PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Illinois baseball (26-18, 12-11) was swept in today's doubleheader by Rutgers (23-24, 11-12), dropping the first game 9-7 and the second game 7-5, at Bainton Field.
GAME 1 | Rutgers 9, Illinois 7
Collin Jennings (1-for-3) and Cameron Chee-Aloy (1-for-4) each slugged three-run homers and Nick Groves (3-for-3) reached base safely in all five of his plate appearances.
Sam Reed (3-1) took the loss in relief, his first of the season. Reed allowed two runs on six hits over 3.0 innings of work.
HOW IT HAPPENED
For the fifth-straight game, the Illini plated runs in their first time up to bat. After Groves singled and Chee-Aloy followed with a walk, Jennings cleared the bases with his team-leading 12th home run of the season to make it 3-0. The Scarlet Knights would get one of those runs back in their first trip to the plate to make it 3-1 after the first.
The hosts made it a one-run game in the third and then took a 6-3 ballgame with four runs in the fourth.
Illinois loaded the bases with nobody out in the top of the fifth but only managed to score once, making it 6-4. Rutgers got that in the home half of the fifth to restore its three-run advantage at 7-4.
In the sixth, Chee-Aloy leveled the contest with a three-run blast, his second of the season, to make it 7-7, but the Scarlet Knights scored twice in the bottom of the frame to re-take the lead for good, eventually handing the Fighting Illini the 9-7 defeat.
GAME NOTES
» Nick Groves went 3-for-3 with two runs scored and was hit by a pitch twice.
» Reached safely in all five plate appearances.
» If he qualified, his .538 on-base percentage would lead Big Ten hitters.
» Collin Jennings went 1-for-3 with two runs, a home run and three RBI.
» Has homered in consecutive games for the second time this season.
» Has three home runs and 12 RBI in his last 12 games.
» Cameron Chee-Aloy went 1-for-4 with two runs scored, a home run, three RBI and a walk.
» Season-high three RBI.
» Has hit safely in seven of his last eight games.
» The Illini went 3-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
» Illinois went 2-for-11 at the plate with two outs in an inning.
» Illinois left 10 runners stranded on base in the loss.
» Illinois pitchers faced 42 Rutgers hitters in the game, allowing 10 ground balls and nine fly balls while striking out three.
» The Fighting Illini drew five walks from Rutgers pitching.
» Illinois have now gone a season-high two games without committing an error.
GAME 2 | Rutgers 7, Illinois 5
Will Johannes went 2-for-4 with a run, home run and four RBI and Cameron Chee-Aloy went 1-for-3 with a run, home run and an RBI, going yard for the second-straight game.
Regan Hall (6-3) had his run of four-straight wins snapped, allowing six runs, five earned, over 5.0 innings of work. Evan Clark, Mitch Dye and Christian Morel all worked scoreless innings out of the bullpen.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Rutgers jumped out to a 4-0 lead after the third before the Illini got on the board in the fourth, with Johannes collecting an RBI-single with two outs to make it 4-1.
The Scarlet Knights plated two more in the fifth to push their advantage to 6-1. Johannes got Illinois back into the contest with a three-run blast, also with two-outs, to make it 6-4.
Chee-Aloy got the Orange and Blue within one with a solo shot in the seventh but the hosts got that run back in the home half of the frame to make it 7-5, and would keep Illinois off the board for the rest of the contest.
UP NEXT
The Fighting Illini will be back in action tomorrow, with first pitch in the series finale at Rutgers set for 11 a.m. CT.
GAME NOTES
» Will Johannes went 2-for-4 with a run, home run and four RBI.
» Matched his season-high in RBI.
» Cameron Chee-Aloy went 1-for-3 with a run, home run and an RBI.
» Homered in consecutive games for the first time this season and the second time in his career.
» Mitch Dye worked a scoreless seventh inning.
» Has not allowed an earned run in his last 7.1 innings, spanning six games.
» Illinois' highest scoring inning was the sixth, when it pushed three runs across.
» Illinois pitchers faced 35 Rutgers hitters in the game, allowing 12 ground balls and eight fly balls while striking out one.
» The Fighting Illini drew eight walks from Rutgers pitching.
This story created through content automation technology from Data Skrive.
