THREE THINGS WE LEARNED THIS WEEK
1 - Indiana softball's season ended prematurely, but it still managed to notch multiple historic accomplishments in head coach Shonda Stanton's second year.
The Hoosiers were ranked for the first time since 1996, and stayed in the Top 25 for six consecutive weeks.
Their 14-0 start to the season stands as tops in program history. At 36-21, the 36 overall wins are most for a single campaign since 2011. That included victories over No. 10 LSU and No. 6 Georgia.
2 - Indiana baseball gets back into the Big Ten regular season title hunt.
Sitting 2.5 games behind first-place Michigan prior this past weekend's series, it was shaping up to be a crucial weekend in Ann Arbor.
The Hoosiers were up for the challenge, taking the three-game series 2-1 and now sitting 1.5 games back from the Wolverines in the conference standings.
Indiana hosts No. 7 Louisville on Saturday, then eighth-place Rutgers for a three-games series to close out the regular season. Michigan plays its final four games all on the road, beginning with Kentucky on Tuesday followed by a three-game series at Nebraska. The Cornhuskers are currently tied with Illinois and Minnesota for third in the Big Ten standings.
3 - Indiana men's soccer will be represented on the international stage.
Former IU forward Justin Rennicks was named to the United States U-20 Men's National Team for the upcoming FIFA Under-20 Men's World Cup in Poland from May 13-June 16.
The 24-team tournament that kicks off on May 24 in Bielsko-Biala. This marks Rennicks' third call-up with the organization after joining for a January training camp in Florida and a training camp and pair of matches in Spain from March 18-26 in preparation for this summer's 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
TWO QUESTIONS
1 - Can Indiana baseball take advantage of closing out the regular season at home?
Facing one of the top 10 teams in the country won't be easy, nor will hosting a team in the middle of the conference standings. Considering Michigan is on the road this whole week, IU sits in a very good position to push for the regular season conference crown.
2 - What can senior Erin Harper's experience do for Indiana women's golf at the NCAA Championships?
IU qualified for the NCAA championships as a team for the first time since 2007 after finishing sixth at the East Lansing Regional with a +19. Harper was eliminated after three rounds last year, but can undoubtedly use what she learned to help Indiana this year.
ONE PREDICTION -- Indiana baseball clinches at least a share of the Big Ten regular season title this week.
I go back to how this week shakes out on paper and give the edge to IU over Michigan.
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