Cole McDevitt drove in three runs and Toby Hanson drove in two to lead the Gophers baseball team to a 9-4 victory over Michigan State on Sunday in East Lansing, Mich.

The victory was the ninth consecutive for the Gophers (18-8, 6-0 Big Ten) and completed a three-game series sweep of the Spartans (15-9, 3-3). The Gophers swept Ohio State last weekend.

The Gophers, the defending Big Ten regular-season champions, are off to their best start in the Big Ten since opening the 2005 season 7-0.

Gophers starter Toby Anderson gave up four runs and eight hits over seven innings to pick up the victory.

U softball blanks Illinois

Dani Wagner hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning and Sara Groenewegen pitched a complete-game shutout as the sixth-ranked Gophers softball team defeated Illinois 4-0 in Champaign, Ill., to win two of three games in the Big Ten series.

Groenewegen struck out 11 in improving to 15-2 with a 0.50 ERA this season.

The Gophers (30-3, 5-1 Big Ten) have reached 30 victories for seven consecutive seasons.