Late Rally Seals Third Consecutive Series Victory for Indiana

After losing game one, the Indiana bats caught fire to combine for 19 runs in games two and three. The Hoosiers have won three straight series as they battle to qualify for the Big Ten tournament.

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Another quality start from Jack Perkins kept the Hoosiers on top by one run entering the seventh inning of game one. The right-hander gave up an RBI double in the first inning, but settled in to allow five hits, three runs, two walks and seven strikeouts across six innings of work.

Matthew Ellis and Hunter Jessee responded to Michigan's early run with a pair of solo home runs in the second and third innings. Jessee led the Hoosiers with three hits on Friday, including an RBI double in the fifth to score Evan Goforth.

Indiana has struggled with hanging on to late leads at times this season, as seen through its Big Ten-worst 7.05 team ERA, and it was the Hoosiers' downfall in the series opener at Michigan.  The Wolverines belted a home run in the seventh and two more in the eighth for an 8-4 come-from-behind victory.

The Hoosiers found themselves in another back-and-forth battle on Saturday after another hot start from Ellis, who gave Indiana an early lead with a two-RBI double in the first. But Michigan responded immediately with two runs of their own in the first to tie the game.

Indiana starter Bradley Brehmer's off-speed pitches were working all afternoon, finishing with eight strikeouts in five innings. 

Brehmer K Counter:

🎟🎟🎟🎟🎟🎟🎟🎟@Bradbrehmer | @PitchingNinja @sbrads33 pic.twitter.com/7wFLCUu6tl

— Indiana Baseball (@IndianaBase) May 7, 2022

But Brehmer ran into some trouble in the fourth when he allowed a two-out bases-clearing double that gave Michigan a three-run lead. His outing ended after five innings, allowing eight hits, five runs, two walks and eight strikeouts.

Like Indiana head coach Jeff Mercer has said all year, this Hoosiers squad is too tough to give up, and that was true again on Saturday. Indiana scraped across two runs in the seventh on a hit-by-pitch and double-play with the bases loaded, and freshman Brock Tibbitts put the Hoosiers on top with an RBI single in the seventh.

The Hoosiers added a trio of insurance runs in the ninth with doubles from Carter Mathison and Evan Goforth, plus another RBI single from Tibbitts. Relievers Ty Bothwell and Reese Sharp slammed the door across the final four innings of play, allowing three hits, zero runs, zero walks and seven strikeouts in Indiana's 9-5 win in game two. 

Sharp gets him fishing to end it 🎣@PitchingNinja pic.twitter.com/AI2PBQorCM

— Indiana Baseball (@IndianaBase) May 7, 2022

Continuing the series-long theme, Sunday's rubber match saw six lead changes in one of the more thrilling contests of Indiana's season. Tibbitts and Goforth started things off with a pair of RBI in the second, but Michigan's quick response tied the game in the bottom half.

Indiana starter Luke Hayden exited the game after 1.1 innings of work, where he allowed two hits, two runs, one walk and one strikeout. Mathison kept the game's momentum in constant flux with a three-run home run in the fifth inning. Mathison's 15th home run set an Indiana freshman record for home runs in a season, passing Alex Dickerson's 14 in 2009.

Carter Mathison 🤝 Alex Dickerson@carter_mathison | #IUBase pic.twitter.com/j0729lc9Wl

— Indiana Baseball (@IndianaBase) May 8, 2022

Braydon Tucker relieved Hayden in the second and pitched his way into the fifth inning. But neither team was able to hold a lead for much more than an inning, as Michigan added two runs in the fifth to take the lead. Tucker's day was over after three innings of work, allowing six hits, four runs, one walk and two strikeouts. 

The lead changes were far from over on Sunday afternoon as Tibbitts tied the game in the sixth with a solo home run and ripped a double to right field to put the Hoosiers on top. 

Indiana took advantage of a costly Michigan error with the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth. Mathison's hard-hit come-backer deflected off the Michigan pitcher's glove, whose errant throw to first allowed two runners to score and surrendered the lead to Indiana.

Reese Sharp continued his dominance out of the bullpen, and was a big reason for Indiana's series victory this weekend. On Sunday, he entered for the final three innings and gave up just one hit, one run, two walks and three strikeouts to earn his third win of the season. 

With a 10-8 win in Sunday's thriller, Indiana moved to 22-25 on the season with an 8-10 record in the Big Ten. It was Indiana's third consecutive series win as they move to seventh place in the Big Ten. 

The Hoosiers will travel south for a midweek matchup with Louisville on Tuesday before hosting their final home series of the season beginning at 7 p.m. on Friday. Indiana will play three games against Minnesota, who is currently last in the Big Ten with a 4-14 record in conference.

Each game down the stretch is now even more important as Indiana battles for a spot in the Big Ten tournament. Only the top eight teams qualify, so the seventh place Hoosiers will have to hold off Purdue (7-9), Northwestern (7-11) and Nebraska (7-11) to make the tournament in Omaha, Neb. beginning on May 25.

Related stories to Indiana baseball:

• JACK PERKINS PROFILE: After overcoming Tommy John surgery and an up-and-down career at Louisville, Jack Perkins found a home at Indiana through his faith in God. He's now Indiana's Friday starter, leading the Hoosiers through confidence and toughness. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA TAKES SERIES OVER ILLINOIS: 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. CLICK HERE
• PYNE'S WALK-OFF: Indiana head coach Jeff Mercer was impressed with Josh Pyne's maturity at the plate as the freshman third baseman continued his hot streak with a walk-off single down the third base line. CLICK HERE