Eastern manager Lloydene Searle watched as her team was able to hang with Illinois throughout the entire second game of a doubleheader against Illinois Wednesday. She also watched as her team managed to tie the game in the bottom of the seventh. But, ultimately, she watched another game slip away to the Fighting Illini.

Senior Kristen Becker pitched the entire ball game, even as it went into extra innings, but couldn’t finish off the Illini in the eighth inning. Becker finished the game pitching nine innings, giving up 11 hits, four runs, two walks and striking out one batter.

Becker was matched by Illinois freshmen Jackalyn Diekemper, who pitched the first six innings of the ball game. She only gave up one run on four hits while striking out two and walking two.

The second game remained scoreless for the first six innings of Monday’s second game. In the seventh, the Illini struck first with an RBI single by Rachelle Coriddi.

The Panthers answered back in the bottom half of the inning. A leadoff base hit by freshmen out fielder Cassandra North set the tone for the inning. After North was moved into scoring position, another junior outfielder, Jessica Irps, came up with the big hit. Irps’ RBI single scored the tying run and sent the game into extra innings.

After the eighth inning the game remained tied at one, but the Illini took advantage of Becker’s fatigue in the ninth inning. Starting with a single by infielder Katie O’Connell, the Illini promptly loaded the bases. Erin Jones came up with the clutch double bringing home all three of the base runners which broke the game wide open.

“Becker pitched a great game, and when a pitcher pitches that well you want to let them finish what they start,” Searle said. “But that is a situation where we really miss Trish Sanders, because she is our closer. When they got runners on it would have been nice to turn to her.”

The Illini used that strategy and used there closer, Amanda Fortune, to pitch the last couple of innings. This worked well against Eastern, especially in the bottom of the ninth when she only allowed one walk.

The first game of the double header was much less competitive when the Illini defeated Eastern 8-1.

The Panthers started freshmen Ashley Condon who gave up seven runs in four innings. She allowed four walks and did not strike out any batters.

In this game the Illini proved how talented of a team they are as they were able to hit the ball for power and run the bases well.

“This is my third year with this program, and I feel that this team is the most balanced we have had,” Illinois manager Terri Sullivan said. “You can do a lot of things when you have a team that can both hit for power and have the speed to do some things on the basepaths.”

As Eastern looks forward to its Ohio Valley Conference schedule beginning, this double header against Illinois was supposed to allow the Panthers to see what point they were at.

While the losses were disappointing, proving they could play with the Illini raised the Panther’s confidence as they start competition with teams they are much more familiar with.