March 14, 2010

Box Score

CONWAY, S.C. - Closer Lee Zerrusen moved into a starting role and tossed seven strong innings, and Illinois bashed three home runs on its way to a 10-3 win over Ball State in its final game of the Caravelle Resort Classic. The Illini (3-7 overall) finished 2-2 on the weekend after left fielder Mike Giller went 2-for-4 with a homer and four RBIs, and first baseman Matt Dittman was 2-for-2 with a homer and three RBIs.

"We did the things that I think we're capable of doing," Illinois head coach Dan Hartleb said. "We were very good on the mound; both Lee Zerrusen and Bryan Roberts threw very well today. They had good location and command and threw multiple pitches for strikes. Offensively, we did what we had to do. Giller, Dittman and Lutes had the big home runs, and we ran the bases well today. I thought we played a complete game today for the first time."

Zerrusen worked around an error by Dittman and a single in the top of the first to work a scoreless frame then put up a 1-2-3 inning in the second on just six pitches. After another error in the top of the third, Zerrusen recorded his first strikeout of the game and coaxed a pop-up to second base before loading the bases on consecutive hit batters. But he dodged the bullet by inducing a flyout to right fielder Craig Lutes to end the inning.

Zerrusen put forth another clean inning in the fourth, allowing only a walk, before the Illini got on the board in the bottom half. Giller walked to start the frame and DH Casey McMurray singled up the middle. Dittman brought home Giller with a base hit to right to put the Illini up 1-0.

"We've talked about how we need to use Lee and we know that he's capable of either starting or being our closer, so it was nice to put him out there and extend him out a little bit," Hartleb said. "He was in command and was very sharp today."

Zerrusen retired the Cardinals (5-11) in order in the fifth on 10 pitches and Lutes started the bottom half with a bang, knocking a 2-1 offering from BSU starter Kolbrin Vitek over the fence in right field for his first homer of the year. One out later, shortstop Josh Parr tripled to right-center and second baseman Christian Cummins reached on a fielder's choice. Giller then blasted an 0-2 offering from Vitek to right field for his second dinger of the year, a three-run shot. After a pitching change, McMurray and Dittman drew consecutive walks before executing a double-steal. Center fielder Willie Argo drove them in with a single up the middle to make the Illinois lead 7-0.

Ball State got on the board in the sixth with a pair of singles sandwiched around a groundout then added two runs in the seventh on three hits and an RBI groundout, making the Illini lead 7-3. But Illinois answered when McMurray drew a one-out walk in the seventh and Dittman blasted a 1-0 pitch to right field for a two-run homer, his first of the year, pushing the Illini back ahead 9-3.

Bryan Roberts relieved Zerrusen in the eighth and needed only five pitches to retire the side, and catcher Adam Davis started the eighth with a single to right-center. One out later, he moved to second on a wild pitch and, after another out, Giller drove him home with a single to center, pushing the Illini ahead 10-3. Roberts allowed a two-out walk in the ninth before coaxing a fly ball to Argo to end the game.

Zerrusen earned his first win of the year by going seven innings and allowing only three runs on six hits and a walk while striking out four. Roberts pitched two near-perfect innings, allowing only a walk and using only 21 pitches.

Offensively, Giller was 2-for-4 with a homer, four RBIs, two runs and a walk, and Dittman reached base every time he came to the plate, going 2-for-2 with a home run, two walks, three RBIs, two runs and a stolen base. Argo was 2-for-3 with a double, two RBIs and a steal, and McMurray was 1-for-2 with two walks, two runs and a steal. The Nos. 2-5 hitters in the Illini order combined to hit 7-for-11 with nine RBIs, six runs, a double, two homers and three steals.

For the weekend, Dittman hit a team-best .615 (8-for-13) with a homer, two doubles, a team-high seven runs and five RBIs. He slugged 1.000 and had a .722 on-base percentage, and also stole 2-of-3 bases. Argo went 7-for-12 (.583) with two doubles, three RBIs, a run and was 3-for-3 stealing bases. McMurray hit .455 (5-for-11) with a team-high seven RBIs, two home runs, a double and six runs. He slugged 1.091 and reached base at a .529 clip. Giller was the fourth Illini to hit over .400 for the weekend, going 7-for-16 (.438) with a homer, four RBIs and six runs.

As a team, Illinois hit .314 for the weekend while limiting its opponents to a .266 average. After entering the weekend averaging over 10 strikeouts per game, the Illini struck out only 20 times over four games, an average of five strikeouts per game.

The Illini have a short week at home before heading to Winter Haven, Fla., for their annual Spring Trip. Illinois starts the trip by facing Bucknell Thursday at 2 p.m. CT at Chain of Lakes Stadium, the former Spring Training home of the Cleveland Indians.