JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – Illinois College split a Midwest Conference doubleheader with Cornell College on Saturday afternoon at Joe Brooks Field, dropping the opener 4-3 before responding with an 8-4 victory in game two.
The Blueboys move to 15-13 overall and 6-4 in conference play.
Game One - Cornell College 4 Illinois College 3
Illinois College struck first in the second inning when Alex Loman delivered an RBI single to bring home Logan Fleener. The Blueboys added another run in the fifth on an Ethan Klunk sacrifice fly to take a 2-1 lead.
Cornell responded with a three-run third inning, taking advantage of a pair of unearned runs and an RBI double to jump ahead 3-1. The Rams added an insurance run in the seventh to extend the lead to 4-2.
Illinois College mounted a late push in the ninth. Adam Turner led off with a single and later scored on a Tyler Barker RBI groundout to cut the deficit to one, but the Blueboys were unable to find the equalizer.
Barker finished with two hits and an RBI, while Turner also collected two hits. Loman and Klunk each drove in a run.
On the mound, Dawson Vernier turned in a strong outing, allowing just one earned run over six innings while striking out five.
Game Two - Illinois College 8 Cornell College 4
The Blueboys answered in game two, jumping out to a 3-0 lead over the first two innings. Nicholas Muskopf highlighted the early scoring with an RBI single, while Tyler Barker added an RBI knock in the second.
Cornell battled back to tie the game 3-3 in the third and briefly took a 4-3 lead in the fifth, but Illinois College quickly responded. Muskopf delivered again with an RBI single to even the score in the bottom of the fifth.
The game turned in the sixth when Barker launched a two-run home run to put the Blueboys back in front. Later in the inning, Ketch Mills added an RBI single to extend the lead to 7-4.
Illinois College tacked on another run in the seventh and held Cornell scoreless the rest of the way to secure the split.
Muskopf led the offense with three hits and two RBIs, while Barker drove in three runs, including the go-ahead homer. Mills added two hits and an RBI, and Nolan Decker chipped in a pair of hits.
Anthony Buonaura earned the win on the mound, allowing two earned runs over six innings while striking out seven. Connor Akstulewicz closed the door with 2.2 scoreless innings to pick up the save.
Up Next
The Blueboys will look to win another Midwest Conference series tomorrow back at the Joe Brooks Field as they will take on Cornell for game three at 12:00pm tomorrow afternoon.
