April 15, 2006

Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - In what was supposed to be a seven-inning game, Illinois and Northwestern played 12 frames before the Wildcats eventually pulled out a 7-6 win in a doubleheader nightcap filled with momentum swings, excellent defensive plays and gutsy pitching. The victory gave Northwestern a doubleheader sweep after it took the first game 7-3 in front of 840 fans at Illinois Field.

The nightcap began with a strong performance by freshman starting pitcher Tanner Roark, who limited the Wildcats (12-18 overall, 9-2 in the Big Ten) to just three hits in the first five innings as Illinois took a 3-2 lead. But Roark tired in the sixth, giving up a double and bunt single before being lifted for closer Matt Whitmore. Whitmore gave up the lead after an RBI single and a sacrifice fly put Northwestern up 4-3. But the Illini (15-16, 3-8) tied the game when Mike Rohde drew a lead-off walk, stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on a passed ball. It was the second inning in the game that the Illini scored without getting a hit as they plated two in the third inning off a throwing error, a wild pitch, two walks and two hit batters.

The Wildcats bounced back with two more runs in the seventh, but the Illini struck for two runs in the bottom of the frame when Ryan Snowden and Shawn Roof walked to start the inning, Dave Schultz moved them to second and third with a sacrifice bunt and Chase Kliment drove in Snowden with a sacrifice fly that took the Northwestern leftfielder to the wall. Rohde was hit by a pitch and Lars Davis laced a base hit through the left side to tie the score 6-6.

The back-and-forth continued into extra innings as Schultz was gunned down trying to score in the ninth by the NU leftfielder on Rohde's base hit to the corner to keep the game tied. Whitmore was exceptional in the extra frames, setting down the Wildcats in order in the ninth and 10th innings. But he tired in the 11th as Northwestern strung together three singles before centerfielder Ryan Snowden threw a strike to Davis at the plate to retire NU's Brandt Neibuhr and end the inning. Whitmore threw six innings of relief and didn't give up a run after the seventh inning while striking out six and not giving up a walk in his stint. He located 61 of his 85 pitches (72 percent) for strikes in his longest outing since throwing a seven-inning complete game against Michigan on April 16, 2005.

The Wildcats finally broke through with a run on three hits and a sacrifice bunt in the 12th off reliever Aaron Saving, but leftfielder Chase Kliment ended the inning with a perfect throw to get NU catcher Geoff Dietz trying to score from second on a single. The Illini looked to have something brewing in the bottom of the inning when Joe Bonadonna narrowly beat out a bunt for a single and stole second. But the next two hitters flew out and struck out to end the game.

In game one, Illinois pulled out to a 3-0 first-inning lead, but NU scored four in the third and added single runs in the fourth, sixth and seventh to win 7-3. On the day, Kliment was 4-for-6 with three RBI, two runs and a double. Bonadonna continued his solid weekend with a 3-for-7 day with two steals.

The teams finish the series Sunday with a 1 p.m. start.