Friday, Indiana took the series opener against the Huskies thanks to a strong performance from the pitching staff on a night in which its offense didn’t quite play to its potential. However, this was not the case Saturday, as the Hoosiers were dominated on both sides of the ball en route to a 9-2 loss, their first of the season in Big Ten play.
Indiana (6-7, 1-1 Big Ten) tallied just two runs on five hits while putting up a zero on the scoreboard in seven of nine innings. The Hoosiers’ two runs against Washington tied their second-lowest run total of the season, and head coach Jeff Mercer noted postgame that it was his squad’s worst offensive performance of 2026.
“Offenses go through ebbs and flows, and then they go through ups and downs,” Mercer said. “Today was the first time that we just didn’t play very well. We weren’t able to string together the quality of the at-bat one after the other.”
Indiana took the lead early as Ayden Crouse scored after redshirt freshman Brayden Ricketts grounded into a double play in the bottom of the first. However, Washington quickly responded in the top of the second, as senior Ty Cowan hit an RBI single to tie the game at one. In the same inning, senior Sam DeCarlo put the Huskies ahead with a sacrifice fly, and they led the rest of the way.
For Washington (4-10, 1-1), graduate student Jackson Thomas earned the win on the mound, and was dominant throughout his outing. In seven innings pitched, the righty did not allow a single earned run while striking out three and giving up just three hits. Sophomore RHP Bryce Johnson pitched the last two innings in relief, allowing one earned run while striking out two.
That lone run came via a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth as sophomore Cooper Malamazian left the yard for the second time this season. It was too little, too late, but moments like that can provide a spark as teams go from one game to the next.
Meanwhile, Indiana threw a total of five arms, with sophomore LHP Brayton Thomas taking his first loss of the season. Thomas started Saturday’s game, spanning 4.2 innings while allowing three earned runs on five hits and striking out four. Mercer touched on Thomas’ improvement from last season to now as the Hoosiers continue to start him on a regular basis.
“He’s gotten so much better since last year,” Mercer said. “He’ll continue to grow and do a good job. It’s nice to have a really good starter in him.”
Graduate student RHP Michael Sarhatt, freshman RHP’s Ivan Mastalski and Xavier Carrera, and redshirt senior RHP Pete Haas covered the final 4.1 innings for Indiana, combining to allow an additional six earned runs (three in the sixth and three in the ninth) on six hits. It was far from the best performance the Hoosier bullpen has put out this season, but Indiana’s offense did not do its pitching staff any favors.
Sunday is a big one as the Hoosiers look to open up Big Ten play with a series victory. First pitch in the series finale against the Huskies is scheduled for noon at Bart Kaufman Field.
