Game Info

Who

Cincinnati Bearcats (10-9, 0-0 AAC) at Indiana Hoosiers (9-8-1, 0-0 Big Ten)

Where

Bart Kaufman Field, Bloomington, Indiana

When

Wednesday, March 22, 4:35 p.m. ET

Probable Starters

TBA

Preview

Indiana is looking to get back to their recent winning ways, and also for a little revenge, as they get set to host Cincinnati on Wednesday afternoon.

The Hoosiers dropped their last game against Hawaii 11-10 on a walk-off RBI single after winning five straight before that. They are returning to Bloomington after a four-game series with the Rainbow Warriors in Honolulu in which they went 3-1.

Meanwhile, Cincinnati is coming off of a stunning 6-3 upset at home against the nation’s number one ranked team in Louisville yesterday as they began their duo of back-to-back mid-week contests. It was Louisville’s first loss of the season. Much like Indiana, the Bearcats have been surging as of late as they have clawed their way back to above a .500 record (10-9) after losing six of their first nine games of the season.

Cincinnati might have the upper hand in this matchup as they won their first meeting with the Hoosiers 6-1 on March 1 in Cincinnati. They have also fared well in their mid-week games this year, as they are currently 4-0 in those games with wins over Indiana, Kentucky, Miami (OH) and now Louisville.

That might be just the motivation Indiana needs for this game, as they look for revenge for their defeat to Cincinnati weeks ago. They left seven runners on base and could not bounce back from a disastrous four-run Bearcat sixth inning in that game.

The Hoosiers come in to Wednesday’s contest riding the coattails of senior outfielder Alex Krupa and his recent hot streak. Krupa was named the Big Ten Player of the Week for last week after catching fire in Hawaii as he hit .533, three RBIs and had five runs scored in the series. He had three multi-hit games in that span.

First pitch on Wednesday is at 4:30 PM after originally be scheduled for 6:05 PM.

What to Expect

Cincinnati has all the momentum in the world coming in after knocking off the top team in the country. If they want to pull off the road win, they need solid performances from their pitching staff. Indiana has been hitting the ball well lately as they recorded 43 total hits as a team in their series against Hawaii as Krupa, Logan Sowers and Ryan Fineman all had multiple multi-hit games in that stand. In the last meeting between the teams, the Bearcats got quality outings from both A.J. Olasz and Clayton Colvin on the mound and will need similar production from their pitchers this time around.

As for the Hoosiers, they have had constant problems with leaving runners on base all season and have put a lot of faith into their bevy of young pitchers who have struggled at times this year. Indiana will need to keep their hot streak at the plate going and it will be interesting to see if Krupa can continue his success. He wasn’t just on fire in the Hawaii series; it’s been a year-long affair for the senior as he has been Indiana’s most productive weapon while batting .356 on the season.