Box Score MACOMB, Ill. -- Behind an offensive outburst and a complete-game three-hitter from sophomore right-hander Corey Binger, the Omaha baseball team shut out Western Illinois 14-0 Sunday afternoon at Alfred D. Boyer Stadium. With the win, the Mavericks improve to 26-24 (16-11 Summit League), while the Leathernecks drop to 14-32 (11-16 Summit League).

Binger (7-3) tossed his second complete game, going 8.0 innings and limiting WIU to three hits -- all singles -- with no walks and five strikeouts. Joe Mortillaro (2-5) took the loss, allowing five runs -- four earned -- on eight hits with two strikeouts and no walks over 2.1 innings of work.

As a team, Omaha finished with 18 hits and took advantage of four Western Illinois errors.

Junior Sam Palensky led the way, going 3-for-3 with a double, a walk, two runs scored and three RBI. Senior Cole Gruber also had three hits in a 3-for-5 day with one run.

Senior Collin Leif (2-for-3, one run, three RBI), freshman Jack Kalina (2-for-3, two runs) and sophomore Ryan Cate (2-for-4, one run, one RBI) also had multi-hit games.

The Mavericks put up their first run in the top of the second inning, using three hits and an error. Kalina led off the inning with a single to center, then advanced to third with Palensky's bunt single to third coupled with a throwing error on the play. Two batters later, Leif keyed an RBI single through the left side to drive in Kalina for a 1-0 lead.

Omaha added four more runs on five hits in the third. Senior Clayton Taylor and Gruber each singled, and both moved into scoring position with sophomore Adam Caniglia's sacrifice bunt. Taylor scored on a wild pitch during the next at-bat, and Cate followed up with an RBI single to second that plated Gruber. Kalina then singled to center to put two runners on again before an RBI double down the left field line from Palensky pushed Cate across for another run. The Mavericks capped their scoring with senior Alex Schultz's sacrifice fly to right, which plated Kalina for a 5-0 edge.

The Mavericks added a run in the fifth courtesy of a Palensky sacrifice fly to center that scored Caniglia. They tallied another in the sixth when walks by Leif and Taylor plus a Gruber single loaded the bases for Caniglia, whose sacrifice fly to left plated Leif to make it 7-0.

In the seventh, two more runs came across for UNO. Palensky drew a one-out, four-pitch walk, then Schultz singled through the right side and stole second to put both runners in scoring position. Leif came up with a big two-run single to center, extending the Mavericks' lead to 9-0.

The offense continued to attack in the eighth, with multiple Mavericks making pinch-hit appearances. Freshman Cal Hehnke worked a full-count walk with one out to lead off the inning, and freshman Henry Wittren's single down the left field line put two on for sophomore Isaac Holt. Holt then sent a single to right, scoring Hehnke to put Omaha ahead 10-0. Palensky added another RBI single to right after that to drive in Wittren, and Palensky and Holt both came in via a two-run single to right by redshirt freshman Nick Lawson for a 13-0 advantage. Freshman Josh Scribner then reached on a fielder's choice, and two throwing errors on the play allowed Schultz to score for a 14-0 lead. The five-run, four-hit, three-error frame finalized the 14-0 triumph for Omaha.

Omaha returns to action on Tuesday, May 17, visiting crosstown foe Creighton. First pitch is set for 12:30 p.m. at TD Ameritrade Park, and links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.

GAME NOTES
-Today's win marked Omaha's third shutout of the season.
-The game was the biggest shutout of an opponent since UNO blanked Minnesota State 17-0 on May 11, 2008.
-Today's 14-0 win also matched the Mavericks' largest margin of victory (14) in a game this season, which they also achieved in a 16-2 triumph over Saint Louis on Feb. 26, 2016.
-Omaha now has 25 double-digit hit performances this year.