IU and Michigan State can’t seem to avoid each other.
The two teams spent most of the Big Ten season next to each other in the conference standings. They finished their regular seasons with a three-game series against one another in Bloomington.
Now, the Hoosiers and Spartans face each other in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.
IU, 23-30 overall and 9-14 in conference, finished 10th in the Big Ten. Michigan State compiled a 29-21 overall record and an 11-12 mark in conference, good enough for seventh in the Big Ten.
“We’re excited to make the Big Ten Tournament again,” IU Coach Michelle Gardner said via the Big Ten Softball Coaches Teleconference Wednesday.
Thursday afternoon’s meeting in Ann Arbor, Michigan, provides IU with an opportunity to exact revenge on the way its regular season ended.
The Hoosiers lost five of their last six games. Each time, the Hoosiers lost to a Michigan-based school.
Then-No. 19 Michigan swept IU in Ann Arbor before IU lost two out of three to Michigan State. The winner of the first round game between IU and Michigan State will play No. 17 Michigan in the tournament’s second round.
But for the Hoosiers to reach the second round, all phases of their game will need to be in sync.
IU’s pitching staff was inconsistent towards the end of the season, mixing shutout performances with blowout losses.
“We’re young on the mound and young behind the plate,” Gardner said. “But we have a couple strong pitchers.”
Sophomore pitcher Tara Trainer is Thursday’s expected starter. With a 13-16 record and a 2.94 ERA this season, Trainer is the only IU pitcher with an ERA below three and more than eight wins.
Trainer pitched twice in last weekend’s series against the Spartans. She pitched a three-hit shutout in IU’s only win of the series, but was also dealt the loss on Sunday after allowing three runs in three innings.
At the plate, IU will lean on it’s experienced players. Senior infielder CaraMia Tsirigos, who was named a First Team All-Big Ten selection on Wednesday, carries a power threat with her eight home runs this season.
“Obviously CaraMia has been a huge contributor for us and just an overall team leader,” Gardner said. “Those upperclassmen are leading us.”
Junior outfielder Rebecca Blitz and junior infielder Rachel O’Malley, who also received accolades from the conference, are also vital to the team’s chances, Gardner said.
“Defensively, Rachel has really put together some good numbers for us,” Gardner said. “She makes us really strong in the infield.”
Last year marked the first time since 2006 that IU won a game in the Big Ten Tournament as it defeated Wisconsin 4-0. The Hoosiers’ 2016 season ended with a loss to a nationally-ranked Michigan team.
The same danger remains for IU this season. But to get a shot at the Wolverines, the Hoosiers must first deal with the other Michigan school they have become so familiar with.
