. Shortstop Eric Eymann then gave Illinois its third straight run-scoring single as DiMaria came in from third on his hit to center to open the 4-0 lead.

Illinois and WKU played four scoreless innings, as Faulkner and Illini starter Ted Rowe each worked out of early jams. Rowe, who escaped a first inning jam that saw runners on second and third with only one out as a result of a hit batter and an error, retired 14 of the next 15 batters he faced through the fifth before a lead-off single in the bottom of the sixth ended his no-hit bid after five complete.

Rowe was pulled to start the eighth after throwing seven complete shutout innings in his first outing of the year. He allowed only one hit and no runs while walking one, hitting one batter and striking out five to improve to 1-0. Sigerich came on in relief to start the eighth, allowing one hit while walking three. Faulkner (1-2) suffered the loss after allowing four runs (all earned) on nine hits. He walked two and struck out three.

Offensively for Illinois, Hastings, Eymann and Frk each had two hits in four at bats.

Illinois continues action at the Mississippi State Challenge Saturday, facing Western Kentucky in the morning before facing off with host Mississippi State at 3 p.m. Action wraps up Sunday with a single game between Illinois and MSU at noon.

Game Notes: 1. Two Illini got their first career starts Friday: true freshman Ryan Hastings at second and junior college transfer Ryan Rogowski in center. Hastings wasted little time waiting to make an impact, connecting on his first career hit in the fourth (single to center) and following that with an RBI single in the fifth. Rogowski also got his first career hit out of the way on a one-out bunt single in the sixth. 2. Junior transfer J.R. Kyes also saw his first career action Friday, pinch hitting for Trevor Frederickson in the ninth inning. 3. Illinois has four runs and nine hits through the sixth inning but didn't get its first extra base hit of the season until the eighth inning and the 10th hit of the game, when clean-up man Dusty Bensko sent a double off the center field wall. 4. Illinois improves to 5-4 in the last nine Opening Days.