Indiana softball did not secure a sweep but managed to win two out of three over Rutgers in its second Big Ten series of the season. Pitching was an integral part of both the two straight wins in the series as well as the loss in the rubber match.
In the first game of the series Friday, the Hoosiers’ pitching staff was dominant. Indiana gave up a mere two runs on two hits, and redshirt junior pitcher Taylor Hess earned the win.
Indiana’s offense helped out the arms on the mound Friday, as the Hoosiers’ offense scored 12 runs, which included home runs from senior outfielder Ellie Goins and senior catcher Avery Parker. Indiana had little trouble securing the 12-2 win in the opening game of the set.
Ninth-year Indiana head coach Shonda Stanton praised the way the rotation was able to control the game.
“Yeah, Hess was outstanding, she gave us a great start,” Stanton said. “I thought she was extremely efficient, and really good…worked different quadrants, great start out of her. And I thought Brooke [Mannon] did a good job coming in, slamming the door shut, and so it’s nice, on a day like that, where you can hit on all three phases of the game.”
Saturday was more of the same. Although the Hoosiers’ offense did not quite have the same type of offensive explosion that it experienced in Friday’s game, Indiana still put up six runs and the pitching rotation was once again phenomenal. Sophomore pitcher Ella Troutt gave up a home run in the first inning, but did not surrender another run. Indiana overtook the Scarlet Knights 6-1 and had the opportunity for a series sweep in the rubber match Sunday.
The series finale proved to be a marathon for both teams, but it didn’t start out that way. Indiana pounced on Rutgers’ pitching staff early, and the Hoosiers jumped out to an 8-0 lead through the first two innings. The Hoosiers’ arms on the mound were once again dominant.
In the third inning, Rutgers’ offense began to get to Indiana freshman starter Aubree Hooks, who gave up four earned runs and three hits in two innings before junior pitcher Brooke Mannon entered the game. Mannon pitched another two innings and gave up two hits and just one earned run. Hess followed and gave up two earned runs and two hits before Stanton put Troutt in the game.
Rutgers stormed back into the game and trailed 8-7 in the fourth inning. Troutt racked up nine strikeouts in Saturday’s game, but didn’t have the same kind of production Sunday. Troutt pitched the remaining 2.2 innings and gave up eight hits and seven earned runs, including a two-run home run from Rutgers sophomore infielder Addie Osborne as the Scarlet Knights took a 12-10 lead.
In the sixth inning, senior outfielder Cassidy Kettleman brought home an RBI sacrifice fly to cut the Hoosiers’ deficit to one run, but Troutt then gave up a two-run home run to Rutgers freshman infielder Rachel Millan that bumped the Scarlet Knights’ advantage back up to three runs.
And in the bottom of the seventh inning, despite Indiana getting a runner on base, Rutgers secured the remaining three outs to avoid the series sweep and hand Indiana its first loss since March 6.
In a game that featured a combined 28 base hits and eight home runs, Indiana’s pitching rotation gave up 15 hits and 14 earned runs to Rutgers’ offense. The Hoosiers only registered one strikeout in the game, which came in the top of the seventh inning.
Following Indiana’s 2-1 series victory over Rutgers, the Hoosiers will play Indiana University Indianapolis at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Andy Mohr Field.
Follow reporters Conor Banks (@Conorbanks06 and conbanks@iu.edu) and Joe Elms (@JoeElms1 and @jpelms@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana softball season.
