Indiana hangs on to late two run lead
By Zach Horwitz @HorwitzZach April 7th, 2026, photos by Carl James
“You saw us get off to a poor start and respond incredibly well”
— Head Coach Jeff Mercer
Indiana Hoosiers 6, Ball State Cardinals 4
Inning by inning details in the Live Game Blog | Box Score
Following a near 50-minute first inning where Indiana and Ball State combined for 10 hits and eight runs, the offenses went quiet for the next five innings.
On an extremely cold April night with the wind howling in, it initially seemed like both lineups wouldn’t be affected, but that changed quickly as Indiana’s bullpen took complete control.
Conner Linn was granted the start but struggled, recording just two outs while allowing four runs as Ball State batted around in the opening frame. Ivan Mastalski entered and immediately shut the door, ending the inning on just one pitch.
The freshman right-hander went on to record a career-high 10 outs across 3.1 scoreless innings, continuing what has become a reliable trend out of the bullpen.
“You saw us get off to a poor start and respond incredibly well,” head coach Jeff Mercer said. “Mastalski comes in and just steadies everything… that was a huge deal.”
From there, the bullpen took over.
Kaden Jacobi followed with two clean innings, allowing just one of seven batters to reach via a walk. Kellen English added a scoreless seventh to earn his first collegiate win, before Xavier Carrera bridged the gap to the late innings.
The baton was then passed to Michael Sarhatt, who delivered in the game’s biggest moments.
Sarhatt entered with two on and one out in the eighth, walked the first batter he faced, but responded with back-to-back strikeouts to escape the jam. He returned in the ninth and worked through more traffic, closing it out despite two Cardinals reaching base.
“Big Mike comes in in a really tough spot… and did just a tremendous job,” Mercer said. “Could not be happier with the way we pitched after the first.”
In total, five Indiana relievers combined to record the final 25 outs of the game without allowing a run—one of the bullpen’s most complete performances of the season.
Considering the early offensive surge, Indiana looked poised to pile on throughout the night, but instead had to manufacture runs.
Caleb Koskie’s two-RBI ground-rule double in the first cut the lead in half, extending his hitting streak to 13 games, while Landen Fry and Cole Decker brought home two more to even the score.
Despite multiple missed opportunities in the middle innings, the Hoosiers continued to apply pressure.
“We kept setting the table,” Mercer said. “It would’ve been easy to roll over… but we didn’t.”
That persistence paid off in the later innings. A Ball State throwing error opened the door before Will Moore delivered a go-ahead RBI single through the right side, giving Indiana a lead it wouldn’t give back.
A strange, gritty game ultimately swung on resilience, which is something Mercer emphasized postgame.
“It’s a cultural win,” he said. “Cold night, things don’t go your way early… and they just kept fighting.”
Indiana secures its fifth midweek victory of the season and its second straight overall win, building momentum ahead of a road series against Maryland.
