CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois opened the weekend with a 13-1 run-rule victory over New Orleans on Friday night at Illinois Field.
The Fighting Illini used an eight-run second inning to jump out to an early lead, while Regan Hall registered the win with his five innings of one-run ball.
Daniel Contreras, Michael Farina, and Nick Groves all posted multi-hit days at the plate. Farina went 2-for-3 with three RBI while reaching three times, while Groves tallied a three-hit day with two RBI and two runs. Contreras collected his fourth straight two-hit day while scoring twice.
Hall went five innings with six strikeouts and only one run allowed, while Sam Reed and Liam McKillop secured scoreless outings in relief.
After the sides both posted zeros in the first, the Illini offense exploded for eight runs in the second. Sending 13 batters to the plate, the Orange and Blue scored eight times on six hits to establish an 8-0 edge.
The Privateers got on the board with a run in the fourth, but the hosts answered with two runs of their own in the bottom half of the frame.
A three-run Illini fifth rounded out the scoring before Reed and McKillop recorded scoreless innings in the sixth and seventh, respectively.
