Indiana Baseball: Hoosiers Get First Win of Season with 12-4 Rout Over Louisiana

Indiana took advantage of wildness from Louisiana's pitching staff in the third inning, scoring seven runs on just two hits and then cruising to a 12-4 win. It was the first victory of the season for the Hoosiers.

ROUND ROCK, Texas — Indiana walked its way into the win column for the first time this season, beating Louisiana 12-4 on Saturday in the second day of the Karbach Round Rock Classic.

The Hoosiers, who had lost their first four games this season, blew the game open with a seven-run third inning, thanks to severe wildness issues from Louisiana reliever Brandon Talley. They were patient at the plate, got timely hits and solid pitching all day to finally get that first win.

"A lot of the things you've seen through these first few games, you could see us take the next logical steps and that's what it's all about,'' Indiana coach Jeff Mercer said. "We broke through today, and I was very happy for them. You could see the fruits of their labor sort of pay off. To have it happen in real time, I was very proud of them.''

The third inning was big. The Hoosiers, who were leading 2-1 at the time, scored seven runs on just two hits in the inning. Talley came in for starter Peyton Havard after a Phillip Glasser double and Bobby Whalen reaching on an error. Talley walked four batters and hit another, with a fielding error thrown in. In all, 13 Hoosiers came to the plate in the inning.

"As a team I think we've been grinding pitches out all season, but it hasn't been going our way,'' said center fielder Bobby Whalen, who was 2-for-5 and drove in three runs. "We haven't been getting those timely hits like we did today. We had long at-bats and we were really hitting the ball hard. It all came together today.''

Indiana starter Jack Perkins threw five solid innings, allowing just two runs and two hits to pick up the win

Indiana got five solid innings from starter Jack Perkins, the transfer from Louisville who allowed just two runs and two hits to pick up the win. Ryan Kraft, a freshman left-hander from Mokena, Ill., pitched a perfect sixth inning but struggled in the seventh, giving up two runs before getting an inning-ending double play. Closer Brayden Tucker pitched two scoreless innings to end the game.

"That's a huge part of pitching, especially in these conditions where it's not ideal, just staying warm and staying ready,'' Perkins said. "I felt like just kept trying to attack them. They did a good job of laying off some good pitches early on, but I made them when it mattered.

"That's our mindset as a pitching staff. We're going to go after you the whole game. We all feel like we have each other's backs. Our job as pitchers is to keep us in games, and I have full faith in our offense.''

Indiana, which had scored only 10 total runs in those first four losses, got on the board early with a massive solo home run to right field by catcher Matthew Ellis in the second inning. They added a second run in the inning after doubles by first baseman Brock Tibbitts and left fielder Carter Mathison.

Indiana tacked on a run in the sixth on a home run by right fielder Morgan Colopy that sailed over the 407-foot mark in right center. They got two more in the seventh on a two-run double by Bobby Whalen to make it 12-2.

Whalen has been Indiana's hottest hitter so far this season. On the year, he's now 9-for-21, a .429 average, after going 2-for-5 on Saturday.

"I've been seeing the ball good,'' said Whalen, a redshirt sophomore from Camp Hill, Pa. "We talk a lot about what a pitcher has and we do a really good job of that. When you go up to the plate, you know what's coming.''

Louisiana coach Matt Deggs questioned whether the game should have been played at all. It was in the mid-30s with off-and-on sprinkles, and he said the field conditions weren't ideal.

"Those conditions were borderline whether you should play or not,'' Deggs said. "That's an extremely tough day to play baseball and the one inning really got us. We showed up to play and that's what we're going to do. We're all soaking wet, and that's when it gets a little hairy, with the ball, with the field conditions and what not.''

The field was slick enough that Saturday's second game between No. 2 Arkansas and No. 6 Stanford was postponed until Sunday. So now there will be three games played on Sunday. 

Indiana will still play No. 6-ranked Stanford on Sunday at Noon ET.  Stanford and No. 2 Arkansas still play at 4 p.m. ET, and Arkansas and Louisiana will play at 7:30 p.m.

Mercer said late Saturday night that Reese Sharp will start for the Hoosiers on Sunday. Sharp pitched three innings last weekend at Clemson and struck out seven batters. He allowed only one hit, but walked four and gave up two runs.

Indiana has its home opener on Tuesday against Miami of Ohio. The game starts at 4 p;m. ET at Bart Kaufman Field in Bloomington.

Here are the links to watch or listen to Sunday's finale in the Karbach Round Rock Classic.

Live Video: bit.ly/3sgekZu
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio