After a long weekend, Ohio State (22-22, 5-13) emerged victorious against Illinois (19-21, 8-10) in a three-game series. The Buckeyes clambered from last in the conference up to 12th, handing the Illini an embarrassing loss.

Illinois came into the first game of the series on Friday with a 7-6 loss against Bradley under their belts.

The overcast sky may have foreshadowed the end result of Friday’s game, as the Buckeyes reigned triumphant over the Illini with a 10-2 win.

Illinois started off strong with a 2-0 lead during the top of the second but could never get on top of Ohio State for the rest of the game.

Ohio State ruled the third inning, which brought the score to 6-2.

By the bottom of the seventh, the Buckeyes’ junior utility player Hunter Rosson stepped up and hit his first home run as a Buckeye. This gave the winning score of 10-2.

The Buckeyes had key players to help the team succeed, such as Rosson, who contributed three RBIs and one home run.

The next game was a Saturday matinee, and the Illini did put on a show, dominating the Buckeyes in a 7-0 shutout game.

Illinois got ahead in the top of the first inning with back-to-back home runs. Junior infielder Drake Westcott homered to left center, leading to two RBIs. Shortly after, sophomore infielder Ryan Moerman locked in another RBI. The score jumped to 3-0 in favor of the Illini.

Moerman continued to dominate Ohio State, adding three more RBIs and catapulting the score to 6-0 in the sixth inning. He then brought another RBI in the seventh inning, completing a victorious game for Illinois.

However, the even scores for the weekend were thrown out of the Bill Davis Stadium when Ohio prevailed over Illinois in a lopsided 15-9 win. The Illini began the game well with a double RBI in the first inning by senior infield and outfielder Cam McDonald.

Throughout the early portion of the game, both teams trailed closely behind one another. The Illini and Buckeyes switched hands in gaining the lead over the other until the score evened out to 5-5 in the third inning when Buckeye senior outfielder Mitchell Okuley hit an RBI.

From then on, Ohio State maintained control over Illinois as the team persistently scored runs.

The Illini found themselves down 14-9 in the eighth inning when redshirt junior catcher Jacob Schroeder sent Westcott and McDonald home with a double RBI. Still, the Buckeyes sealed the deal with graduate catcher Cole Andrews’ RBI in the bottom of the eighth inning.

The Illini are set to travel west to visit Terre Haute, Indiana for a 5 p.m. game against the Indiana State Sycamores on Tuesday.

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