Hoosiers fall to Miami

The baseball team lost their fifth non-conference game of the season Wednesday, falling to the Miami Redhawks in Oxford, Ohio. Miami ripped off eight runs in the first three innings of play off of freshman Austin Rhoads and sophomore Brian Lortz to cruise to an 8-5 win. \nAfter a scoreless Hoosier first, senior Michael Carlin began the scoring barrage for the Redhawks in their half of the inning with a one out, two-run blast to center field. \nIU proceeded to go one-two-three in its next frame, and Miami came out firing again. MU's three-run second was highlighted by senior David Cook's two-run bomb, and after two innings the Redhawks owned a 5-0 advantage.\nIU coach Bob Morgan brought in Lortz in the third to stop the bleeding, but the sophomore proceeded to allow three more runs on three hits. Carlin was once again a thorn in the side of Hoosier pitchers with an RBI single in the inning. The senior clean-up hitter finished two-for-four with three runs batted in and two runs scored.\nThe Hoosiers mounted a small comeback with three runs in the sixth and one more in the eighth, but it wasn't enough to eclipse the early Redhawk lead. Senior Kenny Marrs continued to be productive the lead-off spot, providing three hits in four at-bats while junior Ryan Donley went two-for-four with a home run and two RBIs.\nDespite Wednesday's loss the Hoosiers have been an impressive 17-4 against non-conference foes with their most recent win coming this past Tuesday against Taylor.\nIU's 18-0 demolition of the Trojans was highlighted by eight stolen bases and footnoted with 10 Trojan errors. Freshmen Troy Ragle and Dan Pezley combined for the two-hit shutout.\nWith the loss to Miami, the Hoosiers now stand at 26-12 overall and 9-7 in the Big Ten, a mark which places them third in the conference behind Ohio State and Minnesota. The league-leading Golden Gophers come to town this weekend for a four game series.\nGame one is slated for a 3 p.m. start Friday with a double-header beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday. The series wraps up at Sembower Field Sunday at 3 p.m.