News Local/State

Michigan Knocks Illini From Big Ten Tournament

By The Associated Press, with Additional Reporting from Illinois Public Media
 
Illinois outfielder Will Krug bats against Michigan during the eighth inning of Saturday's fourth-round NCAA Big Ten Tournament 5-3 loss to Michigan.

Illinois outfielder Will Krug (40) bats against Michigan during the eighth inning of Saturday's fourth-round NCAA Big Ten Tournament 5-3 loss to Michigan. (AP Photo/ Hannah Foslien)

Jacob Cronenworth had three hits, drove in three runs and earned his seventh save to help Michigan beat Illinois 5-3 on Saturday to advance to the Big Ten championship game.  The Illini (47-8-1) wil now look to the NCAA tournament.  Regional hosts will be announced Sunday night.

Third-seeded Michigan (36-23) will face fourth-seeded Maryland on Sunday. The Terrapins (39-20) beat Indiana 4-2 on Saturday.

Trailing 3-2, the Wolverines were aided by two Illinois errors to load the bases with no outs in the sixth. Johnny Slater was hit by a pitch, a run scored on a double play and Cronenworth slid headfirst into first base for an RBI infield single. Cronenworth had a two-run single in the second.

Head Coach Dan Harleb said he's not concerned, despite bowing out Saturday in the double-elimination tournament at Target Field.

"We’ll be in good shape," he said.  "We’re very confident with this group. They’re a group I can say a lot of things to. They understand when I say certain things, who we’re going after, what needs to be done and they take care of each other. I have absolutely no concerns going into the tournament.” 

David Kerian hit his team-leading 14th home run in the top of the sixth for Illinois.  Rob McDonnell (7-2) took the loss, allowing five unearned runs in five innings.

Bryan Pall (2-0) pitched 2-2-3 innings of one-hit relief for the win. Cronenworth pitched the final 1 2-3 innings.

Up next for Illinois: the 16 NCAA Regional hosts will be announced starting at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, on the NCAA Baseball social channels https://twitter.com/ncaacws, as well as https://www.facebook.com/NCAACWS 

The regional hosts will also be shown on the BottomLine of the ESPN Networks starting at 8 p.m.

The 2015 NCAA Division I Baseball Championship Selection Show, with regional pairings, will be revealed in a live, one-hour telecast on ESPNU at 11 a.m. CT, Monday, May 25.