The Illinois baseball team finished its weekend Sunday at Coastal Carolina with a 7-3 win over VCU. Seven relievers combined to go 6 1/3 innings to carry the Illini to their second win in 24 hours.

 

Zac Taylor sparked the offense, getting the Illini's first two hits and scoring both times to give Illinois a 3-1 lead after three innings. Taylor led off the game with a single and came around to score on a ground out, before hitting a two-run home run to start a four-run third inning.

 

Virginia Commonwealth (3-4) stranded 16 runners on base, including eight in the first three innings. Illini starting pitcher Cyrillo Watson allowed six singles and three walks, lasting 2 2/3 innings before turning it over to the bullpen. No Illini reliever threw more than 1 1/3 innings.

 

The Rams tallied single runs in the seventh and eighth to chip away at the Illini lead, before Doran Turchin blasted a two-out, two-run opposite field homer to give Illinois a 7-3 lead in the eighth.  

 

Illinois is back on the diamond next weekend at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. The Illini face UCLA, Arizona and Washington.