Stulga’s two homers lead Illinois State to 15‑4 win
NORMAL, Ill. (Interstat) — Luke Stulga hit two home runs and drove in five runs to lead Illinois State to a 15-4 victory over Eastern Illinois on Tuesday afternoon at Duffy Bass Field. Stulga, the Redbirds’ center fielder, homered in the sixth and seventh innings, the latter a grand slam that capped a five-run frame. Michael Carrano Jr. added a homer and three RBIs, and Brayden Bakes also homered for Illinois State, which collected 18 hits. Brayden Zilis pitched four scoreless innings of relief, allowing four hits and striking out five. Eastern Illinois took a 4-0 lead in the first inning on Mike O’Conor’s grand slam, but the Redbirds answered with four runs in the second, two in the third and two in the fourth. Edward Scaccia took the loss, allowing four runs in 4 1/3 innings. The Panthers managed seven hits. Illinois State improved to 30-20, while Eastern Illinois fell to 28-19.