IU loses three out of four and falls short of winning conference
Indiana squared off against Nebraska and Ohio State in a pivotal weekend, trying to regain some ground while sitting 1.5 games out of first place in the conference standings.
But that did not go as planned. First-place Nebraska swept IU at home 8-5 and 3-1, respectively, propelling the Cornhuskers to a great position to clinch the conference with one more win over Ohio State.
They did just that on Sunday afternoon, shutting out OSU 9-0 and winning all four games during the weekend, consequently winning the Big Ten Conference and earning an automatic bid in the postseason.
The losing streak continued for the Hoosiers on Sunday, who fell to OSU 3-1. However, IU bounced back on Monday and blanked the Buckeyes 2-0.
Nebraska Series
Game 1:
IU LHP Tommy Sommer started on the hill and faced serious adversity early in the game, similar to his previous start. He allowed six earned runs on four hits, walked three and struck out five through 2 ⅓ innings pitched.
Nebraska took an early 4-0 lead in the top of the second inning. A leadoff walk and an infield single followed by a one-out walk loaded up the bases. NU's Brice Matthews then hit a bases-clearing double down the left-field line to give NU a 3-0 advantage. Next up to bat, Griffin Everitt also doubled down the left-field line, scoring Matthews to extend the lead to 4-0.
IU responded in the next half-inning by plating three runs. Grant Richardson drove a ball to deep left-center field off NU's ace Cade Povich for a solo home run, cutting the deficit to 4-1. A single to left field followed by a hit by pitch put two runners on. James Espalin then singled up the middle and Morgan Colopy scored, making it 4-2. Leadoff hitter Jeremy Houston singled to right field and Kip Fougerousse scored from second base, cutting NU's lead to 4-3.
The Cornhuskers extended their lead in the top of the third with one swing of the bat. Big Ten Freshman of the Week Max Anderson hit a two-run home run to left-center field, making it a 6-3 ballgame.
Matthews led off the top of the fourth and singled to center field. He later stole second and scored on a double to extend the lead to 7-3.
In the bottom of the fourth, IU's Collin Hopkins doubled down the left-field line. He scored after Houston singled through the left side for his second RBI of the game, making it 7-4.
IU's Cole Barr drew a two-out walk in the bottom of the seventh and scored on a triple by Richardson, cutting NU's lead to 7-5.
But the Hoosiers were retired in order in the bottom of the eighth and in the top of the ninth, NU's Spencer Schwellenbach hit a solo home run to left field to extend the lead to 8-5.
Schwellenbach entered to pitch the ninth after hitting a home run and retired the three Hoosiers he faced, striking out one and obtaining his sixth save of the season. IU dropped the series opener 8-5.
IU's Offensive Leaders:
Houston: 3-5 / 2 RBI
Richardson: 2-4 / HR (6) / 2 RBI
Colopy: 2-4
Game 2:
IU's RHP McCade Brown started the second game of the series and allowed two earned runs on five hits, walked three and struck out eight through five innings.
Nebraska jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first after Schwellenbach hit a one-out double to right-center, scoring Jaxon Hallmark, who had singled up the middle earlier.
In the top of the second, Matthews drove a ball to deep left field that cleared the bullpen for a solo home run, extending the lead to 2-0. It could have been a two-run home run but, thankfully for IU, a runner was caught stealing at second base before Matthews stepped up to the plate.
NU's starting pitcher Chance Hroch only allowed two singles and hit two batters through the first five innings while striking out six.
Hagge hit a one-out single in the top of the sixth and scored to extend the lead to 3-0 after Matthews delivered once again, tripling down the right-field line.
Hroch pitched a 1-2-3 sixth, seventh and eighth inning, limiting IU's ability to score runs.
Hroch remained in the game for the ninth inning to attempt to complete the game. He struck out the first batter and induced a ground out for the first two outs. Next up to bat, Richardson hit a solo home run to center field, cutting the deficit to 3-1. However, Hroch retired the final batter to end the game. IU lost the series finale 3-1 and was swept by the Cornhuskers, giving NU a 3-1 record against IU this season.
