Stuck in the middle with Penn State

It wouldn't be surprising if IU coach Bob Morgan was found humming the classic oldies hit "Stuck In the Middle With You" this weekend as his Hoosiers, tied for fourth with Penn State, prepare to face the Nittany Lions in a four-game set in Happy Valley. \nIU (27-15, 10-10 Big Ten) trails Minnesota, Ohio State and Northwestern in the Big Ten race and looks to this weekend to change their latest streak -- IU has lost four of its last five games.\nBut for Morgan, it's not time to panic. In the Hoosiers' last two Big Ten series, they've faced the conference's top two teams in Minnesota and Ohio State, earned a split against the Buckeyes but lost three of four against the Gophers.\n"You've got to remember the type of people we've been playing the last couple of weeks were in the top of the conference," Morgan said. "It's not so much that we're struggling; it's that we're playing the best teams. Sometimes you have to do everything right to beat those teams, and that's where we've stubbed our toes a couple of times."\nPenn State came to Sembower Field last year and stubbed IU's toes three times by taking three of four from the Hoosiers. And this year the Nittany Lions return most of last year's ball club with 10 Lions who started last spring.\nAnd the players returning aren't slouches. Although the Nittany Lions (18-21, 10-10 Big Ten) don't boast a winning non-conference record, Morgan said Penn State plays some good baseball, having won their last three ball games.\n"They've got good starting pitching, and the one kid (sophomore pitcher) Clayton Hamilton is definitely a pro prospect," Morgan said. "They handle the bat real well. They've got a couple kids that run and they're going to squeeze, and they're going to bunt. They play the short game real well, and they're good defensively." \nFacing Hamilton in Friday's first game, slated for 3 p.m., is senior Jacob Cary. Cary burst out of the gate in 2003, going 7-0 and at one point threw five-straight complete games. But the 6-3, 175-pound pitcher has lost his last two outings and figures to face a tough go of it Friday against the probable starter in the 6-5 Hamilton.\nMuch like Morgan, Cary said he is taking the same approach in not panicking over the team's recent struggles.He said he's going to stick with his game plan. \n"This past weekend I pitched pretty well, with three earned runs in a seven-inning game," Cary said. "We should've been in that game. I just do the same thing every weekend -- go out there and try to have a good start again. Offense and defense will show up soon."\nThat offense was all but absent last weekend against Minnesota. The Hoosiers averaged two runs in the four games and put pressure on the pitching staff to deliver perfect performances.\nThis weekend Morgan said the Hoosiers must capitalize on opportunities with better situational hitting and might even take a card from Penn State's deck and play a little small ball in order to push runs across.\n"It just depends on the situation," Morgan said. "We'll try to move guys and score guys however we've got to do it. It depends on who's hitting and what they can do as far as what their assets are as far as scoring guys and moving guys."\nOne player who will play a key part in the offensive game plan is senior Mark Calkins. Calkins led off the team's rotation earlier in the year and, since the emergence of senior Kenny Marrs, has moved two spots down to the three-hole. \nWith Calkins being a senior, he said he knows the importance of this weekend's four-game set. Following Friday's opener, the two teams will square off in a doubleheader Saturday before Sunday's season finale.\nIf IU earns at least a split in the four games, the Hoosiers will be in good position as the next two Big Ten series are at the friendly confines of Sembower Field. Maybe then Morgan and the Hoosiers won't be in the middle anymore.\n"We have a good stretch coming, I feel, as far as our opponents," Calkins said. "We've got two home series and Penn State is just about even with us. I feel we're due to break out. I think if we at least get a split here and then take three out of four at home, the next two series we'll be sitting pretty"