Indiana blew a 3-1 lead and lost 4-3 on a bases loaded walk in the first game of a doubleheader with Maryland on Saturday, then lost 5-2 in the second game to lose the series and put their NCAA Tournament hopes in serious jeopardy with one game remaining on the regular season schedule.
In Game 1, the Hoosiers fell behind 1-0 on a bases loaded walk by right-hander Gabe Bierman in the first inning, but he pitched five scoreless frames after that. The Hoosiers tied the game in the fourth on a sacrifice fly by third baseman Cole Barr, then took a 3-1 lead thanks to an RBI single by Grant Richardson and a run-scoring sacrifice fly by designated hitter Jordan Fucci.
However, Maryland scored on RBI groundout by second baseman Matthew Shaw in the eighth to make it 3-2, then tied the game in the bottom of the ninth on a home run by first baseman Maxwell Costes. In the 10th, Indiana right-hander Grant Macchiocchi loaded the bases and exited for right-hander Nathan Stahl. Stahl walked Maryland shortstop Benjamin Cowles to end the game.
In Game 2, Indiana right-hander McCade Brown walked eight batters in just three innings, issuing two bases-loaded walks in the first inning to fall behind 2-0. Costes doubled home a run in the fifth, then Cowles and catcher Luke Shliger singled in runs to make it 5-0. Indiana outfielder Drew Ashley homered in the eighth and catcher Jacob Southern drove home a run with a single in the ninth, but Indiana couldn’t muster any more runs. Maryland right-hander Sean Burke struck out 12 batters in 6 2/3 shutout innings to get the win.
Indiana entered the week considered one of the last teams in the NCAA Tournament field according to D1Baseball.com and also on the bubble by Baseball America. Saturday’s losses greatly injury their prospects. The Hoosiers play their regular season finale at 1 p.m. Sunday in hopes of salvaging something from the weekend.
UPDATE: Indiana announced on its Twitter account that Sunday’s game will start at 11 a.m.