Last season the Illinois baseball team opened its Big Ten season by sweeping Ohio State in a four-game series at home, beginning its run at the 2005 Big Ten Championship.

This year the Illini arrived in Columbus, Ohio on Friday night with the hopes of another repeat performance of last season. However, this time it would be the No. 24-ranked Buckeyes who would get the better of the Illini, taking the four game series 3-1.

“We didn’t play very well in any of the four games,” head coach Dan Hartleb said. “We didn’t make any adjustments at all during the whole weekend. Ohio State’s pitchers had a plan and attacked us the same every game. They got ahead of our hitters a lot and made us go away from our game plan.”

The Illini and Buckeyes took the field Saturday afternoon for the start of the series after Friday night’s contest was washed out.

Ohio State jumped on the Illini early in both games, scoring six times in the first three innings of both games combined. The early leads would be more than enough for the Buckeye pitching staff.

Buckeye starting pitchers Dan DeLucia and Cory Luebke each threw complete games against the Illini. DeLucia gave up six hits and struck out nine Illini in the Buckeyes’ 4-1 win in game one, while Luebke gave up only three hits and struck out seven to lead Ohio State to a 5-1 victory in game two of the series.

“Ohio State has a good pitching staff,” junior designated hitter Chase Kliment said. “They made the plays in the field and didn’t give us a lot of chances. They just limited us to not having any runners in scoring position.”

Unlike Saturday it would be the Illini who jumped on the board early, scoring five times in the first two innings to take a 5-0 lead. But Ohio State wouldn’t go down without a fight. The Buckeyes rallied for four runs in the sixth inning to tie the Illini and send the seven-inning game into extra innings.

Illini junior left fielder Ryan Snowden led off the top of the ninth inning by doubling down the left field line, and would eventually score on Kliment’s fly out to center field. Illinois would add an insurance run when sophomore second baseman Ryan Hastings singled to score junior shortstop Shawn Roof to take a 8-6 lead.

Senior pitcher Matt Whitmore closed the door on the Buckeyes in the bottom of the ninth to earn his first win of the season and give Illinois its first win over a ranked opponent since last year when the Illini defeated No. 21-ranked Winthrop 7-6.

“If there is a positive from the weekend it is that we were able to get a win,” Hartleb said. “The one thing I believe that we do well is we don’t quit. We play hard throughout all the games regardless of the situation.”

Kliment went 2-4 at the plate for the Illini in the second game Sunday, but it wasn’t enough as the Buckeye pitching staff regained its form from the previous game, allowing only one run in the Buckeyes’ 9-1 win.

Ohio State’s three wins over the Illini dropped Illinois to 15-12, 3-5 Big Ten and improved the Big Ten leading Buckeyes to 19-7, 6-2 Big Ten. Illinois will head to Peoria, Ill., on Tuesday night to square off with the Missouri Valley Conference leading Bradley Braves (14-14, 7-2 MVC).

“We just need to forget about this weekend,” junior third baseman Mike Rohde said. “We didn’t play well even in the game that we won. We need a good day of practice and need to come out and swing the bats like we are capable of doing.”