IU entered Saturday’s needing to gain ground in the Big Ten.
It did, but not as much as it would have liked as IU (18-9, 2-5) split its doubleheader against Michigan (17-13, 3-5) losing the first game 7-3 before taking the night cap 13-11, snapping a five game Big Ten losing streak.
Pitching continued to be a problem for the Hoosiers, who have now allowed 35 runs in its last four games.
“The first couple weeks of the season we’ve been great on the mound,” IU Coach Chris Lemonis said. “It just goes in cycles but I’d just like to see us compete a little bit more and attack the strike zone a little bit more.”
IU appeared to have solved its problems in the second game, as it entered the eighth inning leading 13-4. Then it took three IU pitchers to escape a half winning that saw seven Wolverines cross home plate.
Freshman Brian Hobbie started the inning getting one batter out and allowing four runs before junior Christian Morris came in to get the second out and allow three runs of his own.
Morris, typically a starter for the Hoosiers, has struggled this season. After Saturday’s outing Morris now has an ERA of 7.09, the second highest on the team.
Senior closer Ryan Halstead finished the inning by striking out the first batter he faced before pitching a perfect ninth inning to record his sixth save this season.
“Obviously it had people on edge a little bit because it was a crazy inning but that’s just how baseball is,” senior Scott Donley said. “It’s a good thing our bats started off so hot.”
The majority of IU’s offense in the second game came in the third and fourth innings, where the Hoosiers scored eight of their 13 runs.
Two consecutive at bats in the top of the third typified the change in offensive mentality between game one and two.
It started when Donley smashed a 2-1 fastball off the wall in right center field to score senior catcher Brad Hartong from first base.
It started when Donley began his second at bat of the game by taking two pitches outside the strike zone. He then watched a fastball graze the inside corner of the plate for strike one, but that wasn’t his pitch.
When Michigan starting pitcher Ryan Nutoff’s next fastball caught too much of the plate Donley hit it off the wall in right center field, scoring senior catcher Brad Hartong from first base.
After going 1-for-4 in the first game of the doubleheader, freshman outfielder Logan Sowers started his second at bat by taking a fastball for strike one. He eventually worked the count full, seeing seven pitches, before hitting an infield single to shortstop.
“In the first game I was seeing a lot of off speed pitches and wasn’t swinging at a lot of good balls in the zone,” Sowers said. “In the second game I was a little more patient with my approach and things just worked out.”
Then, in the fourth inning, Sowers worked the count again, this time for a flashier result. He worked the count to 2-2 before hitting a hanging slider at the belt over the wall in left center field for a 3-run home run.
Sowers finished the second game 2-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBIs.
IU’s patience at the plate helped provide the offense for sophomore Jake Kelzer’s second win of the season. Kelzer pitched six innings allowing three earned runs while striking out five Wolverines.
In the first game, IU junior starting pitcher Caleb Baragar struggled for the first time all season. He entered Saturday with a 0.79 ERA, the lowest of any IU starting pitcher. After he allowed four earned runs in 1.2 innings Saturday, his ERA rose to 2.22.
“I just think he let it get away from him a little bit and lost his focus,” Lemonis said.
Michigan’s starting pitcher in game one of the doubleheader, junior Jacob Cronenworth, pitched six innings allowing one run for his second win of the season. He struck out five Hoosiers, most with his split finger fastball, in his second start this season.
Cronenworth also hit leadoff for Michigan in both games Saturrday, going 4-for-8 with two runs scored and four RBIs combined in the two games.
“He was the preseason utility All-American in every poll for a reason,” Lemonis said. “He’s just a really good player.”
IU will start junior Scott Effross in tomorrow’s finale against Michigan, who is scheduled to start Brett Adcock. Effross last pitched in relief Tuesday at Kentucky when he allowed one run in 2.2 innings. His last start came last Sunday against Iowa when he allowed six runs in just 0.1 innings.
First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. at Bart Kaufman Stadium.
