CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Behind
Drasen Johnson's complete game shutout on Sunday, No. 6 national seed Illinois advanced to the NCAA Champaign Regional final and equaled a school-record 49 wins with a 3-0 victory over Notre Dame. The Illini did all their damage in the fifth inning, plating three runs on four hits.
Johnson (10-3) shined in his fifth career complete game and first-ever shutout. The Chillicothe, Illinois, native worked out of an early jam before going the distance for the third time this year. He stuck out six, scattered five hits and walked one on 106 pitches.
Johnson stranded five base runners during the first two innings, leaving the bases loaded in the first and two more on in the second. He worked his first clean inning with a 1-2-3 third and only allowed three more base runners down the stretch, with two in the fifth and one in the eighth.
The bottom of the order provided the spark for the three-run fifth. Eight-hole hitter
Will Krug got things going with a single through the left side and scored from first on sophomore
Ryne Roper's double down the left field line. Shortstop
Adam Walton slapped one back up the middle that drove in
Ryne Roper for the second run.
Junior
Ryan Nagle followed with the fourth consecutive hit to place runners on the corners, while
Reid Roper plated Walton with a sacrifice fly for a 3-0 edge.
That would be all the Illini would need thanks to the gem from Johnson. Nagle and seniors
David Kerian and
Casey Fletcher each collected two hits as UI totaled 10 knocks.
Up Next: Illinois will play Wright State in the NCAA Champaign Regional final on Monday at 1 p.m. at Illinois Field. Tickets are available at the Illinois Field Ticket Office beginning at 10 a.m.
Illinois NCAA Tournament Game Notes• Illinois won its first two games of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 11 all-time appearances.
• Illinois (49-8-1) equaled the school record for victories (49 in 1982).
• UI boasts the No. 1 winning percentage (0.853) in NCAA Division I Baseball and has the fewest losses (8), marking the only team in single digits.
• Illinois is 24-2 at home in 2015, and its current 18-game home winning streak is the longest active home streak in the nation.
• The Illini turned in their second straight complete game in the NCAA Champaign Regional and have posted a CG in their last three wins, as
John Kravetz went the distance against Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament.
• UI notched its third shutout of the year and lowered its team ERA to 2.42.
