CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Starter Drasen Johnson clinched 13 consecutive wins and the seventh straight series for No. 11 Illinois with a complete game in the 6-3 victory over Indiana. The Illini offense responded in both innings IU scored and knocked in all six runs with two outs. Sophomore Pat McInerney went a career-best 4-for-4 with a run and RBI.
Illinois (32-6-1) kept the best start in school history and longest active winning streak in the nation rolling. The 13-game winning streak is tied for fifth-longest in NCAA Division I Baseball this season and the first by an Illini team since 1997.
The Illini sit in first place atop the Big Ten standings at 10-1. That marks UI's best Big Ten start through 11 conference contests since 1982 (11-0).
Indiana took advantage of a pair of Illini errors in the first for a 2-0 lead. Illinois doubled that output in the bottom half on its way to comeback win No. 14 on the year.
Consecutive walks to Reid Roper and Jason Goldstein started the two-out rally in the opening inning. Senior Casey Fletcher and McInerney each poked RBI singles before senior David Kerian laced a two-run triple down the right-field line for a 4-2 edge.
Both teams were scoreless until the sixth when the Hoosiers tallied an RBI single. In the bottom half, sophomore Ryne Roper began the two-out rally with a single followed by a walk to Adam Walton and IU pitching change. Junior Ryan Nagle doubled in Roper, and Walton scampered home when the right fielder dropped the ball.
Johnson (6-2) matched junior Kevin Duchene for the team-lead with six wins. The redshirt-senior leads the Big Ten with 74 innings pitched after going the distance for the second time this season. He tossed 105 pitches, struck out six and only walked one while allowing three runs (2 ER) and seven hits.
The Orange and Blue pounded out double-digit hits for the third game in a row and 23rd time in 39 games. Goldstein extended his career-best hitting streak to 14 games with a double in the fifth.
After filling Illinois Field with 4,019 fans on Friday night, Illini nation packed the house again on Saturday with 3,125 in attendance, which is the seventh-largest crowd in school history. It ranks as the biggest consecutive crowds and two-day total (7,144) ever at Illinois Field.
Up Next: The 11th-ranked Illini will go for their third straight Big Ten series sweep on Sunday at noon on the Big Ten Network. With rain in the forecast, stay tuned to @IlliniBaseball on Twitter for updates if the Illinois-Indiana game time changes.
