Hoosiers take third straight from Hawaii, 8-5

It took 11 innings, but the Indiana Hoosiers won their fifth consecutive ballgame on Friday night/Saturday morning after scoring three runs in extras to beat Hawaii 8-5, clinching the series against the Rainbow Warriors and putting themselves in position for the sweep later today.

It was all small ball early for Indiana. In the Top of the 2nd, Tony Butler scored logan Sowers on a SAC fly to put the first run on the board. After Hawaii tied the game in the bottom half, the Hoosiers took the lead back immediately in the top of the 3rd. Alex Krupa tripled to lead off the inning and the next batter, Matt Gorski, singled to score him. Gorski moved to second on a Craig Dedelow ground out and then stole third during the next at-bat. With two outs, Ryan Fineman singled to score Gorski and make it 3-1.

The Hoosiers got two more in the Top of the 5th. Luke Miller reached on a single and was brought home on a Logan Sowers double. The next hitter, Austin Cangelosi, singled to bring Sowers around and made it 5-1 Indiana.

The Hoosiers were in good shape after six innings, even after Hawaii added two in the Bottom of the 6th. Indiana’s starter Brian Hobbie gave Indiana a quality start that it desperately needed given the number of pitchers the club had already used during the four-game set. Hobbie went 6.0 IP and allowed three runs on just five hits.

Hobbie remained in line for the win until the Bottom of the 9th when Hawaii got two runs off of Matt Lloyd to force the game into extra innings.

But the Hoosiers fought back and broke it wide open in the Top of the 11th. With one out and no one on, Craig Dedelow went yard to give Indiana a 6-5 lead. Then Miller singled and moved to second on a wild pitch. A Fineman single moved MIller to third with one out.

It looked as thought Hawaii might escape the jam and limit the damage to one run after Sowers reached on a fiedler’s choice but the Rainbow Warriors cut down Miller at the plate for the second out. But Cangelosi went oppo like taco and tripled down the right field line, scoring Fineman and Sowers to make it 8-5.

Lloyd, who blew the save in the ninth and fought off a leadoff single in the 10th worked a quick and clean Bottom of the 11th, inducing a foul out, a ground out, and a fly out to grab his second win of the weekend.

The Hoosiers have now won five straight, having taken all three games from Hawaii. Indiana (9-7-1) will look to sweep the Rainbow Warriors (10-8) tonight at 7:05 p.m. ET in their final game before Big Ten play.