IU's Offensive Leaders:
Richardson: 2-4 / HR (7) / 1 RBI
Ohio State Series
Game 1:
RHP Gabe Bierman started the series opener against Ohio State and was taken out after the fifth inning, having thrown 105 pitches. He allowed three earned runs on five hits, walked two and struck out six.
IU jumped out to the lead first, something the Hoosiers had struggled to do against Nebraska. Houston hit a leadoff double down the right-field line and scored to give IU a 1-0 lead after Ashley hit a ground ball to the shortstop and Schwellenbach committed a throwing error to first base.
OSU tied the game at one apiece in the top of the second when Conner Pohl drove a ball over the right-field wall for a solo home run.
After the first inning, OSU starter RHP Garret Burhenn retired the next six batters he faced.
Kern drew a leadoff walk in the top of the fifth, followed by a single. Later in the inning, a pitch hit Pohl, which loaded up the bases. Next up to bat, Brent Todys singled up the middle and two runners scored to give OSU a 3-1 lead.
Burhenn pitched a 1-2-3 sixth, seventh and eighth inning.
Burhenn stayed on the hill for the ninth inning and the first batter he faced, Richardson, hit a hard comebacker that Burhenn in the head. However, he stayed in the game and retired the next two batters. Colopy then singled to right-center and Richardson moved to third to put runners on the corners, but Burhenn got a strikeout to end the game. IU lost 3-1, its fifth straight loss to OSU and its fifth straight loss overall.
IU's Offensive Leaders:
Houston: 2-4 / 2B
Barr: 2-4
Game 2:
RHP John Modungo started the series finale for IU and pitched well, hurling four scoreless innings while allowing only one hit, walking zero and striking out three.
Pohl led off in the top of the second and hit a fly ball down the third baseline that popped out of Barr's glove and into fair territory. Due to the hang time of the ball, Pohl pulled into second with a double. However, later in the inning, he was picked off at third base. A fly-out then ended the frame.
OSU starter LHP Isaiah Coupet retired the first nine batters he faced while striking a career-high seven batters.
In the bottom of the fourth, back-to-back singles by Houston and Ashley followed by a double steal put two runners in scoring position. A pitch then hit Richardson to load the bases. Barr reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop and Houston scored to give IU a 1-0 lead.
IU's LHP Ty Bothwell entered in the top of the fifth and retired all six batters he faced over two innings.
In the bottom of the eighth, a one-out walk followed by a single put runners on the corners for IU. Toetz singled through the right side with two outs, extending the lead to 2-0.
IU RHP Grant Macciocchi initially entered in the seventh inning and pitched three scoreless innings, allowing only one hit while striking out three. He shut the door for IU, obtaining his first save of the season by securing the 2-0 victory. The win snapped IU's five-game losing streak and avoided the season sweep to OSU.
IU's Offensive Leaders:
Ashley: 2-3
Toetz: 1-4 / 1 RBI
Closing Thoughts:
Like in the Michigan series, the Hoosiers struggled with firing on all cylinders simultaneously. Friday night's game saw the best hitting performance from the Hoosiers, who batted 11-37 (.297 avg) in team hitting. However, after Friday, the bats seemed to be practically non-existent. IU batted 3-28 (.107 avg) in the second game against NU, 7-34 (.206 avg) in the series opener against OSU and 6-30 (.200 avg) in the finale.
IU was 6-26 (.230 avg) with runners in scoring position and left 23 runners on base throughout the four games.
While the pitching struggled in the first game and allowed eight earned runs, the Hoosiers only allowed six throughout the next three games combined, providing an opportunity for the offense to push them to victory. However, as previously mentioned, the Hoosiers failed to convert when it mattered most.
While IU dropped the first three games, the win on Monday against OSU was significant for IU's hopes of making the postseason.
IU will play its final series of the season in a three-game road set against a surging Maryland team this upcoming weekend. Below are the scheduled start times for each game.
Game 1: Friday, May 28 @ 6:30 p.m. ET.
Game 2: Saturday, May 29 @ 2:00 p.m. ET.
Game 3: Sunday, May 30 @ 1:00 p.m. ET.
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