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Illinois Downed by Broncos
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Ryan Snowden went 3-for-4 with two doubles and a run in Illinois' 7-2 loss.
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April 4, 2006
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Ryan Snowden went 3-for-4 with two doubles and a run, and Lars Davis hit his first home run at Illinois, but the Illini fell 7-2 to Western Michigan. Despite trailing the Broncos by only one hit, Illinois (13-9) was unable to group hits together as it lost its third straight game and third consecutive game to the Broncos.
The Illini struggled from the outset, scratching out just two hits in the first three innings. But both base runners were thrown out stealing, meaning Western Michigan starter Bryan French faced the minimum through three. Trailing 1-0, Snowden led off the third inning with a double down the right-field line but was stranded there after a pair of flyouts and a groundout.
The Broncos (12-11) added a run in the fourth and another in the sixth to take a 3-0 lead. Meanwhile, Illinois managed just five base runners in the first six frames. WMU put two more on the board in the seventh, but Davis swatted a 1-2 changeup over the fence in right-center field to cut the Bronco lead to 5-1.
WMU tacked on two more in the eighth and the Illini added another in the bottom half of the inning. With two outs, Snowden doubled into the left-center gap and scored when Mike Rohde singled to right. Dave Schultz singled into shallow center field and Chase Kliment walked to load the bases, but Davis struck out looking to end the inning.
For the game, Davis was 2-for-4 with a solo homer and Trevor Huisinga went 2-for-4 with a double. However, three Illini base runners were caught stealing, two to end innings. Jake Stewart was strong in his first start of the season, giving up two runs, one earned, on three hits in four innings. He struck out a pair while walking one, taking his first loss of the season to even his record at 1-1.
Illinois and Western Michigan finish the two-game series tomorrow at 2:05 p.m. Fighting Illini freshman Aaron Martin is slated to get his first start in the Orange and Blue while the Broncos will put freshman Billy Morrison on the mound.
