Indiana Wins Series Over Illinois Behind Pair of Mathison Home Runs, Sharp's Gutsy Outing

Indiana scored eight runs in the fifth inning of Sunday's rubber match against Illinois. Freshman Carter Mathison belted two home runs, and Reese Sharp tossed 4.1 scoreless innings in relief to claim a crucial series victory.

Evan Goforth and Peter Serruto combined for five hits and seven RBI on Saturday, enough to earn the pair starting roles in Indiana's Sunday rubber match with Illinois. Goforth and Serruto have combined for just 63 at-bats this season, but made the most of their opportunity on Sunday.

Indiana was chasing four runs when the fifth inning began, and Goforth and Serruto started the inning with a pair of singles to turn the lineup over to Bobby Whalen at the top. Goforth and Serruto scored on back-to-back hits from Whalen and Hunter Jessee to chase Illinois starter Riley Gowens.

Reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week Josh Pyne hit a walk-off single in Indiana's win on Friday, and he drove in two runs on a double to center field to tie the game on Sunday. Indiana's two biggest sluggers Carter Mathison and Matthew Ellis continued their race for the home run lead with a pair of two-run long balls to complete an eight-run inning.

Good weekend series dub! 📞 pic.twitter.com/5ZCToQUgbs

— Carter Mathison (@carter_mathison) May 1, 2022

Reese Sharp mowed down the Illini hitters for the final 4.1 innings of the game, allowing four hits, zero runs, zero walks and six strikeouts. Indiana played clean defense behind Sharp on its way to an 11-7 win and a series victory over Illinois. 

"When you're too tough to quit, it's incredible what happens," Indiana head coach Jeff Mercer said in his postgame speech to the team. "It's just the toughest team I've ever been a part of."

Mercer named Sharp and Mathison Indiana's Players of the Game, and said Sharp had one of the greatest single performances he's ever seen on the mound. 

That's a statement! pic.twitter.com/Slt9JZzhqn

— Indiana Baseball (@IndianaBase) May 1, 2022

Mathison's pair of home runs makes him second on the team with 13 and third among Hoosiers with 40 RBI in his breakout freshman campaign. 

Braydon Tucker started the game on the mound and allowed five hits, six runs, two walks and two strikeouts in two innings. Indiana allowed seven runs in the first three innings, and Mercer said it took the entire team to come back and beat a team of Illinois' caliber.

Ty Bothwell and Sharp then combined for seven innings with one unearned run, seven hits and nine strikeouts. Eight Hoosiers finished with at least one hit, and five drove in at least one run. 

With this win, Indiana moves to 20-24 on the season and 6-9 in the Big Ten. Winning a series over Illinois, who is ranked third in the Big Ten, was especially crucial for an Indiana team fighting to make the Big Ten tournament. The top eight teams in the conference qualify for the tournament, and Indiana is currently 10th behind Michigan State (6-9), Purdue (6-7), Penn State (7-8) and Northwestern (8-8).

It's now finals week in Bloomington, so Indiana has the week off until beginning a weekend series at Michigan at 6 p.m. ET on Friday. As Indiana makes a postseason push, the Hoosiers will play just four more games at Bart Kaufman Field. Indiana hosts a weekend series against Minnesota beginning on May 13, and the home finale is on May 17 against Illinois State. 

It takes everybody! pic.twitter.com/CTLlIshxzy

— Indiana Baseball (@IndianaBase) May 1, 2022