Indiana baseball was swept by No. 24 Nebraska over the weekend, falling to 10-17 overall and 3-9 in the Big Ten. The Cream and Crimson lost 6-5 on Friday, 12-7 on Saturday and 12-4 on Sunday inside Hawks Field at Haymarket Park in Lincoln, Nebraska.
The Hoosiers only scored two total runs through the first five innings in all three games. In the seventh inning across the final two games, Indiana allowed 15 runs — seven Saturday and eight Sunday.
In the first game, starting pitcher and graduate student right-handed pitcher Reagan Rivera gave up five runs but only two earned runs in 3.2 innings pitched. Three critical errors pushed Indiana behind Nebraska 5-0 early in the contest.
The Hoosiers didn’t score a run until the top of the sixth inning. Freshman catcher Owen ten Oever collected his first collegiate RBI on a single up the middle and sophomore outfielder Hogan Denny recorded a two-run single, his 20th RBI this season.
Despite its comeback attempt, the Hoosiers fell 6-5 to open the series.
The first six innings of Saturday’s contest followed a similar script.
Starting pitcher graduate student left-hander Tony Neubeck’s recent struggles continued as he allowed five earned runs and walked four Cornhusker batters in 3.2 innings. His ERA rose from 1.69 to 4.50 over his last three appearances.
Indiana fell behind 5-0 but rallied for three runs in the sixth inning and one in the seventh. Ten Oever hit the first home run of his collegiate career, a three-run opposite field blast in the sixth.
However, junior right-handed pitcher Jackson Yarberry surrendered seven earned runs in the bottom of the seventh inning. Yarberry's ERA jumped from 8.53 to 11.93 after his 11th appearance of the season.
The Cornhuskers hit three RBI singles and a three-run home run to blow the game open. Indiana scored three runs in the eighth, two on walks, to bring the final score to 12-7.
Indiana scored two runs in the first inning Sunday but only collected two hits between the second and fifth innings. The Hoosiers didn’t plate another until the sixth, when freshman infielder Landen Fry hit his first collegiate home run.
Nebraska led 4-3 heading into the seventh, but the Cornhuskers put up eight runs in the bottom of the seventh, pulling away from the Hoosiers.
Graduate right-handed pitcher Gavin Seebold struggled in relief. He was one of Indiana’s higher leverage arms up out of the bullpen but gave up eight hits and five earned runs against Nebraska in 3.1 innings, raising his ERA to 3.81. He received the loss, falling to 1-2 this year.
Graduate left-handed pitcher Conner Linn relieved Seebold but allowed a grand slam home run to Nebraska senior infielder Dylan Carey with two outs. Linn's ERA now sits at 7.64 through 17.2 innings pitched.
Indiana will look to get off to a faster start offensively and maintain pitching stability through the middle innings Tuesday night against the University of Evansville. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. eastern timeEDT in German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium.
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.
