Illini Insider: Bonadonna hoping to turn it around

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Jeff Huth's review and preview of all things Illini

Ones to watch

BASEBALL VS. MINNESOTA

Friday-Sunday at Illinois Field

The arrival of the Gophers should bring back welcome memories for one Illini in particular. Joe Bonadonna had the series of his life last season at Minneapolis, pounding out nine hits in 13 at-bats with two sacrifice bunts, a sac fly and three stolen bases.

Afterward, plenty of folks took notice, with the Big Ten naming Bonadonna its co-player of the week and the College Baseball Foundation selecting him to its weekly National All-Star Lineup.

Flash forward to 2009 and the senior center fielder no doubt would love to recapture some of that same bat magic. One year after Bonadonna hit a career-high .356 and earned All-Big Ten second-team honors, he continues to try to fight his way out of a season-long slump. Through Tuesday, the Buffalo Grove native was hitting .229, including .242 in the Big Ten.

Through it all, UI coach Dan Hartleb has steadfastly kept Bonadonna in the lead-off spot.

"I've gone back and forth in my head and looked at some different lineups," Hartleb said. "I'd still like to put him at the top of the lineup. I think he puts the most pressure on teams of anyone we have when he gets on base."

Opposing catchers can attest to that, with Bonadonna swiping a team-high 14 bases in 18 attempts.

And there's reason to wonder whether the Illini veteran might be emerging from his slump. In four games last week, Bonadonna was 6 for 15, including 4 for 12 in a three-game series at Michigan.

"I thought (last) weekend he did a very good job," Hartleb said. "He had a multihit game and produced in the other games. I think Joe is starting to relax a little bit."

This series looms as a key one for both teams as they jockey to stay in the title race. The Illini are tied for third place at 6-3, while Minnesota shares the lead with Indiana at 6-2.

It's been a bounce-back season for the Gophers, who missed the six-team Big Ten tournament last year for the first time since 1997. Hartleb isn't surprised Minnesota, which lost three of four to Illinois last year, is back in the mix.

"They played a lot of young players last year knowing that they had some talented players and wanted to get them some experience," he said. "A lot of good programs go through that."

The three-game series starts at 6:05 p.m. Friday, followed by matchups at 3:05 p.m. Saturday and 12:05 p.m. Sunday.

Illini of the Week

Hollie Pinchback

Softball

In the nine-plus-year history of Illini softball, the ceiling for hits in a game by a UI batter has steadfastly stood at four. On Sunday, Pinchback broke through that barrier with a five-hit barrage against No. 16 Ohio State. But the sophomore left fielder's 5-for-5, two-double day was far from the whole story. Pinchback drove in a career-high five runs and scored twice to fuel an Illini attack that racked up its second-highest run total of the season in a 17-15 road loss.

Until Pinchback's feat, the school record of four hits in a game had been accomplished 27 times.

The Katy, Texas, native didn't learn just how special her feat was until she read about it on the Internet after returning home.

"It's kind of exciting to set a record, but still I wish we would have come out with a win," she said. "It's nice to see it could be accomplished (by an Illini player), especially in Big Ten play because that's where everything matters the most. It was timely, but it still wasn't enough (to win)."

Pinchback's record-breaking hit came in her most challenging at-bat. Buckeyes reliever Kim Reeder got ahead 0-2 with a change-up and a drop ball. When Reeder threw another changeup on a 1-2 count, the left-handed hitter was prepared, lashing a double to left-center field.

"It felt good because we're working hard on staying back on changeups and driving them the opposite way," Pinchback said.

Finding depth

Look for All-Americans Gakologelwang Masheto and Andrew Riley to return to action this weekend when the Illini men travel to Baltimore for the Morgan State Legacy track and field meet.

Each stayed behind last weekend for precautionary reasons as Illinois competed in the Spec Towns Invitational at Athens, Ga. UI coach Wayne Angel said Masheto was recovering from an abdominal strain, while freshman Riley – a sprinter/hurdler/jumper – simply needed a break.

"We want to move him along gently a little bit to keep him fresh hopefully," Angel said.

Masheto, an NCAA regional qualifier in the 400 meters, can expect a stern test in his signature event this weekend from Jamaican Olympian Allodin Fothergill of Maryland Eastern Shore. Masheto and Fothergill are ranked sixth and seventh, respectively, in the 400 – their best times separated by 0.01 second.

Another matchup to watch: Illinois' Gary Miller and Donte Holmes of Delaware State in the 800. Miller is the reigning Big Ten indoor champion in the 600, while Holmes was one of two U.S. entrants in the 800 at the 2008 World Junior Championships in Poland.

With Masheto and Riley out, Angel was forced to reconfigure his 400 and 1,600 relays last weekend. The 400 unit was particularly young, with true freshmen Roger Jones and Hendrik Maartens, and redshirt freshman Stanley Azie joining junior Azeez Shogbuyi. The unit clocked a 40.96 to finish second to South Carolina (40.30) and put a smile on Angel's face.

"There's a lot to look forward to in the future," he said. "I'm excited about the possibilities. "It shows we have some depth now, which is good. We haven't had that for a while in the short sprints."

Medals haul

Illini freshman Latoya Griffith medaled twice for her native Barbados at the CARIFTA Games track and field meet this week at St. Lucia, British West Indies.

Griffth ran a personal-best 59.05 in the 400 hurdles on Sunday to win a bronze medal in the Under 20 division. The performance is recognized by the NCAA and improved her national ranking in the event to 17th.

A day later, she helped Barbados capture silver in the Under-20 1,600 relay.

The annual meet brings together the top junior athletes in the Caribbean territories.

THE LIST

Angela Bizzarri barely missed setting a new Illini record in the outdoor 1,500 meters on Saturday during the Sun Angel Track Classic at Tempe, Ariz. The junior ran a personal-best 4 minutes, 17.65 seconds – 0.15 second off the 25-year-old UI mark held by Julie Lantis. The top five performances in school history:

NAME TIME YEAR

Julie Lantis 4:17.50 1984

Angela Bizzarri 4:17.65 2009

Angela Bizzarri 4:19.95 2008

Angela Bizzarri 4:20.96 2007

Melissa Straza 4:21.08 1988

THE NUMBER

.262

Opponents' batting average through the Illini's first nine Big Ten baseball games this season. Last year, Big Ten opponents hit .336 against Illinois.

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