Hoosier offense explodes in 19-8 victory against Grizzlies

The Franklin Grizzlies can always blame Tuesday's 19-8 loss on the rain.\nThrough three and a half innings of Tuesday's game, the IU baseball team had spotted the Grizzlies a 3-1 lead. Hoosier pitchers freshman Chris Behrens and sophomore Ryan Smith had already been pulled. Then, the clouds opened up, and the rain began to fall. Suddenly, the Grizzlies found themselves drenched by a barrage of Hoosier offense. \nIU came out in the bottom of the fourth inning and hit four consecutive singles to cut the lead to one. Sophomore Kevin O'Brien hit what should have been a double play ball, but Franklin second baseman Marty Bowling, a junior, overthrew first base, allowing O'Brien to take second while two Hoosier runs crossed the plate. \nIt was the first of many headaches for the Grizzlies. \nAfter junior Mark Minor walked, sophomore Brad DeStefano chipped a routine sacrifice bunt to advance the runners. But Franklin starting pitcher Josh Adams, a junior, slipped on the muddy Sembower Field and lost the play to first, loading the bases with just one out. Sophomore Nick Evans then drilled Adams for a two-run single. \nThat would be the last of Adams, but the Hoosiers were just getting started. New Franklin pitcher Dennis Dixon, a freshman, loaded the bases again on freshman Kevin Mahar's single, and walked home another run. Junior Eric Blakeley sent another run home with an RBI single. Designated hitter sophomore Joe Sadler nearly ended the inning with a soft double-play ball, but Bowling mishandled it, dropping another run and loading the bases. Dixon walked home another run, then got drilled by Minor for a two-run single. When the fourth inning was over, the Hoosiers had scored 12 runs on nine hits and three Grizzly errors. \nIt was almost as if the Grizzlies were trying to make the inning last long enough for the rain to take its course and end the game before it became official. But not even Mother Nature was on the Grizzlies' side.\n"The rain had a little effect, but we just started swinging in the fourth," DeStefano said. "We both had to play in the mud, but we just came out and nailed a couple of their pitchers."\nTwo hours, five innings and a brief lightning delay later, the Hoosiers had soundly beaten Division-III Franklin College. The Grizzlies committed seven errors along the way.\n"The game got a little sloppy because of the weather," coach Bob Morgan said. "We took advantage of a couple of their miscues and it just kind of snow-balled. That kind of put the game out of reach right there."\nThe win was important for a Hoosier team (18-17-1) that dropped four consecutive games to the Michigan Wolverines last week. It also gives the squad confidence as it embarks on a six-game road trip.\n"It's nice to win. Period," Morgan said. "But we definitely needed some positive results."\nAlthough there were numerous offensive heroes for the Hoosiers (11 players registered a hit), no one has more reason to celebrate than sophomore first baseman Michael Woodside. Woodside came off the bench and nailed a two-run homer that barely stayed clear of the left field pole; it was the first home run of his college career.\n"It's been a long time coming," Woodside said. "The funny thing is that everyone's been telling me to stay short and quick to the ball instead of trying to hit them long. Today I stayed short and quick to the ball and I hit a home run."\nSenior pitcher Nick Otte (6-2) got the win, despite being the third Hoosier pitcher and lasting just two innings. Otte was called out of the bullpen with the bases loaded in the top of the fourth. He retired three consecutive batters to silence the Grizzly threat.\n"We brought him in when the situation was 3-1 and we couldn't let them extend the lead," Morgan said of Otte, who had four strikeouts in his two innings of work. "He shut them down for an inning or two. We were concerned at that point and that's why we put him in."\n"How were we supposed to know we were going to have a 12-run inning"