Six IU seniors will take Andy Mohr Field for the last time in their careers this weekend as IU plays host to No. 25 Ohio State for three games.
The Buckeyes (29-12-1, 11-5-1) mark the sixth different-ranked opponent the Hoosiers (24-22, 6-11) have played this season, but the Hoosiers have yet to secure a win against a ranked team.
Outfielders Katelyn Conenna, Michelle Huber, Shannon Cawley and Alyssa Rosati, and catchers Kelsey Dotson and Kassi Farmer will be celebrated at senior weekend during the series.
“I’m definitely excited, but it’s sad at the same time ,” Conenna said. “But I’m going to make the most of it, and I’m excited to play my last home games.”
Due to inclement weather in the forecast for Sunday, the two teams will play a doubleheader Friday, with games starting at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. The series finale is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon. A ceremony honoring the seniors will occur between Friday’s games.
IU is returning home for its first weekend series in Bloomington in three weeks after going 1-5 the last two weekends.
IU’s pitching has seen a return to solid form recently, holding opponents to a little more than four runs per game in the last seven contests.
Offensively, the Hoosiers have picked it up a bit as well, but they have struggled to turn hits into runs. Last weekend, IU collected 20 hits in the three games but scored just eight runs and left a combined 18 runners on base.
“We just need to get back to our basics and start scoring more runs,” Huber said. “We’ve been getting a lot of runners on, we’re just not getting them in.”
In the circle, Ohio State is led by junior pitchers Shelby Hursh and Lena Springer, who have combined to start 30 of the Buckeyes’ games this year and each own sub-3.00 ERAs.
Junior infielder Alex Bayne paces Ohio State on offense with a league-best 18 home runs. IU, on the other hand, has just 18 homers as a team. .
IU Coach Michelle Gardner said she hopes the games against Ohio State, which sits in fourth in the Big Ten standings, will be a good opportunity for IU to elevate its level of play as it prepares for the Big Ten tournament in two weeks.
“Obviously we’ve struggled over the past couple weeks, and my goal for them is to finish strong because there’s still a lot of really good things that could happen, and that’s what we’re focusing on,” Gardner said.
The Hoosiers are currently 11th in the Big Ten, and only the top 12 teams make the conference postseason tournament. The entire bottom half of the standings are in limbo right now, as just four games separate eighth to last place.
Gardner and the seniors acknowledged the difficulty of balancing the sentimental aspect of this weekend knowing that there are still important games to be played. She also hopes they can have an affect in the final home series of their careers.
“That’s a challenge every year, and so the bottom line for me is having an opportunity to honor them,” Gardner said. “I think it’s kind of a bittersweet moment for everybody, but it’s an opportunity to thank them.”
