By Emma Hicken, Leatherneck Athletic Communications

MACOMB, Ill.- The Leathernecks wrap up a 4-game series against the Illinois State Redbirds, dropping the series with a loss from all four games. The Leathernecks update their record to 4-16 as they try and find their footing before conference season kicks off. 

GAME 1

Western Illinois battled through an 11-inning contest but ultimately fell to Illinois State, 6-7, on Thursday afternoon at Duffy Bass Field. The Leathernecks jumped out early with three runs in the first inning and finished with 12 hits, led by Joe Connolly and Liam Bushey who each collected three hits while combining for four runs scored. Tyler Large drove in two runs and Isaiah Monge added a double and an RBI as Western regained the lead in the seventh inning. Illinois State responded with a solo home run from Ryan Bakes in the bottom half to tie the game, and after pushing a run across in the ninth to take a 6–5 lead, Western tied the game earlier before the Redbirds walked it off in the bottom of the 11th on an RBI single from Nolan Barry. Brett Buchanan started on the mound for WIU, striking out six over five innings, while the Leathernecks pitching staff combined for 10 strikeouts in the extra-inning battle.

GAME 2 

Western Illinois dropped a 7-10 contest to Illinois State on Thursday afternoon at Alfred D. Boyer Stadium despite recording 15 hits. The Leathernecks battled throughout the game, taking an early 4–2 lead in the second inning and later reclaiming the advantage behind home runs from Liam Bushey and Tyler Large. Bushey led WIU at the plate with a 4-for-5 performance and two RBIs, while Large added two hits and two RBIs of his own. After the game was tied 7–7 in the seventh, Illinois State capitalized on a pair of errors in the eighth inning to push across three runs and take control. Western Illinois threatened late but was unable to complete the comeback as the Redbirds secured the midweek victory. 

GAME 3

Western Illinois fell to Illinois State 1-7  in the second game of Friday's doubleheader. The Leathernecks recorded five hits in the contest, led by Wandel Campa with a 2-for-3 performance and an RBI. Joe Connolly added a hit and scored WIU's lone run in the third inning after advancing on a passed ball and coming home on Campa's RBI groundout. Illinois State built an early lead with runs in the first and second innings before breaking the game open with a three-run sixth. The Redbirds finished with 10 hits, while Western Illinois pitchers combined for six strikeouts in the loss.

GAME 4

Western Illinois battled through 15 innings but ultimately fell to Illinois State, 6-7, on Saturday afternoon at Duffy Bass Field. The Leathernecks jumped out to an early lead, scoring four runs across the second through fourth innings, highlighted by Liam Bushey's solo home run and RBIs from Tyler Large and Krayton Morse. WIU added another run in the fifth on an RBI single from Wandel Campana and briefly regained the lead in the eighth on Isaiah Monge's sacrifice fly. Illinois State tied the game later in the eighth, sending the contest into extra innings where both teams remained scoreless until the bottom of the 15th, when the Redbirds walked off with the winning run. Bushey and Campana each recorded two hits for Western Illinois in the loss. 

The Leathernecks will host the Milwaukee Panthers on March 17 before hitting the road to kick off the conference season against the Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles. 

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