CHAMPAIGN — It looked more like a campsite on the Fourth of July than a tailgate for the Illinois softball team Saturday.

Illini fans were soaking up the 75 degree weather, barbecuing bratwursts outside Eichelberger Field in their RVs and playing volleyball barefoot. There was music and dancing, and Illinois fans were even wearing shirts that said "Sixth Annual World’s Largest Softball Tailgate."

But that and the droves of Illini softball fans weren't enough to discourage freshman designated player Amanda Chidester from getting out of her mini-rut. After a two-game hitless streak, the longest in her short career, Chidester smacked five hits and four RBI to help Michigan spoil Illinois's party with 8-2 and 8-3 Wolverine wins in Saturday's doubleheader.

After Chidester flew out in the first inning of game one, hitting coach Jennifer Brundage got into the freshman’s head.

“She said, 'Just go out there, and love the game, and have fun like you know how to play,' ” said Chidester, who boasts the team's highest batting average. “So I took that, and I started doing really well.”

Once she got her bat going, Chidester became a crucial part of the Wolverines' 16-run day.

“Hitters get hot, and they get cold," Michigan coach Carol Hutchins said. “Everybody takes turns throughout the year in the lineup, and the good news was when Chidester wasn’t hitting, somebody else was. (Junior outfielder) Angela (Findlay) was cool tonight and Chidester picked her up. That’s called team.”

Michigan (8-2 Big Ten, 32-9 overall) scored in every inning but the first in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader. Junior pitcher Nikki Nemitz fanned ten in the Wolverines' win.

Michigan kept the momentum going in the nightcap, recording three consecutive doubles and a triple to score five runs in the fifth, enough to put the contest out of reach.

Despite nine hits, the Illini (7-6 Big Ten, 24-24 overall) managed just three runs. It turned into a game about getting runners across the plate, not just hitting balls to the outfield. And led by Chidester's four RBIs, Michigan didn't have any trouble doing just that.