Iowa senior infielder Ben Wilmes stepped up to the plate and connected on a 2-RBI single up the middle of the field, bringing in two more runs for the Hawkeyes in the fourth inning. Before Indiana could blink, it was down 6-0.
That was a microcosm of the weekend for the Hoosiers as they were swept in their weekend series with Iowa, which sits atop the Big Ten standings. There was not a lot that went right for Indiana over the weekend, as poor offensive starts and general struggles from the pitching rotation were notable factors in the series sweep.
The first game of the series was not exactly a sign of things to come, however. Contrary to the final two games, Indiana got off to a strong start offensively to begin the weekend.
Junior infielder Tyler Cerny started things quickly, as he hit an RBI single up the middle to give Indiana a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning Friday.
The pitching staff did an admirable job keeping a normally dynamic Iowa offense silent for the first five and a half innings. Redshirt junior right-handed starter Pete Haas went just over an inning but only gave up one hit. Senior left-hander Ryan Kraft entered and lasted three innings while only giving up three hits.
However, redshirt senior right-hander Gavin Seebold entered after Kraft and the struggles re-emerged for Indiana. Seebold gave up four hits and two earned runs, and the Hoosiers’ offense went cold down the stretch. Iowa won the first game of the series 2-1 in 10 innings.
Indiana’s issues began to surface in the second game of the series. The Hawkeyes’ offense came out on fire, as they jumped out to an early 7-0 lead through four innings. Indiana put up a couple of runs to cut the deficit to five, but the offense went dark once again after the fifth inning. Redshirt senior right-handed starter Cole Gilley gave up six hits and seven earned runs for the Hoosiers.
The Hoosiers would not score again, and the pitching rotation gave up 13 runs on nine hits. Iowa cruised to a 13-2 victory and looked for a sweep in the third and final game.
The final game of the series was similar to the second. Iowa came out hot offensively once again while Indiana’s bats could not find any consistent production. By the time the third inning had ended, Iowa was leading 6-0.
The Hawkeyes put up four more runs over the next four innings before the run-rule came into effect following the conclusion of the seventh inning. Indiana failed to produce runs, and Iowa shut out the Hoosiers 10-0 in the final game of the weekend to secure the series sweep.
The offense struggled for most of the weekend, particularly in the final game. Indiana only put up three hits and no runs in the third game and generally did not appear competitive throughout. The offense put up four hits in the first game of the series and seven hits in the second game.
The pitching rotation also had its problems throughout the series. While starter Haas produced a solid outing in the first game, the arms behind him struggled and gave up critical runs to the Hawkeyes offense, particularly in the first game. And in the final two games, the Hoosiers’ pitching staff was unable to slow down the high-powered Iowa offense. Indiana gave up 17 hits and 23 runs combined over the final two games of the series.
Indiana will be back in action at 6 p.m. Tuesday when it travels to Evansville, Indiana, to take on the University of Evansville at German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium. The game will stream on ESPN+.
