The Illinois (1-3) baseball team dropped its opening game of the 2013 Keith LeClair Classic by a score of 8-2 to host East Carolina (1-3) Thursday night. The Illini allowed eight runs over the final five innings and suffered their third-straight loss.

Illinois scored in the first inning, jumping out to a 1-0 lead on an RBI single by Jordan Parr. Davis Hendrickson led off the game with a walk and stole second before scoring on the Parr gsingle.

Senior Kevin Johnson began the game with three scoreless innings but gave up a two-run home run to ECU third baseman Zach Houchins with two outs in the bottom of the fourth. Two innings later, the Pirates put up four runs to knock Johnson out of the game and pin him with his first loss of the year.

An RBI ground-rule double started a big inning in the sixth for East Carolina, as they took advantage of a leadoff double. After two walks with two outs, the Pirates scored another run on a bases-loaded wild pitch and added two more on a two-run single through the right side to take a 6-1 lead. Rob McDonnell came on in relief for Johnson and got the final out of the frame.

Johnson struck out six over 5.2 innings.

The Illini loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the ninth and scored on a wild pitch, but couldn't keep the rally going, as a groundout to first ended the game. Illinois totaled eight hits on the evening, but struck out 11 times.