Kohli hits 2 of Illinois State’s 5 homers to eliminate Saint Louis with 8-3 win in Louisville

Redbirds hit 5 homers to eliminate Saint Louis 8-3

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Evan Kohli hit two of Illinois State’s five home runs to help the Redbirds eliminate Saint Louis with an 8-3 win in the Louisville Regional on Saturday.

Chad Hinshaw went 4 for 4 and Kevin Tokarski had four RBIs for third-seeded Illinois State (32-23), which next faces second-seeded Vanderbilt.

The Billikens (33-29) scored a run in the bottom of the first, but it was all Redbirds from there. Kohli hit a solo homer and Tokarski added a three-run shot in the second inning to put Illinois State in control.

In the eighth, Kohli and Zach Amrein hit back-to-back solo homers.

JD Learnard (5-3) went 6 2-3 innings for the Redbirds, allowing three earned runs with four strikeouts and three walks.

Alex Alemann (9-6) went 3 1-3 innings and surrendered four earned runs and six hits for the Billikens.