Hoosier soccer back in national conversation
Indiana men’s soccer is a staple for consistency in the college ranks.
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Indiana men’s soccer is a staple for consistency in the college ranks.
The bagel streak has resumed after the IU men’s soccer team tied the Butler Bulldogs 0-0 Wednesday.
Senior Patrick Doody drilled a corner kick into the box with 12 seconds left and IU down a goal.
The IU men’s soccer team wants to keep the bagels coming.
The IU hockey program could use some extra cash and is hoping someone like Mark Cuban will have some to spare for a new arena, said players on the division three team.
By Andrew Vailliencourt
As the lights went out, and the fireworks started shooting off on Friday night, the IU men’s soccer team gathered in the center of Jerry Yeagly field seemingly pleased after coming to a draw with No. 9 Georgetown, 1-1.
Each of the past two years, one team from the Addias/IU Credit Union Classic has advanced to the College Cup final. This year, IU is looking to be that team.
After falling to Xavier on Tuesday in the team’s first exhibition match, the IU men’s soccer team came back in a big way, toppling the No. 6 Washington Huskies 1-0.
It’s hard to think of something more representative of IU than candy-striped pants.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU baseball players remember the brawl that occurred the last time IU and Purdue met, a game in 2012. Junior pitcher Luke Harrison said the Hoosiers wanted to put Purdue in its place this season after Purdue had beaten the Hoosiers last year. Other players echoed similar thoughts, saying they wanted to make it known who was the best team in the state of Indiana.This weekend the Hoosiers got their revenge, sweeping the Boilermakers. They took the first game 6-0, the second game 7-3 and the third 12-3.No. 15 IU improved to 32-12, 16-2 on the season, while Purdue dropped to 12-32, 5-13. The Hoosiers have a three-game lead over both Nebraska and Illinois for first place in the Big Ten.“We just don’t look at it like it’s Purdue,” IU Coach Tracy Smith said. “It’s another team in the Big Ten and I thought we handled what we needed to handle this weekend to keep ourselves in contention to nail down a championship.”With the sweep, the Hoosiers have now won 20 of their last 22 games.On Friday, senior pitcher Joey DeNato picked up his 10th win of the season. He lowered his ERA to 2.06 with the shutout.Sophomore pitcher Christian Morris started and got the win Saturday, his third start of the season. His ERA dropped to 2.25 after allowing only one hit in five and a third innings.Senior pitcher Brian Korte went 2-0 with the win Sunday, pitching five scoreless innings to lower his ERA to 1.78.“The weather, the atmosphere, the whole old school thing, it was pretty cool,” Korte said. “Looking back I’ll definitely remember this game.”IU had an old school theme for Sunday’s game. The team wore its throwback uniforms, hired an organ player and the umpires were dressed in old fashioned uniforms.The players put on a show for two record-setting crowds, with 3,661 attending the game Saturday and 3,862 Sunday setting the all-time record for an IU baseball game, breaking Saturday’s record. The series marked the first time IU has drawn more than 3,000 fans in each game of a three-game series.“We are proud of that,” Smith said. “This is what we thought it could be. I love that we give the people of Bloomington and the surrounding community, and maybe other people drove in from greater distances, something to enjoy at this time of year. I was very excited to see that, and it’s nice that we have the support.”The Hoosier offense was firing on all cylinders yet again, with 25 runs and 42 hits in the series.Senior third baseman Dustin DeMuth played a great game Sunday, going 3-for-3 with two doubles and six RBIs to go along with a walk. He boosted his batting average to .381, the highest on the team.“I think everyone was locked in today,” DeMuth said. “We wanted to come out and get the sweep, especially against Purdue. I thought we got off to a good start.”Junior catcher Kyle Schwarber also had a good series, with seven hits, two of them doubles and one a rocket of a home run, to increase his average to .348.“I got some pretty good barrel on (the home run),” Schwarber said. “It was one you just watch.”The Hoosiers now have seven of their nine starters hitting at least .298.Sophomore pitcher Will Coursen-Carr, who was an important part of last year’s team, has struggled this season and came in to pitch in relief Sunday. He was pulled after hitting a batter and walking the next on four pitches.“We want to get him on track,” Smith said. “He is one of the best pitchers in this conference, whether he believes it or not. He’s just has to get his confidence back.”With finals this week, IU does not have a midweek game. The team will travel to Penn State this weekend.Schwarber said in his freshman year, when they played at Sembower, there were probably 50 to 100 spectators.