The Indiana softball team is back home. The Hoosier Classic gave IU fans a glimpse of what to expect on the diamond this season, as Indiana cruised to victory in all five games on a sunny weekend in Bloomington. Indiana outscored its opponents 56-9 over the weekend, ending each of its games early due to the run rule and throwing a no-hitter in the process.
Game 1
After a 2-2 weekend at the Tiger Invitational in Clemson, South Carolina, the Indiana softball team began their first homestand of the season in a matchup against IU Indy. The Hoosiers kicked off their weekend with a 14-0 rout of the Jaguars in just five innings due to the run-ahead rule.
While the ball was consistently hitting the barrel for the Hoosiers, the story of the day was true freshman Jasmine Reyes, who tossed the 32nd no-hitter in program history and the first by a true freshman since 2017. Reyes bounced back from her last outing, in which she lasted just 2.2 innings, posting five no-hit innings while walking just two and fanning four.
Reyes struck out Morgan Gilbert to complete the first game of the doubleheader, followed by a mob of teammates embracing her on the diamond.
The offense, which was held scoreless for just the second time this season on March 2 against Clemson, produced the exact opposite at Andy Mohr Field. The Hoosiers set the tone in the first inning, putting five runs on the board right off the bat. Kelsey Mitchell, the Indiana native, connected for an inside-the-park home run, her first trip around the bases on this young season.
The bats would not stop there for the Hoosiers, as they tackled on another seven runs in the fourth inning, highlighted by a 3-for-3 outing at the plate.
Game 2
After the rout of IU Indy, the latter game of the Friday doubleheader against Bowling Green was more of the same, this time under the lights. Brianna Copeland took the mound for the Hoosiers, and after walking the first batter, went on to retire nine straight. Copeland produced three plus innings of three-run ball (two earned) and struck out nine.
Bloomington native Taylor Minnick began the scoring for the Hoosiers with a two-run home run in the first. The ball left the yard once again, this time in the third inning, courtesy of a grand slam by catcher Avery Parker. Cassidy Kettleman stole home to cap off the six-run inning.
In the top half of the fourth, Bowling Green would reach home three times, cutting the Hoosier lead. The three-run fourth for the would be the only trip around the bases for the Falcons, as Janae Berry secured the win for Indiana with three scoreless innings in relief of Copeland.
Leading 8-3 going into the bottom of the sixth, the Hoosiers loaded the bases after a pair of walks and a HPB, setting up Avery Parker, who came through once again with a two-run single followed by a wild pitch that scored Minnick to cap off the first day for the home team. Parker led the team with three hits and six RBIs.
Game 3
Berry took the mound for the Hoosiers to open up their play on Saturday of the Hoosier Classic. Berry allowed just two runs and three strikeouts in three innings of work. The bats remained hot for the Hoosiers, with Minnick leading off the scoring via a two-run home run to right center field to give Indiana a 2-0 lead in the first.
“I feel like I’m pretty good at waiting for my pitch,” Minnick said postgame. “If it’s not there, just taking it because I am a pretty good hitter with two strikes.”
The Hoosiers would reach home in every inning, while continuing their success with two outs. Six Hoosiers reached base multiple times, with sophomore Aly VanBrandt going 3-for-3, to go along with her first triple of the season.
Up 5-2 going into the bottom of the fourth, the Hoosiers broke this game open. A combination of well-placed singles and doubles to the gap allowed Indiana to stretch the lead to seven. With the score 9-3, Copeland sent Western Michigan home with a walk-off home run to right field, her third of the season.
“I wasn’t really hoping for a home run, I was just hoping for a single,” Copeland said. “But it was nice to have a home run and get another number up there.”
Game 4
The second game of the Saturday doubleheader was an extension from the first. The Hoosiers faced Bowling Green in the final contest of a day that featured four games from the morning till nightfall.
After a scoreless first inning, the Hoosiers went on to erupt in the second inning, totaling eight runs on seven hits to put Bowling Green at an early large deficit. Copeland left the yard in consecutive games for the first time this season. Parker joined the home run party with a two-run blast of her own.
On the mound, Reyes, just a day following her no-hitter, delivered another winning performance for Indiana. Reyes pitched all five innings, striking out two while allowing just five hits.
After Bowling Green tacked on three in the third, the Hoosiers provided insurance for Reyes, scoring four in the fourth, highlighted by a Minnick double in the right field gap.
The story of the game was the future of Hoosier softball, particularly the freshman in Hannah Haberstroh and Sydni Burko, who have given pitchers fits all season long. Both freshmen would reach base and showcase defensive prowess throughout the weekend.
“You got to celebrate the little things,” head coach Shonda Stanton said postgame. “We cannot take that for granted.”
Finale on Sunday
To conclude the Hoosier Classic, the Hoosiers faced the UIC Flames looking to remain undefeated in the tournament.
Pitching off one day of rest, Copeland showed no signs of fatigue, dealing a complete game shutout to go along with six strikeouts.
The Hoosiers were powered offensively by a three run second inning, which featured a double steal by Wilkison and Cooper, resulting in Cooper scoring the game’s second run. Melina Wilkison, a redshirt junior transfer from Ohio State, led the team with three hits on the day in addition to two swipes of the bag. Wilkison is batting .397 in her first season for the Cream and Crimson. The final run of the game was produced by freshman Josie Bird, who in her lone plate appearance of the weekend, drove in two runs with an RBI single in the fourth.
Indiana went on to win the final game of their Hoosier Classic, 8-0 in another five-inning run rule victory. The Hoosiers return to Bloomington improved their record to 17-5, with five wins at the Hoosier Classic. IU tacked on another run-rule victory with a 13-0 win over Butler on Tuesday, and is now 18-5.
They will continue their homestand on Wednesday as they face Southern Indiana at Andy Mohr Field at 4 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on Big Ten Plus.
