April 5, 2006

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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Five players had multiple hits, including Mike Rohde's 3-for-4 effort with a triple, three RBI and two runs as Illinois split the two-game series with Western Michigan after a 16-5 win. Aaron Martin picked up his first win at Illinois after throwing a solid three innings in his first start with the Illini.

Illinois (14-9) pulled out to an early lead with a run in the first inning, but the Broncos (12-12) evened the score in the third. The Illini broke it open with eight runs in the bottom of the third, starting with a lead-off single by Aaron Ifft. Ryan Snowden walked and Mike Rohde singled home Ifft. Dave Schultz then doubled in Snowden and Rohde, Lars Davis walked and Shawn Roof beat out a bunt single to load the bases. After Schultz was forced out at home, Trevor Huisinga and Joe Bonadonna drew consecutive RBI walks. Ifft then drove in another run with a sacrifice fly and Snowden drove in Huisinga with his second double of the day. Rohde finished the rally by driving in Bonadonna with a base hit, giving Illinois a 9-1 lead.

WMU scored twice in the fifth, but the Illini recovered with three in the bottom half. Huisinga walked and moved to third on Bonadonna's single, allowing Huisinga to score on Ifft's groundout. Bonadonna went to third on Snowden's flyout and scored on Rohde's triple to right-center. Schultz then collected his fourth RBI of the day with a single to right-center, pushing Illinois' lead to 12-3.

The Illini tacked on four more in the sixth on three hits and three walks, including a two-run double by Chase Kliment, who had pinch-hit for Snowden. Western Michigan scored two in the seventh, but Illinois finished off the 16-5 win after Brian Long threw 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief and Scott Chodil pitched a scoreless ninth in his first career outing.

On the game, Snowden was 2-for-3 with two doubles and two runs, Schultz went 2-for-5 with a double and four RBI, Roof was 3-for-4 and Aaron Ifft went 2-for-3 with three RBI. Rohde drove in three and scored twice in addition to his three hits. Andy Sigerich pitched a perfect, 10-pitch fourth inning in his first outing of the season, and Scott Shaw pitched out of a jam for a scoreless sixth. Martin was credited with the win because of a scoring exception that allows the starter to earn the decision despite not pitching five innings when numerous pitchers are scheduled to see action.

Up Next: Illinois travels to Columbus, Ohio, to face the Buckeyes in a four-game Big Ten series. The Illini will try to extend their five-game winning streak over OSU while the Buckeyes look for retribution after Illinois swept the teams' conference-opening series last season. Friday's game is at 6:35 (CT), Saturday's doubleheader starts at 1:35 p.m. and Sunday's finale begins at 1:05 p.m.