“Now you have over 3,000,” Schwarber said. “It’s great to have people looking forward to coming to watch baseball and cheering us on. It adds an extra element to the game.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The last time IU played Purdue, a brawl ensued.It was the Big Ten championship game in 2012, and it all started with a violent ninth inning slide into then shortstop Michael Basil who was covering third base after a wild throw went into the outfield. Basil took exception, and the dugouts cleared.After the dust settled, Purdue came away with a 6-5 win. This weekend, the Boilermakers (12-29, 5-10) travel to Bloomington where they will face the No. 15 Hoosiers (29-12, 13-2) in a three-game series at Bart Kaufman Field.The players from that IU team haven’t forgotten about what happened last time.“There’s only a few guys on the team now that were actually there for the championship game, I think maybe half the team,” junior pitcher Luke Harrison said. “I think now we have the ability to come out and put them in their place a little bit and give it to them.”IU Coach Tracy Smith said he doesn’t believe this weekend is bigger than any other.“It’s not big because it’s Purdue,” Smith said. “I just do not get caught up in all that garbage. It’s big because we’re competing for a conference championship, we’re competing for a national seed, and I don’t care if it was Purdue or anyone else coming in here, we want to take care of business at home.”Smith said he expects large crowds this weekend and wants to give the fans a worthy performance on the field. He has maintained his goal of getting a national seed and with a strong finish, experts Kendall Rogers of perfectgame.org and Aaron Fitt of baseballamerica.com, say that is very possible.“I don’t give anyone that much credit,” Smith said. “It’s irrelevant to me because we play 56 games. If you get all emotional and jacked up for somebody, then you set yourself up to fail.”IU is coming off a 16-1 victory against Smith’s alma mater, Miami Ohio, where they put up the most runs and hits (20) that they have had all year.“With what happened last time I think it makes it even more exciting,” junior outfielder Will Nolden said. “We want to go out there and show them who the best team in Indiana is.”The Hoosiers will start senior Joey DeNato on the mound on Friday. He is 9-1 with a 2.26 ERA on the season. He will be followed Saturday by sophomore Christian Morris who is 2-3 with a 2.47 ERA. Senior Brian Korte, who is 1-0 with a 2.49 ERA, will take the hill Sunday.“I’d be lying to you if I said the guys aren’t going to remember how that all went down,” Smith said. “I don’t anticipate a mental let down from our team.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Today, IU Coach Tracy Smith returns to his old stomping ground in Oxford, Ohio, home of the Miami University Redhawks. Smith was the team’s head coach for nine years, from 1997-2005, and led the Redhawks to eight straight 30-win seasons, their winningest season in program history and two NCAA regionals.Smith played baseball all four years and graduated with a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Miami. He also met his wife, Jaime, in Oxford.Now, Smith looks to beat the team he called home for so many years.“I love that place,” Smith said of his alma mater. “It’s a big part of my life, but I don’t see it as anything other than it’s another ballgame for us.”IU (28-12, 13-2), Smith’s home for the past nine seasons, takes on Miami (20-23, 10-8 MAC). Miami is 7-3 in its last 10 games and is coming off a series win against the Toledo Rockets.“I don’t want to say it’s a must-win,” Smith said. “It’s a must-play-well because I think if we play well, more often times than not we are going to come out on top.”The players recognize that Miami is an important game and are aware that it is a homecoming game for their coach, junior relief pitcher Luke Harrison said.“It’s huge,” Harrison said. “We play Miami every year, so it’s always fun to come back and see them. We see similar faces, so it’s always fun to compete.”A game between IU and Miami was scheduled in Bloomington earlier this season, but was canceled due to rain. No make-up date has been scheduled as of today.Sophomore lefty Sullivan Stadler will start on the mound for the Hoosiers. He is 1-1 with a 4.15 ERA this season.He stepped in as the fourth starter after the pitching staff suffered some injuries, and he has impressed his teammates.