After a pair of marathon games, it was only fitting that the rubber game would chop an hour off its run time.
Central Michigan increased its lead in the Mid-American Conference West Division race Sunday afternoon with a 3-1 victory over Northern Illinois in a game that was completed in a tidy two hours and 30 minutes.
The Chippewas received a much-needed strong pitching performance from freshman left-hander Sean Hankins as he went 8 2/3 innings, giving an overworked bullpen plenty of Sunday rest.
Central Michigan improves to 25-21 overall and 13-5 in MAC play with the win as it now holds a four-game lead in the loss column, with second-place Ball State coming in at 12-9.