Hoosiers keep streak alive

No. 24 IU (22-3, 6-0) got out the broom for the second consecutive weekend against a conference foe, sweeping Iowa (9-13, 1-5) in three games during Easter weekend.

The Hoosiers extended their winning streak to 15, the highest active streak in the NCAA, and have also won 20 of their last 21 contests.

The action got started on Saturday as the Hoosiers took down Iowa 16-5.

In the bottom of the third inning, Iowa took the lead 5-4. The Hoosiers proceeded to score 12 unanswered runs to close out the game.

IU tallied 23 hits against Hawkeye pitchers on Saturday. Sophomore infielder Sam Travis led his team with five runs batted in and got things started with a three-run home run in the first inning.

“I love hitting behind Travis,” sophomore infielder Scott Donley said, who hits fourth behind Travis in the lineup. “He’s one of the most feared hitters in not only the Big Ten but the country ... him having a really big weekend this weekend really helped out the team.”

Due to expected inclement weather on Monday, IU and Iowa played a double header on Sunday to finish out the series. In the first game of the day, the Hoosiers took down Iowa 9-6.

During the first two games of the series, IU’s starting pitcher was not as stellar as it had been the previous weekend against Penn State.

Junior Joey DeNato and sophomore Kyle Hart started games one and two, respectively, against Penn State last weekend and Iowa this weekend.

Against the Nittany Lions, the Hoosier starters combined for 15.1 innings pitched, one earned run allowed, eight hits allowed, four walks and 17 strikeouts.

This weekend the pair combined for 6.1 innings pitched, eight earned runs allowed, 11 hits allowed, three walks and 11 strikeouts.

“We’ve been getting really good starts, our starters have been doing a really good job,” IU Coach Tracy Smith said. “Percentages are going to tell you sometimes they’re not going to do well. That was the big thing for us this weekend, even though our starters weren’t on, any one of the guys we put in for relief work did a good job in picking their teammate up.”

The second game of the double header had more tension then the first two games as the Hawkeyes had a prime opportunity to steal the contest from IU.

Facing a bases loaded situation in the bottom of the ninth leading 6-4, junior pitcher Ryan Halstead struck out Iowa outfielder Taylor Kaufman to secure the sweep.

“I wasn’t too nervous at all,” sophomore pitcher Aaron Slegers said. “Halstead’s been closing for us for a long time and he’s won ones a lot closer than that with a lot more pressure.”

Slegers delivered another stellar performance, allowing two runs with none of them earned in seven innings of work to improve his record to 5-0 on the year.

“I’m pretty satisfied (with my performance this year),” Slegers said. “Because I feel like I gave the club a chance to win. I only allowed two runs and with our offense ... two wasn’t going to beat us, let me put it that way.”

Despite the success Slegers has had this year, Smith does not anticipate moving him up in the pitching rotation.

“He’s still developing as a pitcher, still developing his secondary stuff, but he’s a 6-foot-10-inch strike thrower,” Smith said. “I like him out of that three spot, he gives us a quality guy on Sunday, but he still has some other things in his game that he has to work on.”