Indiana baseball will get a rematch against Xavier, this time in front of its home crowd on Wednesday afternoon. Indiana’s home opener against Purdue Fort Wayne was originally scheduled for Feb. 19 but was canceled due to inclement weather and cold temperatures.
Indiana had previously faced Xavier two weekends ago in Surprise, Arizona, falling to the Musketeers 8-6 in extra innings.
An 11-strikeout outing from Indiana starting pitcher Cole Gilley failed to be defended by the bullpen, as Indiana relief pitchers surrendered five earned runs on seven hits and three walks.
Despite starting the season off with four straight losses, Indiana made a quick turnaround in last weekend’s tournament in Cary, North Carolina, defeating Fordham, Harvard and Northwestern.
Coming off of the weekend sweep, there are several factors for Indiana that could play into Wednesday’s home opener vs. Xavier.
Indiana pitching coming off of a dominant weekend
Game one against Fordham showcased a strong outing from redshirt senior pitcher Gavin Seebold, who tossed six excellent innings, letting up just one earned run on two hits, striking out seven batters.
Gilley continued Seebold’s trend in game two against Harvard, shoving for five innings, giving up two runs while striking out seven. The bullpen of Seth Benes, Jackson Yarberry and Anthony Gubitosi held it down on the back end, closing out the final four innings, allowing just two runs.
In the final matchup of the weekend series, Indiana opted to go the bullpen route, showcasing four different pitchers who allowed just three runs on six hits. Notably, it was Drew Buhr who got it done defensively for Indiana, throwing four innings of scoreless ball in long relief form.
Korbyn Dickerson’s impressive series at the plate
Korbyn Dickerson has certainly done a fantastic job introducing himself to Indiana’s baseball program.
Dickerson was the driving force at the dish for Indiana all weekend long. Across the three-game series, Dickerson had himself three multi-hit games, batting 8-for-15 with seven runs scored, 10 runs batted in, two home runs and three walks.
His hot streak at the plate didn’t just start during this past weekend series.
Dickerson collected six hits in Indiana’s first weekend series in Arizona, collecting six hits, three runs, three runs batted in and one home run.
Dickerson’s three home runs on the season ranks fifth in the Big Ten.
Jake Hanley’s phenomenal start to collegiate baseball
Freshman Jake Hanley has started in all of Indiana’s seven games this year and has not disappointed.
Hanley has already had two multi-hit games, while holding a seven game hitting streak.
Across the seven games, Hanley batted 10-for-30 with five runs scored, three runs batted in and three walks.
Slugging at the plate is nothing new to Hanley — the first baseman batted .384 as a senior at Mason High School, adding in 33 runs, 32 runs batted in, seven doubles, four triples and five home runs.
First pitch for the home opener is set for 2 p.m. EST at Bart Kaufman Field. Admission is free for all fans. The game will be televised on Big Ten Plus.
