Errors plentiful in 2 losses

The IU baseball team's first weekend of Big Ten play was highlighted by diving catches, home runs, errors and heavy winds. Unfortunately for the Hoosiers, not many of these worked in their favor.\nIU kicked off a four-game series against the Northwestern Wildcats Saturday and began the Big Ten season with a victory. IU coach Bob Morgan said he was pleased with his team's performance but knew the Hoosiers had their work cut out for them.\n"We had to really stay with them and come right out after them," Morgan said. "We need to play every pitch in these games."\nJunior first baseman Ryan Parker paced the Hoosier offense with three hits and four RBIs in the first game of the series, while senior right fielder Joe Kemp added three RBIs and junior left fielder Zach Boswell added two. The unpredictable wind on Sembower Field posed a problem for players on both sides throughout the weekend, including junior second baseman Jay Brant.\n"The ball would get up there and just start swirling around because of the wind," Brant said. "We couldn't even have on-field batting practice before the game."\nDespite the winds, the Hoosiers won the first game 12-9 behind a strong outing from junior right-hander Josh Lewis.\n"We took the win, but the defense was shaky," Boswell said. "We were able to jump on them early, but we need to be able to capitalize."\nThe two teams met again in a doubleheader Sunday. Once again there was heavy run production; however, the Hoosiers were unable to come away with a win, losing 12-9 and 10-6, respectively. Junior center fielder Reggie Watson tallied five hits in the first game of the doubleheader, including his fifth triple of the season. However, Watson and the other Hoosier batsmen were unable to match the run production of the Wildcats in either game. IU had four errors in both games of the doubleheader, which allowed the Wildcats to jump ahead early and preserve the wins.\nOverall the Hoosier offense scored a combined 30 runs and tallied 37 hits during the weekend. \n"We're seeing a lot of fastballs," Brant said. "We need to just keep the bats going."\nThe two teams will conclude their series with the first pitch at 2 p.m. Monday at Sembower Field.\n-- Contact Staff Writer Matt Mattucci at mmattucc@indiana.edu.