After losing its first home series to No. 25 Michigan, IU softball now looks ahead to this weekend to take on the Iowa Hawkeyes at Bob Pearl Softball Field.
Iowa is coming off a four-game series at Purdue. While in West Lafayette, Indiana, the Hawkeyes took three of the four games. During the first game, sophomore Kalena Burns went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Hawkeyes senior pitcher Sarah Lehman has six complete games and five wins in six starts on the mound.
In Saturday’s double-header, Iowa split the two games against Purdue. Senior pitcher Allison Doocy threw a complete game for the 4-2 win in game one, striking out a season-high 13 batters. However, Iowa lost the third game of the series 5-4 in the twelfth inning.
The final game Sunday was a dominant 8-3 showing from Iowa. Freshman utility player Denali Loecker went 3-for-4 with four RBIs and hit the first home run of her career.
Related: [IU softball swept by No. 25 Michigan during first weekend back in Bloomington]
Despite the talented roster the Hoosiers have, they will need to capitalize on opportunities presented to them.
There were times where IU needed to drive in runs with women on base throughout last weekend, but failed to bring those important runs in. For example, sophomore utility player Abby Meeks struck out looking with the bases loaded and two outs during the bottom of the second inning in Sunday’s series finale.
Another issue the Hoosiers need to focus on is pitching. Senior pitcher Emily Goodin had an outing during the first game against the Wolverines until the seventh inning. The game was tied 1-1 before Michigan hitters started to form a rhythm, figure out what Goodin was throwing and rally for six runs late in the game.
The four-game series against Iowa starts at 4 p.m. Friday. There will be a double-header Saturday. The first game is scheduled for 2 p.m. and the second game will follow at 4:30 p.m. The final game is at 3 p.m. Sunday, with all games broadcasted on Big Ten Network+.
