April 22, 2006

Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois got strong outings from two freshman starting pitchers and received a jolt of power in the nightcap to win 4-3 in Saturday's first game against Iowa and 10-2 in the second game in front of a season-high and fifth-best all-time 2,485 fans at Illinois Field as part of the Illini Spring Sports Fest. Ben Reeser threw six solid outings to earn the win in game one while Tanner Roark shut down the Hawkeyes with five quality innings in the nightcap, extending Illinois' winning streak to five games.

Iowa (16-21 overall, 5-10 in the Big Ten) pulled ahead in the first game with a run in the first inning, but the Illini (20-16, 7-8) tied the game in the second when Ryan Hastings singled, moved to second on Joe Bonadonna's groundout and scored on Trevor Huisinga's single to left-center. Illinois grabbed the lead in the third after Ryan Snowden led off with a walk and advanced to third on Shawn Roof's base hit. Dave Schultz then drove him in with a sacrifice fly, giving the Illini a 2-1 lead.

Illinois added another in the fifth after Bonadonna reached on an error, Huisinga sacrificed, and Snowden grounded out to move Bonadonna to third. Roof then drove him in with a base hit to right, putting the Illini ahead 3-1. The Orange and Blue added what would turn out to be the winning run in the sixth when Lars Davis laced a one-out triple to center and scored on Bonadonna's base hit. Iowa scored twice in the seventh as Reeser tired, but Jake Toohey notched his first save of the year with a scoreless inning of relief in Illinois' 4-3 win.

The Illini were the ones who jumped on top early in the nightcap, scoring twice in the first inning. With one out, Roof singled to right field. Schultz then blasted a home run to right field to put Illinois up 2-0. The Illini added another when Snowden scored on Schultz's ground ball, but Iowa closed the gap to 3-2 with a pair in the fourth inning.

Illinois responded with a six-run fourth that included six singles and two walks. The inning was highlighted by a two-run base hit by Bonadonna that scored Rohde and Davis and a single by Schultz that plated Bonadonna and Snowden. The Illini added an exclamation point in the sixth with Chase Kliment's third homer of the year, this one off a 1-0 pitch to left-center field that give Illinois its final 10-2 margin.

In the opener, Reeser allowed three runs on five hits in six innings of work, striking out three and not giving up a walk. He had three 1-2-3 innings and allowed only three base runners from the second to the sixth inning, only one reaching scoring position.

Roark nearly matched his classmate in the nightcap, going five innings and giving up two runs on four hits. He struck out three Iowa hitters and walked one. He allowed just one base runner in the first three innings but faced the minimum through three as that runner was caught stealing on a strike-him-out, throw-him-out double play to end the second inning. Outside of the fourth - in which he gave up the two runs on four hits but ended the frame with a 1-6-3 double play - Roark allowed just two base runners and no hits, carrying a no-hitter into the fourth inning. Aaron Saving and Brian Long combined to finish the game with scoreless frames in the eighth and ninth, respectively.

Offensively, Roof was 4-for-6 with two RBI and a run on the day, Schultz was 2-for-4 with 6 RBI and two walks, and Kliment was 3-for-6 with a solo homer. Rohde was also 3-for-6 with a run and Bonadonna went 3-for-6 with three RBI and two runs.

Up Next: Illinois looks to finish the sweep and get back to .500 in the Big Ten at 1 p.m. Sunday. The Illini currently stand in fifth place in the conference standings and could vault as high as a tie for third after Sunday's games.