Indiana baseball improved their record to 26-11 on Tuesday when they took down No. 12 University of Louisville in front of a national audience and nearly 2,000 fans at Bart Kaufman Field.
After junior righty Seti Manase surrendered a solo shot to Louisville freshman Will Vierling in the third inning, head coach Jeff Mercer brought in freshman Ethan Phillips from the bullpen. Phillips shut down the Cardinals until the late innings, allowing just one hit over nearly five innings of work.
“That’s back-to-back games we’ve had a terrific performance from a guy that hasn’t necessarily been a main guy,” Mercer said after the game. Phillips was not on the bus for Indiana’s road trip at the beginning of the season, and Mercer said he was proud of Phillips’ progression and composure in a big game.
“You could see him a couple times, step off the mound and collect himself. That’s a big environment for a freshman,” Mercer said. “I’ve been on him all year, saying, ‘You have a chance to be a star if you would just believe in yourself like I believe in you.’”
Phillips fell behind in the count to a couple of Louisville hitters, and Mercer said he was impressed by Phillips’ ability to execute pitches in those situations. Composure has been a big focal point for Phillips. “It was very fulfilling to see the continuation of his growth,” Mercer said.
After Phillips shut down the Cardinals in the third inning, the Hoosiers responded to Louisville’s lone run with five of their own. Senior catcher Peter Serruto moved junior outfielder Hunter Jessee and freshman second baseman Tyler Cerny into scoring position on a well-executed sacrifice bunt.
Senior shortstop Phillip Glasser, redshirt junior Bobby Whalen, sophomore Brock Tibbitts and reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week Devin Taylor all picked up RBIs in the inning. In the fifth, Cerny reached on a dropped third strike, advanced to second on Serruto’s second sacrifice bunt of the day and then came around to score on a wild pitch and a throwing error.
Tibbitts picked up his second RBI of the ballgame in the sixth, scoring Serruto after the senior backstop reached on a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Phillips’ lone run allowed was unearned, a leadoff walk that came around to score on a rare error from Taylor in right. It was for naught though, as redshirt senior Craig Yoho came out of the bullpen and secured the final six outs to give the Hoosiers a statement win over a top-15 opponent.
After Tuesday’s win, Taylor now leads Indiana in batting average (.375), on-base percentage (.504) and slugging percentage (.750) in addition to his team-leading eight home runs.
The Hoosiers head to the University of Cincinnati to face the Bearcats at 6 p.m. on Wednesday and host Ohio University this weekend. Wednesday’s game will be televised on ESPN+ and the weekend series will be aired on B1G+.
Follow reporters Matthew Byrne (@MatthewByrne1) and Nick Rodecap (@nickrodecap) for updates throughout the Indiana baseball season.
