CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (Interstat) — Will Johannes crushed a walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the ninth to lift Illinois to a 4-3 victory over Northwestern on Saturday evening at Illinois Field. The junior catcher finished 3-for-4 with a homer and an RBI.

Illinois starting pitcher Aidan Flinn tossed five innings of one-hit shutout ball with five strikeouts, earning the win. The Fighting Illini improved to 25-23 overall; the Wildcats fell to 20-27-1.

Northwestern grabbed an early lead on Owen McElfatrick’s two-run homer in the sixth and an RBI single in the eighth, but Illinois rallied from a 3-0 deficit. A.J. Putty drove in a run in the first, and J.R. Nelson added an RBI double in the second. A sacrifice fly tied it 3-3.

McElfatrick went 2-for-4 with three RBIs for Northwestern, which dropped the series opener after losing 12-0 Friday. The teams conclude the series Sunday.