Urbana, Ill. - After going 46 games without extra innings, the Fighting Illini needed eight innings in both games of Sunday's doubleheader, as Purdue evened the series with an 8-7 win in game one, but Illinois replied with an 8-7 victory in the nightcap to claim a Big Ten series for the fifth straight weekend. The doubleheader split allowed Illinois to remain at .500, sitting at 24-24 (13-7 Big Ten), while Purdue finished the weekend 29-21 (7-11 Big Ten).
"Today's doubleheader was hard fought by both teams," said head coach Terri Sullivan. "It was critical to stay resilient and in the moment, and our staff is proud of that concentrated effort by our team. They stepped up for each other time and time again."
A four-hit day for Allie Bauch extended her reached-base streak to 21 straight games, the eighth-longest streak in Illinois history and the longest since 2012. Every Illini batter had at lead one hit on the day, including eight Illini doubles.
Comeback Bid Not Enough in First Extra-Inning Game of the Year
The Fighting Illini erased an early 5-0 deficit to tie the score in the bottom of the seventh and send the game to extra innings for the first time all season, but Purdue responded in the eighth to take the day's opener, 8-7.
Jess Perkins drove in four of the Illini's seven runs on her Senior Day, going 1-for-3 with a walk, a bases-clearing double, and her school-record 10th career sacrifice fly. Allie Bauch and Kylie Johnson were both 2-for-4, as Bauch had two doubles, a walk, a run and an RBI, and Johnson scored twice, including the Illini's eighth-inning run. Alyssa Gunther singled, walked, scored twice and drove in two runs and Carly Thomas drove in the game-tying run with a seventh-inning RBI single.
Jade Vecvanags got the start for the Illini, but left the game after just two-and-a-third innings after allowing five runs on seven hits and a walk. Breanna Wonderly (2-8) tossed three scoreless innings, but gave up the go-ahead runs in the eighth, allowing a total of three runs on seven hits and a walk with two strikeouts over the final five and two-thirds.
Lilly Fecho (18-14) recorded every out for the Boilermakers, allowing seven runs, four earned, on seven hits and four walks with eight strikeouts. Gina Snyder (walk) and Lexy Moore (single, walk) pitched to a combined three batters in the eighth, allowing them all to reach base but none scored, before Fecho returned to get the final two outs of the game.
The top of the Boilermaker order led Purdue at the plate, as the first four batters combined for 10 hits and six runs, including three-hit days for Alyssa Koorsen and Mary Gooding and a trio of RBIs for Paris Andrew.
The Boilermakers got on the board quickly, opening the game with back-to-back doubles by Alyssa Koorsen and Mary Gooding. Another RBI double by Kaylah Hampton made it 2-0 before Vecvanags ended the inning with a strikeout.
Purdue put up three more in the top of the third, chasing Vecvanags from the circle. Three-straight singles accounted for the first two runs, and a bases-loaded wild pitch by Wonderly allowed Purdue to make it 5-0 before she pitched herself out of the jam.
The Illini got one back in the bottom of the third on a pair of two-out hits. Johnson beat out an infield single up the middle for Illinois' first hit of the game, and Bauch drilled an RBI double off the wall in the left field corner to put the Orange and Blue on the board.
One swing by Jess Perkins made it a one-run game in the bottom of the fifth, as the Illini loaded the bases on a pair of walks and an infield error, and Perkins ripped a bases-clearing double to pull the Illini within one, 5-4.
The Orange and Blue got the tying run to third with two outs in the bottom of the sixth, but a pair of strikeouts by Fecho kept the Illini from knotting up the score.
Purdue got an insurance run in the top of the seventh, as Ashley Burkhardt led off with a double and scored on a single by Paris Andrew after it was bobbled in the outfield by Thomas.
The Illini tied the score in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI single by Thomas, after Perkins picked up her school-record 10th sacrifice fly to send Bauch across the plate, who had hit a leadoff double. Fecho then stranded a pair to send the Illini to extras for the first time all season.
