Hoosiers continue to struggle, lose in 9th to Cardinals

Baseball is a love-hate game, IU coach Tracy Smith says. Fate didn’t throw any love the Hoosiers’ way Tuesday night, that’s for sure. \nThe IU baseball team, reeling from a rough weekend and in desperate need of success on the mound, traveled down Interstate-65 on Tuesday for a midweek matchup with Louisville. The Hoosiers battled hard, leading for most of the game before surrendering the lead late and eventually losing on a walk-off, pinch-hit single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. \nSenior right-hander Chris McCombs started and worked long innings, something IU needed after Iowa shelled the Hoosier pitching staff for 47 runs over four games last weekend. In total, McCombs worked seven innings, surrendering four runs and striking out four. Freshman Kyle Leiendecker and sophomore Eric Arnett combined for the last 1 2/3 innings, with Arnett picking up the loss. \nSmith said he needs others on his staff to follow McCombs’ example. He’s said all season he has confidence in his pitchers – they just need confidence in themselves and their abilities.\n“We’ve got to get everybody consistently giving us quality innings,” Smith said. “We want to see somebody else pick up the slack and do it again.”\nSmith said after the loss that he thought his team’s execution and focus was “light-years” ahead of what they displayed this weekend. He said Tuesday’s performance showed the Hoosiers true potential.\n“If we play, get that type of pitching ... we’ll win,” Smith said. “There’s no doubt in my mind.”\nMcCombs said he thinks his teammates can feed off his outing and regain their early-season form. \n“Hopefully,” McCombs said. “A lot of stuff in baseball’s contagious.”\nMcCombs, a Louisville native, said it felt good to pitch in his hometown. He called the trip back home “a plus.”\nThe late innings spelled drama for the Hoosiers. After Louisville picked up a run in the bottom of the eighth to take a 4-3 lead – the home team’s first of the evening – sophomore catcher Josh Phegley led off the ninth with a single. He advanced to second on a pitch in the dirt, and a Jerrud Sabourin single drove in Phegley and locked the score at 4-4. \nBut it wasn’t enough. \nLouisville’s Tyler Christensen delivered with a two-out pinch-hit single to drive in the winning run and give his team a 5-4 victory over the visiting Hoosiers. \nIn the loss, the Hoosiers struck quickly, plating a run in the first inning. Junior center fielder Andrew Means led off the contest with a double to right. A pair of groundouts moved him to third and then brought him home, with Phegley picking up the RBI. \nIU got two more runs in the second after a pair of singles from Sabourin and junior Chris Hervey put two runners on. With the pair at second and third – Hervey took second when Louisville failed to throw out Sabourin at third – a two-out single by Louisville native and senior shortstop David Trager scored Sabourin. A throwing error allowed Hervey to score as well, giving McCombs three quick runs in the first two innings. \nThe Hoosiers will get a chance to turn things around within 24 hours, as they host Ball State at 3 p.m. today at Sembower Field. Smith said he didn’t know who would talk the hill for the Hoosiers against their in-state visitors, but hopes to save as many pitchers as possible for the weekend trip to Penn State.