Rick Heller's club secured an impressive road sweep over Indiana, but the same can't be said for the softball team.
The improving weather usually means the baseball and softball seasons are beginning to reach the meat of their schedules, but those discussions are limited to just the professional level.
College baseball and softball have been playing games since early February, and though the temperatures in the Midwest finally feel appropriate for ballgames, Iowa fans only have a few more opportunities to see their teams play in Iowa City.
Both clubs were away from home last weekend and experienced different results. Keep reading to find out how they performed.
Baseball Is Alive
Head coach Rick Heller's baseball team was in a dire position a few weeks ago, but the Hawkeyes did themselves a massive favor by sweeping Indiana in Bloomington. The 3-0 weekend moves Iowa's record to 26-16 overall and 10-10 in conference play. The Hawkeyes currently sit in ninth place, three spots ahead of the threshold to qualify for the Big Ten Tournament (12 teams make it this year).
Iowa showed Indiana it meant business right from the opening pitch of Game 1. The Hawkeyes cruised to a 12-2 victory on Friday night, which began with a four-run second inning. Sophomore Tyler Guerin did his part on the bump, throwing five innings to help Iowa roll.
Game 2 was nearly a carbon copy of Game 1. The Hawkeye lineup jumped all over the Hoosiers in the first, and Maddox Frese continued his strong junior campaign, allowing one run through seven innings. Indiana loaded the bases in the eighth, but managed just one run and Iowa held on for a 9-2 triumph.
The Hoosiers rallied from a 7-0 deficit to make it 7-4 in the sixth inning of Game 3, but the Hawkeye bullpen held serve after that to preserve Iowa's first sweep of the season.
“I’m really proud of our team,” Heller told HawkeyeSports after Sunday's finale. “Today we took a step forward. We’ve had opportunities like this throughout the season, but today we found a way to get it done. The guys have been playing really good baseball for a couple of weeks. Sweeps are tough to get in this league and even tougher on the road.”
UP NEXT: vs Illinois State on Tuesday, April 28
Softball Swept in Lincoln
While baseball drastically improved its Big Ten tournament chances, head coach Stacy May-Johnson's softball crew did not. The Hawkeyes faced the daunting task of playing No. 4 Nebraska on the road, and they couldn't meet the mark.
Jordy Frahm (formerly Bahl) and the Huskers have been destroying teams all season long, and Iowa was just another stepping stone to what Nebraska hopes to be a run to the Women's College World Series. The Hawkeyes scored just three runs in the entire weekend en route to a disappointing sweep. Two of the losses came via a run rule, adding more frustration.
Iowa now sits at 25-25 overall and 6-15 in Big Ten play. The 6-15 mark ties the Hawkeyes at 12th place on the leaderboard with Minnesota, but the Gophers have the tiebreaker due to their series win over Iowa earlier in the year. As it stands right now, the Hawkeyes would miss the Big Ten tournament.
“All of our goals are still in front of us," May-Johnson told HawkeyeSports. "The things we want to control are still in our control, and we’re looking forward to our midweek game and Purdue next weekend.”
UP NEXT: vs Northern Illinois on Wednesday, April 29
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HawkeyeRoundtable publisher Brad Schultz has covered the Iowa Hawkeyes since 2023. To send him story ideas, scoops, or criticize his writing, reach him at bradschultz@roundtable.io