“He’s been phenomenal,” sophomore pitcher Christian Morris said of Stadler. “He attacks the strike zone, he gets people out, and when he’s on, he is really fun to watch.”Smith has said all year that attacking the strike zone and throwing strikes are the way to get on the mound. He said Stadler has done a good job of that and will continue to get opportunities.Smith said he is looking for Stadler to be able to keep locating his pitches and keep using secondary pitches for strikes.The starting rotation looks to be set for now with senior Joey DeNato, Morris, senior Brian Korte and Stadler. IU has a 2.51 ERA, good for the lowest in the Big Ten. Sophomore Will Coursen-Carr will still have a chance to earn his spot back, but his command and mindset haven’t been where it needs to be, Smith said.Coursen-Carr, a native of Fort Wayne, was slated to be a weekend starter at the beginning of the season, has struggled and is now working from the bullpen.“Our pitchers have been great all year,” junior Will Nolden said. “We’re just looking for another solid performance. Hopefully our bats will stay hot like they’ve been.”The Hoosiers have won 16 of their past 18 games and are coming off of a series win against Illinois, who is tied with Nebraska for second place in the Big Ten at 10-5. IU has a three-game lead on both teams. The three teams both have nine conference games remaining.“We don’t want to have any letdowns,” Morris said. “We just want to make sure we take care of business and play our game.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Charlie Deacon finds himself at home on the track. His months of training have paid off. He feels the rush as he hops on his bike and starts pedaling. The wind screams in his ears. His nose runs. His goggles protect his eyes from watering. This is it. His release.He is able to shut out external disturbances. Nothing else matters but this ride.He is careful not to touch tires with the rider in front of him, as he doesn’t want to crash and cause a massive pileup. His tunnel vision lets him see his tire, handlebars and the bikes in front of him. He can smell the sweat from the other riders and hear the people in the bleachers cheering — but does not see them as he makes his turn on the track.Cycling for Deacon isn’t just a hobby. It’s his passion.When the white Star of America shuttle bus pulled in the circle drive at the Eigenmann Residence Center, the hot August sun beat down on the British exchange student as he stepped onto Indiana soil for the first time.He carried no bags and hadn’t showered or charged his phone or laptop for a day. A delay at the airport in Chicago caused his luggage to be put on another flight to Indianapolis, and with the help of a map, he found his way to Wright Quad.This was to be his home for the next ten months, and the Wright Cycling team would soon give him his own special place on campus.“It was scary,” Deacon said. “I was astounded at the size of this place. My campus (University of Kent) at home is only 200 acres.”He discovered IU through his friend Ben Richardson, whom he met last year when Richardson was an exchange student at the University of Kent. Richardson spoke highly of IU, and it was enough to convince Deacon to put IU on the list of his top three American schools at which to study.The two of them cycled together on the University of Kent cycling team, where their friendship blossomed.After meeting through club social events, Deacon and Richardson participated in the Land’s End challenge in the U.K., an event in which team of cyclists ride from the northernmost point of Scotland to the southern point of England in two weeks.The two wanted to continue cycling this year, and got their chance when they learned of the Wright Cycling team for the Little 500.“I’ve been cycling for years,” Deacon said. “I knew they did some cycling here, but I had no idea how big it was.”He got his first road bike from his older sister when he was 15. During year 12 in school, he got a job at Waitrose supermarket and received a bonus of 900 pounds, which he used to pay for his own new bike.After participating in the fall races, Deacon and Richardson were noticed by the Wright Cycling team who sent out an email to Richardson asking if they were interested in joining the team. “I remember getting the first email from my coach with our schedule and I was like, ‘Dang, that’s a lot,’” Deacon said. “I was used to doing maybe one or two rides a week.”The team’s coach, Chris Wojtowich, a member of Cutters from 1997-2000 and two-time Little 500 champion, is in his first year coaching the Wright Cycling team. He has been the coach of the Teter women’s team for 10 years, and was asked to coach the Wright team by junior RJ Thomas, whose sister is on the Teter team.“Charlie is more laid back than a lot of us, he likes to still have fun,” Wojtowich said. “I like his emails because I can understand his English better. When I talk to him on the phone it’s like, ‘What was that?’ He is super British.”Deacon uses what his teammates call Britishisms, or slang that is only used in England, and has caught several people off guard with sayings he considers to be normal. “It’s a little bit of cultural exchange,” team member and senior Elliot Layden said. “We get a lot of Britishisms, and we get some vocabulary that we don’t know. We make fun of him at times and jest, but it’s great having him.”The most common Britishism is “bloody knackered,” meaning very tired.“I’ll just say things that people just don’t understand,” Deacon said. “I’ll say I’m bloody knackered, and people just crack up.”When he got to the United States, Deacon decided to buy another bike instead of paying all the fees to ship his bike over from his home in a town near Brighton, England.“I don’t like to live an expensive lifestyle,” Deacon said. “But buying that bike put me in the hole big time, right in the beginning of the year.”To help, he got a job in Wright Food Court, which consumes a lot of his time but enables him to travel and get items for cycling.The past two years, the Wright Cycling team has qualified in the 30s and finished 10th and 11th. They are hoping to move up and finish in the top five this year after qualifying 18th. Their top team finished 8th in team pursuit.“We really have the potential to do well,” Deacon said. “I think we can definitely get top five, if not win it. The plan is to peak on race day.”Deacon finished third on the team of seven riders in time trials, and has caught the attention of his teammates and his coach.“Just the last three weeks, he’s taken it up another level,” Wojtowich said. “He did really well in both individual time trials and in Miss-N-Out. Real impressive spring for him.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The top team in the Big Ten will play the second place team this weekend when IU travels to Illinois.The Hoosiers (26-11, 11-1) boast the top record in the conference and will look to add to their five game winning streak. Illinois (22-15, 9-3) has taken advantage of a weak conference schedule and climbed ahead of Nebraska, which is third in the Big Ten at 8-4.“You can’t really be disappointed with how we’ve been playing,” IU junior closer Scott Effross said. “We’ve been throwing pretty well from top to bottom and getting great starts from our starters.”The Fighting Illini’s opponents in conference play — Michigan, Penn State, Purdue, and Northwestern — have combined for a record of 57-94-1 overall.They have also played several non-conference teams that the Hoosiers have faced, Western Kentucky, Indiana State and Xavier, and gone 4-4 against them, while IU went 3-1.Illinois has little power as a team, with only nine home runs, but has four starters hitting above .300. The series, which runs Friday through Sunday, is an important one, said IU ace Joey DeNato.“The one and two seeds are going at it this weekend, so it’s a big weekend for us,” DeNato said. “We’re just going to stick to our game plan, it’s been working for us for the past month or two. We’re not going to overlook them and will just play our baseball.”IU defeated Ball State 10-1 Wednesday. Illinois comes off of a loss to Missouri at the home of the St. Louis Cardinals, Busch Stadium.“They’re always a good hitting team,” DeNato said. “They scrap it around. They also have a lot of good pitchers.” DeNato will start on the mound on Friday for IU. He is 8-1 with a 2.12 ERA this season. Sophomore Christian Morris will pitch Saturday. He is 2-2 with a 2.49 ERA in eight starts this year. Senior Brian Korte is expected to start on Sunday after starting two games last week. He stepped up to help the team after injuries created problems in the pitching staff. He is 0-0 with a 1.77 ERA this year. Sunday would mark his fourth start of the season.“It starts all the way back in the fall when we condition our arms,” Effross said. “Brian Korte and Luke Harrison are great pitchers, and it’s just a credit to how they work every day.”The bullpen has performed well lately, and a number of guys are making an impact, IU Coach Tracy Smith said. “I’m just not an excuse maker,” Smith said. “I make that clear with these guys, that regardless of your role, I haven’t found yet where the mound distance changes from 60 feet 6 inches. You still have to go out and throw strikes, and we have guys who’ve done that.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>It was a 1-1 game heading into the bottom of the sixth inning Wednesday when Ball State traveled to Bloomington to play IU. By the end of the sixth, junior catcher Brad Hartong had five RBIs, and IU held a 10-1 lead.It was more than enough to seal the 10-1 win as IU improved to 26-11.“I got a lot of good hitters in front of me and behind me,” Hartong said. “Guys were getting on and when I came up I didn’t try to do too much and just hit the ball and it worked out.”Hartong drilled a 3-run home run to left field, and after the Hoosiers batted around, came up and drove in two more on a single in the big sixth inning.