This weekend, Indiana baseball traveled south for the Live Like Lou Jacksonville Baseball Classic, which provided three opportunities for early-season Power Four wins against non-conference opponents. However, the Hoosiers (2-5) were only able to convert on one of those opportunities, as a Saturday win over UCF was sandwiched between losses to LSU and Notre Dame.
After allowing 10 runs in the final two innings against LSU Friday, Indiana’s bullpen put up a similar performance against the Fighting Irish Sunday, allowing five runs in the bottom of the seventh and the game-winning run in extras to fall 9-8. It was the third time in seven games that the Hoosiers held a lead in the seventh inning or later and lost.
Runs came early and often on both sides, but it was Notre Dame (3-3) that scored when it mattered most. Indiana, on the other hand, went scoreless over the final four innings of the game in what was its second extra-innings defeat of the young season.
Brayden Ricketts put the Hoosiers on the board in the top of the first with an RBI single that didn’t leave the infield, scoring Ayden Crouse. The Fighting Irish quickly responded in the bottom of the second as Jayce Lee singled to left to tie the game at one.
After a scoreless third, Mateo Noto recorded the first hit of his career in the top of the fourth with an RBI single to center, scoring Landen Fry and putting Indiana up 2-1. Notre Dame then tied things up in the bottom of the inning via an RBI single from Drew Berkland.
Indiana gave itself some breathing room in the fifth as Cooper Malamazian cleared the bases with a three-run double. Fry then singled to right, scoring Malamazian for his first of two RBIs against the Fighting Irish to put the Hoosiers up four.
Mark Quatrani got one back for Notre Dame with a solo home run, but Indiana maintained a three-run lead after five. RHP Jackson Bergman, who made his second start of the season for the Hoosiers, provided five innings of three-run ball, allowing eight hits and striking out three in the process.
RHP Jackson Yarberry took over for Bergman, and after a scoreless sixth, things went downhill in the bottom of the seventh. After adding two runs in the top of the inning via a balk followed by an RBI double for Fry, Indiana lost its five-run lead and never got it back.
Quatrani tallied his second solo shot of the game to cut the deficit to four, and after back-to-back walks, Yarberry was pulled with nobody out in the inning. LHP Conner Linn then entered the game for the Hoosiers and failed to record an out while allowing three runs on RBI singles from Noah Coy and Mason Barth.
RHP Jacob Vogel, the third pitcher of the inning for Indiana, allowed the game-tying run on a sacrifice fly from Berkman before stranding the go-ahead run at third base to end the inning. Vogel was a bright spot in the Hoosier bullpen, pitching 3.2 innings in relief and striking out five while allowing just one hit.
After both teams went scoreless in the eighth, ninth and 10th innings, the Fighting Irish broke the scoring drought in the bottom of the 11th. RHP Kellen English, who was strong in his season debut against Bradley last Tuesday, hit two batters before being replaced by RHP Michael Sarhatt. After another hit batter, Berkland singled to right with the bases loaded to complete the comeback, handing Indiana its second walk-off loss of the season.
In Jacksonville, the Hoosiers combined for 21 runs, and saw contributions from returners (Malamazian, Hogan Denny) as well as newcomers (Fry, Ricketts). Indiana has plenty of talent on the offensive side, and it was put on display this weekend. However, its pitching, specifically as it relates to the bullpen, has not been anywhere near where it needs to be for the Hoosiers to win in different ways, and that was once again the case against Notre Dame.
Indiana will travel to Cincinnati to take on the Xavier Musketeers with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m. Tuesday.
