After a series sweep in Waco against Baylor, things were looking up as the Hoosiers returned home last Tuesday to face off Purdue Fort Wayne.
However, Indiana got caught off guard and dropped a mid-week game against the Mastodons. Although that’s not the first time that’s happened to an Indiana Athletic program, a 9-6 upset loss to Purdue Fort Wayne definitely looked uncharacteristic heading into a competitive weekend as the Hoosiers traveled back to Texas for the Frisco Classic.
Unfortunately for Indiana, that uncharacteristic performance looked more like a normality as Indiana struggled against tough competition in the Lone Star State.
Indiana started out the weekend facing No. 16 Alabama on Friday evening, and got pummeled 12-0 with an early exit in the seventh inning due to the run rule.
Brayden Risedorph was credited with the start, but it didn’t last long. The Tide came out blazing, putting up five runs in the top half of the first. Ryan Kraft came in for relief the next inning and had a decent outing with two scoreless innings. Seti Manase relieved Kraft for the fourth, and got punished similar to Risedorph with six earned runs and one crossing on an error. Cooper Katskee, Drew Buhr, Brandon Keyster, and Jacob Vogel all saw action on the mound to finish out the game.
In a game where the pitching staff was caught under fire, the offense didn’t provide any support on their end either. The Hoosiers earned just one hit on a Josh Pyne single in the fifth inning., and only had one more base runner with a Brock Tibbitts walk.
The Hoosiers looked for revenge the next day against No. 25-ranked Dallas Baptist as they suited up for a noon first pitch. Things looked promising early as Indiana, assigned as the away team, plated a run across in the top of the 1st.
However, it was another uncharacteristic performance, this time by Connor Foley, that gave DBU the lead. Ty Bothwell relieved Foley in the middle of the fifth and struggled early on, giving up a run after Foley had plated two. DBU would have the 6-1 lead heading into the 6th inning.
Indiana needed an offensive spark, and Carter Mathison delivered on a sac fly to plate a run in the sixth, and Tyler Cerny followed suit with a single which plated another. The Hoosiers continued on with a Devin Taylor RBI single, and Brock Tibbitts got the lead with a three RBI triple in the seventh. Indiana scored a pair of runs in the eighth to add insurance and earn the hard-fought victory.
Although the Hoosiers had felt they recovered with their win against DBU, the roller coaster came racing back down.
Indiana had plenty of time to stretch after dropping the last game of the series with a 12-1 run rule loss in seven innings against Arizona.
Indiana’s typical reliever strategy for Sunday games granted no luck, as five of the seven relievers gave up a run in the game. Even Jasen Oliver, a freshman listed as an infielder, saw action on the bump in the seventh. Grant Holderfield was credited with the loss after giving up six runs.
The Hoosiers plated one in the second on a Morgan Colopy RBI single to open up the scoring. However, Indiana only had a hit three more times the rest of the game.
At the very least, the weekend gave Indiana a huge wakeup call. A tough early-season series is usually scheduled to get a team used to playing against tough talent.
Although the offense was nowhere near perfect, the main concern for Indiana lies within the pitching depth and utilization with a struggling bullpen. Some rotation changes could come into place, such as Foley moving to the Friday spot. However, the lack of consistency across the board could spell problems for Indiana.
Luckily for them, the Hoosiers still have 10 games to figure out a go-to rotation before they head into Big Ten play. In order to compete for the top spot, though, Jeff Mercer must find what works fast, or else teams will take advantage.
Indiana (7-4) hosts Northern Kentucky at home Wednesday at 4:00 pm Eastern for another mid-weeker, then host Troy for a weekend series at the Bart.
