March 23, 2009

Box Score

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - Illinois used a four-run sixth inning and a single tally in the seventh to take a 7-3 lead against Central Connecticut State at Chain of Lakes Park on Monday, but the Blue Devils exploded for seven runs in the top of the eighth to take an 11-9 win. Third baseman Dominic Altobelli went 3-for-4 with a double and a home run, driving in two runs and scoring three, and shortstop Brandon Wikoff was 3-for-5 with a double, three runs and two steals.

"The thing that was disappointing today was that we weren't fundamentally sound," Illinois coach Dan Hartleb said. "We walked too many people and made too many errors. The thing I've talked about all year is that we have to be sound fundamentally, but we were not today. We need to start being consistent in all areas."

Starter Will Strack gave up just one earned run and scattered six hits over six innings but received a no decision. Wikoff's three-hit performance was his second in as many days and extends his hitting streak to 11 games.

"Will did a good job of working out of jams to get out of innings," Hartleb said. "And we did a better job offensively today. When you score that many runs, you ought to win a game. But the other side of that is when a team does score 11 runs, we need to find a way to score 12."

Strack whipped through the opening frame, retiring the side on just seven pitches. In the second, the freshman starter minimized the damage after a leadoff error, a walk and a single loaded the bases for the Blue Devils. The Sycamore, Ill., native induced a double play and knocked down a come-backer to end the inning while giving up only one unearned run.

Illinois played small ball in the bottom of the second to knot up the contest at 1. Altobelli was hit by a pitch, stole second and advanced to third on a groundout to the right side by right fielder Craig Lutes. Center fielder Nick Stockwell, making his first start of the season, plated Altobelli with an RBI groundout to second.

The Blue Devils took a 3-1 lead in the third thanks to a two-run double into left center. But the Illini got one back in the fourth, which made the score 3-2. With one out, a double by Wikoff and a bloop single from Altobelli put runners on the corners. Lutes knocked in the Illini shortstop with an RBI single to center.

Strack used only seven pitches once again in the fifth and recorded the third out when he caught a Blue Devil attempting to steal second.

Illinois grabbed a 6-3 advantage in the sixth when they got four runs off reliever Tyler Riordan. Wikoff led off the inning with a solid single through the right side and scored on a double to deep center by Altobelli. A flyout to left-center moved Altobelli to third and a double by Stockwell scored the Illini third baseman. After a walk and a pitching change, catcher Chris Montgomery plated two more Illini runs with a double to left.

Reliever Cory Kimes came on in the seventh and shut down the Blue Devils on just 11 pitches. In the bottom of the inning, the Illini added a run to make it a 7-3 margin. With runners at first and third, Lutes attempted to steal second, stopped short and got in a rundown long enough to allow Wikoff to score from third.

But the Illini struggled in the eighth as CCSU pushed across seven runs against three different Illinois pitchers, combining four hits, five walks and an Illinois error to grab a 10-7 lead. The Orange and Blue got a run back in the bottom half when first baseman Matt Dittman ripped a leadoff double to left-center, moved to third on a groundout and scored on a single by second baseman Josh Parr.

CCSU tacked on a run in the ninth, though, on a two-out double. Altobelli ripped a solo homer to left in the bottom of the inning but the Illini couldn't put together a rally and fell, 11-9.

McMurray wasted no time increasing his career-high hit streak to 15 games with a chopper over the third baseman's head in the first. The longest hitting streak in Illinois history is 25 games, set by Ryan Snowden in 2007. Parr went 2-for-4 with an RBI, while Stockwell and Montgomery both drove in a pair.

Up Next: Illinois and Central Connecticut State take to the field again on Tuesday at Chain of Lakes Stadium for the final game of the three-game series, starting at 9 a.m. CT. The Illini then travel home Tuesday evening to begin preparations for the opening weekend of Big Ten play as the Orange and Blue host Michigan State Friday through Sunday at Illinois Field. The series begins with a 6:05 p.m. first pitch on Friday.