Illinois 1 Lamar 0
CSTV’s Gametracker pitching line says it all
It was another pitcher’s duel this morning at the Al Ogletree Tournament but this time Illinois came up on top.
Aaron Martin and Ben Reeser were lights out against the Lamar University Cardinals just as were all summer as teammates in the Coastal Plain League. They combined for a six hit shutout with seven strikeouts.
That was fortunate since the offense was still a bit lean and provided them with the one run they needed to win. That run came in the bottom of the 5th (the Illini were the home team today) when Kyle Hudson singled, stole second, and scored on a Brandon Wikoff base hit.
That was Hud’s third stolen base in the first three games of the season. Wikoff had two hits to go along with his rbi in the game.
That closes out Illinois’ participation in the Al Ogletree Tournament. After winning the first against Sam Houston 6-4, they lost 2-1 against Texas State.
Wrap-up and Analysis of the Tournament:
As much as I like Gametracker, it is certainly no replacement for being at the game. You just don’t get a feel for the game and there is so much that you miss. I am so much looking forward to Illinois’ home opener.
That said, I think it’s safe to say that the pitchers were on their game this weekend. Opponents scored five earned runs in three runs in the three games. Take away the four run inning in the first game against Sam Houston, and well.. you do the math.
The offense is another matter and that will probably come with time. Some of the problem is due to rookie mistakes and the team learning to gel. We have some new guys being put in some key roles and they are learning to produce.
Freshman Casey McMurray is playing leftfield and has been leading off. Transfer John Schlichter is playing the hot corner and batting in the cleanup spot. Both made offensive contributions this weekend.
Coach Hartleb spoke to the media about the lack of offense after the 2-1 loss to Texas State:
“I was disappointed with the offense today,” Hartleb said. “We had numerous opportunities to move runners with no outs, but we didn’t do it and that was the difference in the game. If we move runners at all today, we’re 2-0.”
My guess is that he’ll be working on the offensive fundamentals this week. That said, he’s not feeling too bad about winning two out of three this weekend.
By the way, here is the typical lineup being used:
McMurray, Casey lf
Wikoff,Brandon ss
Hastings, Ryan 1b
Schlichter, John 3b
Webb, Daniel rf
Johnson, Aaron c
Giller, Mike dh
Bonadonna, Joe 2b
Hudson, Kyle cf
Illinois’ next game will be against Baylor on February 29th.
Update: Here is a link to FightingIllini.com’s summary of Illinois’ game against Lamar.