“I don’t want to count on innings like that a lot,” IU Coach Tracy Smith said. “For the most part, I was not pleased with our at-bats all night. I thought we gave a lot of them away.” IU had just two hits before the sixth, both coming off the bat of junior infielder Chad Clark.Sophomore Sullivan Stadler started on the mound for IU and pitched five innings, giving up one run on three hits with six strikeouts and just one walk.“Getting that first pitch fastball over for a strike worked out,” Stadler said. “My strikeout pitch was my curveball.”His performance was important for a team that has struggled to find a consistent fourth starter after sophomore Kyle Hart went down to injury for the season. “I thought (Stadler’s) breaking ball was very effective today,” Smith said. “If you can get that type of start in the midweek, and with the guys we have backing him up we are going to be in every ball game. I was very, very pleased with him today.”IU kicked off the scoring in the first inning on an odd turn of events. Junior designated hitter Scott Donley struck out, but the ball got by the Cardinal catcher, allowing Donley to reach base.Junior first baseman Sam Travis was on first and went to third on the play and came around to score after the throw to third went into left field.Ball State senior Kyle Raleigh hit a rocket of a home run in the second inning to tie the game, but the IU offense came alive in the sixth.IU junior Kyle Schwarber, senior third baseman Dustin DeMuth, sophomore infielder Brian Wilhite and junior outfielder Ricky Alfonso each had an RBI in the inning to complement Hartong.“If you put together good at-bats and consistent at-bats, your hits are going to fall,” Smith said.Senior Clay Manering started and threw three innings for the Cardinals, allowing one run on one hit and three strikeouts. The Cardinals’ bullpen gave up the damage. The Hoosiers are atop the Big Ten standings and will face the second place team in the conference, Illinois, this weekend.“Where we are sitting with the RPI nationally, every game is important.” Smith said.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Following a sweep at home this past weekend against Michigan State, the IU baseball team looks to continue its hot play when it plays host to Ball State Wednesday.IU (25-11, 11-1) is in first place in the Big Ten, two games over Illinois, who the Hoosiers face this weekend. But first they must play a Cardinals team that beat them in Bloomington last year.“We have some unfinished business with these guys,” IU junior catcher Kyle Schwarber said. “We can’t take them lightly. They aren’t going to just roll over for us. We’re going to take care of business.”The Hoosiers are 13-1 in their last 14 games and are looking to get in position to hold a regional at Bart Kaufman Field, a goal IU Coach Tracy Smith talked about all year.But IU is not the only team on a hot streak right now. Ball State (27-13, 11-4) has won 17 of their past 22 games.Sophomore left-hander Sullivan Stadler will start on the mound for IU. He is 1-1 with a 5.11 ERA this season. He will look to grab the fourth spot in the rotation, which has become open because of inconsistency from sophomore Will Coursen-Carr.“You want to pitch at Indiana University, you have to throw strikes and be competitive in the zone,” Smith said. “I expect to see that out of (Stadler) tomorrow.” Last week, senior Brian Korte started in the midweek game as well as pitching the Sunday game against Michigan State. Korte has impressed the coaching staff and seems to have a lock on the number three spot in the rotation after sophomore Kyle Hart was ruled out for the season with a torn UCL. Smith gave credit to his pitching coach for his staff’s resilience. “I don’t know how many programs could overcome losing certainly two pitchers out of your top five from last year,” Smith said. “(Pitching) Coach Higelin has done a fantastic job, he’s a very positive guy and keeps these guys on track physically and mentally.”The Hoosiers’ ninth-year coach said despite his team’s hot streak, it will continue to take every game seriously. “We’re not overlooking Ball State,” Smith said. “It isn’t going to happen. This is a very mature team. We don’t play the opponent, we just try to take one game at a time.”The Hoosiers’ offense is led by Schwarber, who is batting .338 with six home runs and 21 RBIs, junior first baseman Sam Travis who is hitting .362 with five home runs and 37 RBIs, and senior third baseman Dustin DeMuth, who has a team-high batting average of .371 with five home runs and 15 RBIs. “(DeMuth is) a guy that can hit doubles, hit home runs,” Schwarber said. “He’s a guy we need in the lineup every day, and he takes a really mature approach at the plate and doesn’t give any at-bats away.”Junior designated hitter Scott Donley has also come alive after a slow start and is batting .301 with four home runs and 31 RBIs.The Cardinals have some power of their own, as they have combined for 31 home runs as a team, more than the 25 by the Hoosiers. Seven of these home runs are from senior Sean Godfry.