The MSU baseball team was between a rock and a hard place for much of the four-game weekend series against Illinois at Kobs Field.
The Spartans were blown out 12-3 in Friday's series opener, then fell both times in Saturday's doubleheader, 9-2 and 6-5.
"We told them that they battled all the way through. We were proud of them, the way they played," MSU manager Ted Mahan said. "We were way down, and we still kept playing. I don't think there's any quit in our young team. I think we're just going to keep growing as the season goes on."
Trailing 7-3 early in the series closer on Sunday, MSU (12-16 overall, 3-5 Big Ten) was faced not only with surrendering a sweep at home but falling behind in the Big Ten standings as well. Sunday's game gave the Spartans their only win of the weekend, with a final score of 11-9.
The Spartans began to crawl back into the game, and with the help of a four-run seventh inning, they took the lead.
The rally began when junior pinch hitter Oliver Wolcott cracked a ball down the first baseline. Despite the first baseman catching only a piece of the ball, the ball trickled deep into right field, good enough for three Spartans to score and for Wolcott to advance to second.
Wolcott's play was recorded as an error on Illinois, but it was good enough to contribute to an inning that would put the Spartans on top for good.
"It's huge for us," Wolcott said. "We needed something like that. We needed a boost. It had to come from someone."
MSU surrendered one run in the top of the eighth but got it back when junior third baseman Alan Cattrysse hit an RBI single in the bottom of the inning to give the Spartans an 11-9 lead.
Freshman pitcher Drew Mahan was awarded the save when he pitched a one-two-three inning, and the Spartans escaped the game and series with a win.
"The worst thing is when your son's on the mound, and the game is on the line," Ted Mahan said. "He was the difference at the end."
Cattrysse said that the team's hard work is a key positive that they will take out of this weekend.
"The good thing is that we battled hard all weekend," Cattrysse said. "We were proud with how we played, but how it turned out wasn't in our favor. If we play hard like we did (Sunday), the rest of our season is going to be looking good for us. We have our best ball ahead of us still."
The Spartans will return to action at Eastern Michigan on Wednesday before traveling to Ohio State for a three-game series starting Friday.
