Six was a lucky number for the Illinois men’s baseball team this past weekend at the inaugural Big East/Big Ten challenge.

A five-run rally in the sixth inning propelled the Illini (2-1) past the Iowa Hawkeyes (1-2) to begin their season with a victory on Friday night. Lightning then struck again for the Illini on Sunday afternoon, when they outscored the West Virginia Mountaineers (1-2) 8-1 in the sixth inning en route to a 17-10 victory in St. Petersburg, Fla.

“Winning two games was a good way to start off the season,” said head coach Dan Hartleb. “I didn’t think we were extremely sharp in any areas yet, but the important thing is our guys found a way to compete and to win.”

Offensively, Illinois was led by senior third baseman Dominic Altobelli, whose numbers were consistent throughout the weekend. Altobelli finished the tournament with six RBIs and three runs scored, while batting 5-for-13.

“I tried to stay with our hitting philosophy,” Altobelli said. “I just focused on trying to get a pitch up, and not swing at a pitcher’s pitch … A big key is just not being scared to get to two strikes and knowing how to protect the plate when you get to two strikes.”

Meanwhile, the Illini pitching staff, viewed as one of the team’s question marks going into the season, may have temporarily silenced some of its critics. Both sophomore Phil Haig and freshman Will Strack picked up wins. Haig started the season opener on Friday, while the right-handed Strack entered Sunday’s game in the fourth inning. The freshman then proceeded to allow only seven hits and three runs in 3.2 innings of work.

Depth was a big component in this new-found pitching success. In total, 10 different pitchers saw time on the mound for Illinois throughout the weekend. But Altobelli said pitching consistency also relies on the play of the fielders.

“We need to play good defense,” Altobelli said. “That way we can pick up our pitchers if they are having a bad inning.”

Illinois’ lone loss came at the hands of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (2-1), who defeated the Illini 14-7 on Saturday evening.

Junior Kevin Manson started the night on the mound for Illinois, which led through six innings. But a furious Notre Dame rally in the seventh, keyed by home runs from junior Matt Grosso and senior Jeremy Barnes, put the Irish ahead for good. Illinois junior Billy Barrett, who pitched two innings, was charged with the loss.

Other top performers for the Illini this weekend included junior shortstop Brandon Wikoff and freshman second baseman Josh Parr. Wikoff, who hit the team’s only home run of the tournament, batted 5-for-12 with two RBIs and scored six runs. Parr started all three games and stole three bases in his first collegiate tournament. Parr said he was excited at the opportunity to play so much on opening weekend as a freshman. However, he attributed his success to the coaches and players around him, especially Wikoff.

“Brandon Wikoff helped me a lot,” Parr said. “Even if it was just the little things, like keeping me in the game, giving me a heads-up on certain plays, Brandon was a big help out there.”

The Illini are off until Friday, when they head to Edinburg, Texas, to play in the three-day Al Ogletree Classic.