“We are just going to play our baseball,” senior Joey DeNato said. “Hopefully it works out.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>As of this weekend, senior ace Joey Denato is the winningest pitcher in IU history.DeNato notched his 31st career win with the Hoosiers’ 11-1 win Friday in a three-game series against the Morehead State Eagles.“It feels good,” he said. “I know it wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for my teammates. Every single year that I’ve been here, we’ve had guys crushing the ball and the bullpen coming in behind me to shut it down.”IU Coach Tracy Smith said DeNato is always a competitor.“It’s a great thing,” Smith said. “I still go back to the day when I recruited that guy, and to sit here now almost four years later and think that he sits atop the record books at Indiana University is an awesome thing, and I’m very proud of him.“There’s a lot of season left to go, so he’s going to make it hard on somebody to get him in the future, I can tell you that.”After pounding the Eagles in the first two games of the series, the IU baseball team lost the third game of the series 8-7. The loss stopped a nine-game winning streak for the Hoosiers, whose last loss came to Indiana State on March 26. “I thought we struck some balls hard and right at guys,” Smith said. “They just didn’t fall today. I still thought we had nice at-bats, just didn’t get anything to show out of it.”Sophomore Will Coursen-Carr started for IU but only went one inning after showing almost no control on the mound.He was replaced by sophomore Evan Bell, who also showed little control of his pitches. He threw several wild pitches, one of which let in a run.Coursen-Carr and Bell combined to give up five runs in the second inning.Smith said he thinks Coursen-Carr is struggling mentally, and that the pitcher needs to get his confidence back in order to pitch well.“When you aren’t aggressive and you’re not confident, it’s very visible, and it exposes a lot of things,” Smith said.With sophomore starter Kyle Hart out indefinitely with a torn ulnar collateral ligament, the Hoosiers are still seeking a rotation that works for them after DeNato and sophomore Christian Morris.Smith said he hoped Coursen-Carr would take the third weekend spot, and sophomore Sullivan Stradler could pitch the weekday game, but the coach said he isn’t sure what he will do moving forward.Junior Luke Harrison kept the game close until the eighth, when the Eagles pushed across three more runs to make it 8-3.The IU offense wasn’t able to get hits with runners in scoring position until the ninth, when junior designated hitter-outfielder Scott Donley hit a grand slam to bring IU within one.“I talked to my brother,” Donley said. “He just told me a few things not to get negative and told me a few minor adjustments in my swing, and it’s been working out.”Hoosiers’ junior first baseman Sam Travis was frustrated after Sunday’s loss, he said, especially because of Eagles’ starting pitcher Willie Sligh.“He was just getting away with a lot of pitches,” Travis said. “He wasn’t making good pitches. We were putting good swings on it. He wasn’t very good. He got away with one.”IU showed off its power in the series, hitting five home runs and 40 hits in the three games.Travis smashed two home runs in the first game, including one that drilled the scoreboard in left field. Senior third baseman Dustin DeMuth, junior catcher Kyle Schwarber and Donley hit the others.“Sometimes things just don’t go your way,” Travis said. “They’ve been going our way for what, 10 games now? We just can’t change anything, can’t put our heads down, and keep going.”DeMuth is now hitting .404 on the year, leading the team, while Travis is hitting .370. “Everyone’s enjoying being out in the field,” Schwarber said. “I can guarantee you that no one on this team says they’re not having the time of their life right now, because we are.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU junior first baseman Sam Travis was facing a 3-2 count during the fourth inning of a 6-1 game when he got a curveball. “I’d seen all of his pitches,” Travis said. “I knew he wasn’t going to beat me.” The next thing everyone saw was the baseball flying into the scoreboard in deep left field for a monster two-run home run - his second of the game. Travis trotted around the bases to a chorus of cheers from fans who packed Bart Kaufman Stadium Friday to see the IU baseball team take on Morehead State. “It’s unbelieveable,” IU senior third baseman Dustin DeMuth said. “(Travis) is one of the greatest hitters in college baseball. When he’s firing on all cylinders it’s hard to get him out. He got a mistake and damaged it.” The fans didn’t leave disappointed as the No. 23 Hoosiers improved to 20-10 