Hoosiers bounce back, ride two-out rally to score three in the 9th to come out victorious
By Zach Horwitz @HorwitzZach April 13th, 2024
With nearly 2000 on hand at Bart Kaufman Field, the Indiana Hoosiers did the unthinkable. Down to an early 8-0 deficit, a necessary seven inning outing from the bullpen, and working with an agitated umpiring crew, Jeff Mercer’s squad chipped away and found themselves on the right side of the score sheet.
Indiana Hoosiers 10, Penn State Nittany Lions 9:
Inning by inning details in the Live Game Blog | Box Score
After falling in dominant fashion the night before, Indiana stayed optimistic with Connor Foley slated to take the hill in what could be a series-deciding game two. Although, the 6’5 flamethrower didn’t have his best stuff today.
“He didn’t yield, didn’t concede, didn’t stop fighting, and didn’t have bad body language. He just got hit, and it happens,” head coach Jeff Mercer said postgame.
Foley allowed a two-RBI double to Matt Maloney with one out in the first and sat in a prime position to escape trouble. Standing just a strike away, the snowball effect was in session as Penn State tacked on consecutive RBI singles followed by back-to-back home runs. The Nittany Lions tacked on an eight-spot to the scoreboard in the second.
Drew Buhr was called upon to eat up some innings out of relief. “Coach told me to go out there and compete to the best of my ability… so my job was to try to throw up some zeros and give us a chance.”
The grad transfer had a phenomenal day out of the bullpen, fanning eight batters in 4.1 innings of work. Coach Mercer called his stuff “contagious” as Buhr continued to catch fire with his fastball. “Drew gave us a big lift and that’s really what you want from your seniors.” The veteran role that Buhr acknowledged stood out with his scoreless performance. He gave up just three base knocks and walked one of his 16 batters faced.
Down eight runs following Buhr’s solo out in the second, Indiana stacked up its ongoing theme of scoring in bunches. The offensive approach stayed consistent and the Hoosiers took advantage of free bases. Tyler Cerny, who sported a 3-5 effort at the dish, led off with a single. Nick Mitchell was then hit by a pitch, while Joey Brenczewski and Jake Stadler drew walks to bring home a run.
Josh Pyne and Andrew Wiggins had huge days at the plate, as they added runs to the scoreboard with a double and a groundout. Wiggins later mashed a towering homerun to center field to bring the Penn State advantage to just one, a 431 ft blast that came off the bat at 113 mph.
The freshman credited his success to succeeding Pyne in the batting order. “I really just follow Josh’s lead… he’s been a great leader and just gave me the confidence, and I trust him to do his job,” Wiggins stated. Jeff Mercer also had high praise for the young lefty. “He’s really dangerous and the best thing about him is that you can coach him.” The Indianapolis native has found his way into the everyday lineup, mainly as Indiana’s designated hitter, but his dedication to finding that spot has been admirable. “He’s invested, he’s engaged. You can say ‘hey, today is not a good matchup for you’ and there’s no moping around. He’s been a great teammate and has done everything that we’ve asked.”
Penn State bounced back and gave themselves a two-run cushion in the eighth as Bobby Marsh brought home a run on a single.
Drama ensued in the home half of the frame as Tyler Cerny lofted a pitch to right centerfield. The second base umpire was adamant in calling a solo shot to bring the game within one but bickering from both dugouts eventually progressed into the hit being ruled as a double. The explanation proved that the ball hit the yellow post and never found its way over the fence. The emotional side got the best of the Hoosiers as they stranded the runner at second base.
“Kind of tough luck where you could lead off with a home run but the reality is that we’re down by two. It’s actually better for us to have a runner on second base and a pitcher whose vision is split and his focus is flipped,” Mercer declared.
Although, the run didn’t mean much in the long run. Indiana rode a two-out rally from the freshmen tandem of Andrew Wiggins’ hit-by-pitch and Jasen Oliver’s walk. Devin Taylor came through with a single and Tyler Cerny shined again as he deposited a game-tying RBI into left field.
The new Nittany Lion hurler Will Perkowski faltered, tossing a pitch in the dirt that catcher Matt Maloney couldn’t corral, and Devin Taylor crossed the plate to give Indiana an exhilarating walk-off winner.
The Hoosiers battled and evened up the series at one game apiece. Indiana and Penn State will battle in the rubber match of this three-game set on Sunday, beginning at 1 p.m.