EAST LANSING— Bottom of the eighth, one out, a man on second, Michigan State had already scored three runs in the inning, with senior Sam Busch in the box. He makes contact, sending the ball into the outfield past the second baseman, scoring the runner and ending the game. It was just his day.
“Sam’s a guy that’s been around for a long time now, and he knows the game,” MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. “He can do an awful lot; he’s got power and he’s seeing the ball really well right now.”
It was a breezy, low-60s afternoon in East Lansing, with rain clouds threatening to interrupt the game as they did Friday. But instead of a rainstorm, fans got a hitting clinic from the Spartans, who slugged their way to a 14-4 win against Illinois in the series finale.
After dropping both games of the doubleheader on Friday being outscored 19-9, the Spartans got off to a quick start, scoring three runs in the first inning.
An inning marked by sloppiness from the Illini began with a delayed throw from the shortstop, allowing senior leadoff hitter JT Sokolove to reach base. He made his way around the bases and scored after Busch launched a ball to the right-field corner for an RBI double.
A double that would get Busch’s massive day started, as he would ultimately go 4-5 picking up five RBIs in the process. Headlined by a memorable two-run homerun in the seventh over the monster wall in right field and the game winning RBI single in the eighth.
“I’m seeing the ball well,” Busch said. “When those guys get on ahead of me, I just try to be aggressive and get them in.”
Sophomore Ryan McKay scored on a wild pitch, and a ball hit over the left fielder’s shoulder by sophomore Parker Picot brought Busch around for the final run of the inning.
The Fighting Illini did not stay silent, as senior Coltin Quagliano led off the third inning with a deep drive that nearly reached the Red Cedar River. Juniors Grant Ross and Jack Zebig each picked up an RBI, hitting identical line drives with runners at the corners to break the donut and make the score 3-2.
Illinois’ offense continued in the following inning, picking up two more runs to take its first lead of the game. The inning was defined by sophomore Gannon Grundman losing his command, hitting two batters en route to loading the bases and forcing MSU to call on the bullpen.
The Spartan bullpen was pivotal in securing the win. After allowing a two-RBI single on his first pitch, sophomore Tate Farquhar escaped the inning and surrendered just one more hit over the next 2 2/3 innings.
“It could have unraveled right then and there for him, but he settled down and made pitches when he needed to make pitches,” Boss Jr. said. “That was the biggest point in the game and yesterday we didn’t do that, and we allowed two big innings and that cost us two games.”
After losing their lead, the Spartans were eager to regain it, loading the bases with Busch at the plate. The senior delivered, hitting a sinking fly ball that dropped in front of the center fielder and tied the game 4-4.
“I thought the focus was really good today. I thought that when they took the lead, we stayed, we kept our composure, and we kept grinding,” Boss Jr. said.
Junior Randy Seymour was up next and launched a fly ball to the warning track scoring a racing McKay from third for the lead. MSU would go on to add two more with a line drive to center off the bat of Picot clearing the bases and extending the Spartans lead to 7-4.
“The coaches challenged us today to compete for all nine this game,” Busch said. “We did that, so it felt really good.”
Senior George Viebrock III closed out the game by allowing zero hits through two innings preventing any kind of comeback from the Fighting Illini. Allowing Farquhar to pick up his second win of the season.
“George hadn’t thrown a whole lot for us recently, but came in and gave us two solid innings,” Boss Jr. said.
The Spartans would pad onto their lead adding seven runs over the last four inning making the score 14-4 forcing a mercy rule to take in effect in the eighth.
“Much better day today than it was yesterday,” Boss Jr. said. “So proud of our guys for their approach all day long.”
MSU ultimately lost the series to Illinois but showed promise scoring 14 runs on 16 hits in the last game.
Next up the Spartans will be preparing for an untraditional matchup with the Lansing Lugnuts Tuesday at Jackson Field. Looking to challenge the Oakland Athletic High-A affiliate before they begin their season.
“Guys will be able to rest their bodies tomorrow, watch the basketball game, and take the day off,” Boss Jr. said. “Then it will be ready to go for Tuesday night, a fun experience, good learning experience for our guys.”