on the year with a 13-1 smashing of the Eagles (16-17). It was the team’s eighth straight victory. Travis’ home runs were his fourth and fifth of the season, and he added a double to give him 6 RBIs on the night. He is now batting .395 on the year with five homers and 35 RBIs. “He is locked in,” IU Coach Tracy Smith said. “That at-bat was probably one of the best at-bats I’ve seen in a long time, because when you’re fouling off pitches and fouling off pitches and then hit a ball the way he did, that was pretty impressive.”His offensive output was more than enough for senior IU starting pitcher Joey DeNato, who had a record setting night. Denato picked up his seventh win of the season, and 31st of his career - an IU record. He went five innings, giving up one run on five hits, while striking out four.“It feels good,” DeNato said. “I know it wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for my teammates. Every single year that I’ve been here, we’ve had guys crushing the ball and the bullpen coming in behind me to shut it down.”Smith said DeNato is a competitor and always gives his best effort when he’s on the field.“It’s a great thing,” Smith said. “I still go back to the day when I recruited that guy and to sit here now almost four years later and think that he sits atop the record books at Indiana University is an awesome thing, and I’m very proud of him. There’s a lot of season left to go, so he’s going to make it hard on somebody to get him in the future I can tell you that.” DeMuth also continued his strong play going 3-for-3 with a home run, improving his season average to .402. The home run was his fifth of the year, and he now has 15 RBIs. “To have him,” Smith said. “Arguably one of the best hitters in the country, sitting in the middle to end of your order is a nice luxury.” IU will play Morehead State again Saturday at 2:05 p.m. at Bart Kaufman Field. “Everyone’s enjoying being out in the field,” IU junior catcher Kyle Schwarber said. “I can guarantee you that no one on this team says they’re not having the time of their life right now because we are.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The IU baseball team will look to continue its seven-game winning streak when it faces off against Morehead State (16-16, 7-8) this weekend in a three-game series. IU is coming off a win against Indiana State on Wednesday, and back-to-back sweeps of Ohio State and Iowa.Senior left-hander Joey DeNato will be the starting pitcher for the Hoosiers in the first game of the series on Friday. He is 6-1 with a 2.49 ERA on the season, leading the team in strikeouts and innings pitched with 37 and 50.2, respectively. It will mark his ninth start of the year.“We’re going to stay with our same weekend rotation,” IU Coach Tracy Smith said. “I think we have a nice rhythm going right now, and I think that’s important.”Sophomore right-hander Christian Morris is expected to start for IU in game two at 2:05 p.m. Saturday. He is 1-2 with a 2.27 ERA on the year. It will be his seventh start of the year and ninth appearance.Game three will start at 1:05 p.m. Sunday. Sophomore Will Coursen-Carr is expected to start on the mound for the Hoosiers. He is 2-2 with a 3.03 ERA this season. It will be his 11th appearance and seventh start of the season.“Morehead State is going to come in here and be ready to go,” Smith said. “They knocked off Kentucky. We are not taking them lightly. We’re going to treat it like a Big Ten weekend, because I think the stakes we’re playing for are too high.”IU (19-10, 8-1) has seen their offense explode over the seven-game winning streak. Junior first baseman Sam Travis is batting .383 with three home runs and 29 RBIs. Junior catcher Kyle Schwarber is batting .333 with five home runs and 16 RBIs and senior third baseman Dustin DeMuth, who turned down an offer from the Minnesota Twins after being taken in the eighth round of the Major League Baseball draft last summer, is batting .384 with 4 home runs and 13 RBIs.“(DeMuth) has been, to me, the most consistent player that we’ve had this year,” Smith said. “I have been so impressed by not just how he’s playing, but also his leadership and the stuff he’s bringing to the field. That dude is playing like a big leaguer right now. He’s had a great career here, but I’ve never said that about him before, and it’s a very high compliment to him that he has raised his game to another level.”The series will be the second, third and fourth game during a nine-game home stand at Bart Kaufman Field. Morehead State is led by junior outfielder Brandon Rawe, who is batting .426 with five home runs and 29 RBIs.“Morehead State is a very good opponent,” IU redshirt freshman Thomas Belcher said. “They beat Kentucky pretty handily, and we aren’t going to underestimate them under any circumstance whatsoever. We just have to piece together hits and have to perform as a pitching staff.”