After putting up 21 runs and eight home runs against Maryland over the weekend, Indiana baseball continued its offensive outburst Tuesday and Wednesday night.
The Cream and Crimson beat Indiana State University 17-12 during a slugfest Tuesday inside Bob Warn Field at Sycamore Stadium in Terre Haute. They then defeated the University of Evansville 8-6 on Wednesday at Bart Kaufman Field in Bloomington.
Indiana improved to 16-21 overall after the pair of midweek victories.
The Hoosiers fell behind 5-0 against the Sycamores on Tuesday, but responded with 15 unanswered runs from the second through the sixth inning to take a lead they wouldn’t surrender.
Indiana slugged six home runs in the victory, continuing the power surge that has defined its recent stretch of play.
The offensive explosion was led by sophomore left-handed pitcher/outfielder Caleb Koskie, who continued his hot stretch at the plate.
Koskie launched a pair of home runs in the top of the fourth and fifth innings Tuesday, providing a spark during Indiana’s comeback. He batted 4 for 5 with 5 RBIs and two walks.
The Excelsior, Minnesota, native extended his hitting streak to 18 games Wednesday night, cementing his role as one of the lineup’s most consistent contributors. Since 2010, only Alex Dickerson has had a longer hitting streak — 21 games — than Koskie.
Koskie is now batting a team-best .385 with six home runs and 33 RBIs through 109 at-bats. Before his hitting streak that began during a 7-6 loss in Oregon on March 15, the 6-foot sophomore was hitting .302 in 43 at-bats.
Indiana’s recent offensive success hasn’t come out of nowhere. Head coach Jeff Mercer said postgame the growth is tied to the young roster beginning to settle in and better understand opposing pitching throughout the year.
“We figured it would take some time for us to be able to produce offensively starting so many young and new guys,” Mercer said postgame. “The last several weeks, we’ve had enough information, data and video on to be able to really hone in on what zones to cover.”
Koskie pointed to the adjustment of being more disciplined in his own game, emphasizing a more aggressive but controlled mindset at the plate.
“I’ve been seeing the ball well… just being on a fastball timing consistently,” Koskie said. “I’m aggressive early and get my hits early. That’s the difference between this year and last year. Last year, I was patient and found myself in bad counts.”
Power has also become a defining element of Indiana’s offense. The Hoosiers slugged nine total home runs in the past two games, six at Indiana State and three against Evansville.
“You’re going to have to slug a little bit; that’s helped us create separation,” Mercer said. “Today’s game was a perfect example. We were able to extend things out, and when things got hairy a little late, we were able to stay in and win the game. In the past, we haven’t had that; that’s directly attributed to slugging.”
That ability to build and maintain a lead proved important in both midweek games.
After scoring 17 runs Tuesday, Indiana again relied on timely hitting against Evansville on Wednesday. While the Hoosiers didn’t come close to matching the previous night’s run total, they generated enough early offense to close out the 8-6 win despite the Purple Aces scoring three runs in the top of the ninth inning.
Run support also had a noticeable impact on Indiana’s pitching staff Wednesday.
For graduate student left-handed pitcher Conner Linn, the offense building the lead helped him ease into his start.
The southpaw struck out a season-best seven batters and allowed one hit in five scoreless innings pitched. It was the longest start by a pitcher in a midweek game since David Platt pitched five innings against the University of Cincinnati in 2020.
“I felt a lot of support,” Linn said. “It’s a lot easier pitching when you have the lead, obviously, and our guys came out and were swinging it really well. It just made it easier out there on the mound.”
Ultimately, the recent surge could signal a turning point for a team that started the season searching for offensive consistency.
Indiana’s next contest is against Abilene Christian University. The Hoosiers will host the Wildcats in a three-game series that marks Indiana's first non-conference series at home. First pitch is at 6 p.m. Friday and the game will be streamed on Big Ten+.
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.
