…and then reality set in.
ok, we weren’t going to win EVERY game this season. But the first loss of the year is sometimes a little harder to take. After beating 3-0 Notre Dame Friday night, Illinois couldn’t come up with the offense and certainly not the pitching to defeat the winless University of South Florida Bulls. The Bulls offense was in full force as they scored 12 runs on 12 hits to defeat the Illini 12-3 on the second day of the Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge.
Starter Brian de la Torriente kept it relatively close for five innings. It was 3-1 going into sixth when USF was knocking on the door again. They scored one more run and de la Torriente got the hook. From all reports, DLT looked okay out there. He had control of the strike zone… he allowed no walks in 5 1/3 innings.
| By the numbers | |
|---|---|
| 5 | The number of times Willie Argo has been walked in the last two games |
| 5 for 7 | Matt Dittman’s linescore for the last two games |
| 5 | Number of USF batters hit by Illini pitchers in today’s game |
From there, it just got worse. The Bulls put together a 7-run rally in the seventh that pretty much put the game out of reach. I guess the one silver lining in the dark cloud is that Coach Hartleb had a chance to get some pitchers some work. In total, six pitchers were used. In addition to de la Torriente, Illinois coaches also got their first look at Matt Milroy and Tanner Libby in real game action. 
Offensively, Matt Dittman (right) continues to hit the ball. Ditt drove in three runs on a double and a single. Meanwhile, pitchers are hesitating to pitch to Willie Argo. Maybe it’s his imposing stance but he’s been walked 5 times already in two games.
Live Blogging Continues
Thanks again to Sports Information Director Ben Taylor for hosting the live blogging from Florida. A lot of fans really seem to appreciate it. Towards the end of the session, Ben reported that a total of 155 people followed along. Tonight it was especially useful for us who need our Illini baseball and need it NOW since GameTracker seemed to be lagging quite a bit and at times was an inning or so behind. The live blogging updates kept us going!
Thanks again, Ben. For those who are interested, they plan to do again for tomorrow’s game.
Last Day of the Challenge
Tomorrow is the last game of the Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge when we face the University of St John’s Red Storm. The Red Storm are now 4-0 so maybe we can rise up to the challenge (certainly no pun intended) like we did against Notre Dame. Starting for Illinois on Sunday is another newbie, Kevin Johnson.
Go Illinois!!