Indiana baseball did what it needed to do Tuesday afternoon at Bart Kaufman Field.
After getting swept by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and falling to 0-3 to start the season, Indiana responded with urgency in its 15-3 win over Bradley University.
Opening a season on the road against a top-tier ACC opponent is never forgiving. Against North Carolina, defensive miscues snowballed, innings unraveled and a near-signature win slipped away in the ninth inning of the finale. Five errors across three games proved costly. North Carolina was able to pull away with just five high scoring innings that put them ahead in tight contests.
“We were tied or ahead in 18 of the 27 innings against a top-five team in the country that hosts regionals and super regionals,” Indiana head coach Jeff Mercer said. “You don’t spend a single day outside and just go do that.”
Now, after earning its first win of the season against Bradley, Indiana steps back into fierce competition, this time with renewed confidence and the lessons of opening weekend in the rearview mirror.
Indiana opens the Live Like Lou Jacksonville Baseball Classic at 2 p.m. Friday against defending national champions No. 2 Louisiana State University.
LSU enters the weekend 5–0, averaging more than 12 runs per game and outscoring its opponents by 40 runs in that span. Like North Carolina in Indiana’s season opener, the Tigers’ pitching staff is elite, racking up 73 strikeouts over just 41 innings.
The Tigers pair that dominance on the mound with one of the nation’s most dangerous lineups, anchored by three top MLB Draft prospects.
Jake Brown has been nearly unstoppable this season. The junior outfielder is hitting .500 with 11 hits in 22 at-bats, including three doubles, four home runs and 12 RBIs, while slugging 1.182 through five games. Brown enters the 2026 season ranked No. 136 on Baseball America’s Top 200 Prospects list.
Centerfielder Derek Curiel has been steady at .300 with six RBIs, already adding a double. He comes in at No. 8 on the top 200 prospects list, giving LSU a top-10 MLB Draft talent at the top of the lineup. Curiel also collected National Freshman of the Year honors last season.
Junior shortstop Steven Milam, who is ranked No. 84, has also contributed with a .278 batting average, five RBIs and two doubles.
After taking on LSU on Friday, Indiana will face the University of Central Florida on Saturday. The Knights have gotten off to a 3-1 start through their first four games and are hitting .346. Their lone loss came in a 13-inning thriller against the No. 20-ranked University of Miami 8-7 Tuesday.
The Knights enter the tournament red-hot at the plate. Senior outfielder DeAmez Ross leads the way, hitting .471 with five RBIs, eight runs scored and a 1.230 OPS, while redshirt-senior catcher Zak Skinner is hitting .462 with seven RBIs and a team-high 13 total bases. Junior outfielder Andrew Williamson has boasted a .400 average with six RBIs and 12 total bases.
The Classic concludes Sunday with a matchup against in-state rival University of Notre Dame, which enters the weekend 2–1 after taking a road series from Florida Atlantic University. The Fighting Irish boast a balanced lineup and a pitching staff that thrives on control and situational hitting. Standouts include junior catcher Mark Quatrani’s .556 average and first baseman Bino Watters’ .375 average, one homerun and three RBIs. Both provide middle-of-the-order pop.
On the mound, right-hand pitcher junior Jack Radel, a 2026 National College Baseball Writers Association Preseason All-America Third Team selection, anchors the rotation with a high-end arsenal and experience.
The Hoosiers have already shown they can hang with top programs in Chapel Hill, and now they take on an even stronger slate of elite competition, beginning with LSU on Friday.
Follow reporters Elakai Anela (@elakai_anela and eanela@iu.edu) and Will Kwiatkowski (@WKwiatkowski_15 and wdkwiatk@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana baseball season.