Purdue regained the lead in the top of the eighth, as a pop up by CJ Parsons to shallow right center got lost in the wind and took a terrible bounce off Thomas for a leadoff triple. Alex Whittemore drove in the go ahead run with a grounder to second and Andrew made it 8-6 with a sacrifice fly to deep center.
The Illini fought back in the bottom of the eighth, as Johnson got things going with a one-out single down the third base line. Purdue brought in a new pitcher, Gina Snyder, but after pitching around Bauch for a walk, the Boilermakers went back to the bullpen for Moore. Gunther drove in Johnson with a single to center, then Perkins loaded the bases with a four-pitch walk to put the go-ahead run in scoring position with one down. Coach Schuette then went back to the bench for Fecho, who got a huge called strikeout on Evans on full count, then struck out Thomas to strand three and seal up the extra-innings victory, 8-7.
Illini Walk Off with Series Win in Eight
Illinois and Purdue once again needed eight innings to crown a victor in the nightcap, as a back-and-forth battle became an identical 6-6 score after seven, but it was Illinois that would come away with the rubber match, as the Orange and Blue plated two in the bottom of the eighth to seal up their fifth straight Big Ten weekend series victory, 8-7.
Five Illini had a pair of hits in the game, as Evans doubled and scored twice while walking and driving in a run, and Thomas and Sanchez both had a single, a double and a walk and combined for three RBIs. Rivera walked and drove in the game-winning run with an eighth-inning single, and Bauch went 2-for-5 with two RBIs at the top of the lineup.
Jade Vecvanags (17-10) broke the Illini record for Big Ten wins, claiming her 12th of the year after allowing four earned runs despite 11 hits with a walk and seven strikeouts over the full eight innings.
Gina Snyder got the start for the Boilermakers, but left in the fourth after allowing six runs, four earned, on seven hits and a walk over 3.0+ innings. Lexy Moore (4-4) closed out regulation without allowing a run, but was held responsible for both runners in the eighth inning, allowing four hits and four walks over four-and-a-third. Lilly Fecho entered with two runners on and a one-run lead in the bottom of the eighth, but blew the save by allowing singles to both batters she faced.
Mary Gooding went 3-for-5 for the second straight game, and Alex Whittemore was the sole Boilermaker with two RBIs, tying the score on a two-run pinch hit single in the sixth.
Illinois struck first with two runs in the bottom of the first thanks to back-to-back RBI doubles by Evans and Thomas.
Purdue tied the score with three singles and a stolen base in the top of the second, as Andrew and Maya Hughes came around to score.
The Illini took the lead back in the bottom of the second, as Fleming drew a leadoff walk, and singles by Sanchez and Bauch sent her across the plate.
The Boilermakers attacked the Illini for two more on three singles in the top of the third, taking their first lead of the game, 4-3, on Andrew's RBI single.
A leadoff double by Fleming kicked off of three-run fourth inning for the Illini, as Sanchez followed with an RBI double, and Bauch gave Illinois back the lead with two-run RBI single to left.
Purdue tied the score with two unearned runs in the top of the sixth. Andrew got on base as the leadoff batter on a throwing error by Rivera on a tough play from deep short. The Boilermakers then loaded the bases with a hit by pitch and walk, and a pinch hit two-run single by Whittemore knotted the score at six.
Rivera led off the bottom of the seventh with a walk, but the Illini stranded runners on the corners to head to extra innings for the second time in the day.
In what looked to be a quick 1-2-3 top of the eighth, Purdue took advantage of an errant throw by Rivera for what would have been the third out to get Parsons to second with two outs, and Koorsen came through with the go-ahead RBI single to go back in front, 7-6.
However, four straight hits in the bottom of the eighth gave the Fighting Illini their first extra-innings win of the year in walkoff fashion. Perkins got the Illini started with a one-out single to right center, and Evans missed a walkoff bomb by about a foot, hitting a double off the top of the of the wall in left center. Thomas tied the score with an RBI single to left, and Rivera ended the game by ripping an RBI single that was just out of reach of the first baseman off the edge of her glove to drive in Evans and help the Illini to their fifth straight Big Ten weekend series victory, 8-7.
Next Up: The Illini close the home season on Tuesday, April 28, with a nonconference game against Western Illinois. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.
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