Indiana University Athletics
Hoosiers Welcome Hawks for Three-Game Weekend Set
3/23/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 23, 2006
The Hartford Series (March 24-26)
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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - For the third time this season, the Indiana baseball team attempts to kick off its 2006 home campaign. The Hoosiers welcome Hartford to Sembower Field for a three-game set on Friday-Sunday, March 24-26. First pitch for the first two games are scheduled for 3 p.m., while Sunday's series finale is slated for a noon start.
This weekend marks Hartford head coach Jeff Calcaterra's return to Bloomington. Calcaterra spent 17 years with the Hoosiers, donning the uniform (1989-92), serving as a volunteer assistant (1994-97) and spending eight seasons as an assistant coach (1997-2004).
Calcaterra and Indiana head coach Tracy Smith spent two seasons together in Bloomington when Smith served as the team's pitching coach in 1995 and 1996.
As a player, Calcaterra's best season came in 1991, when he batted .322 with 10 doubles and 25 RBI. He also threw out 27 consecutive runners from behind the plate that season. A team captain in 1992, Calcaterra received All-Big Ten honors and was selected IU's most valuable defensive player.
Pitching Matchups
Game 1 - Friday, March 24 (3 p.m.)
Indiana RHP Josh Lewis (1-3, 4.76 ERA) vs. TBA
Game 2 - Saturday, March 25 (3 p.m.)
Indiana RHP Chris McCombs (0-0, 5.14 ERA) vs. TBA
Game 3 - Sunday, March 26 (noon)
Indiana RHP Tyler Tufts (0-1, 9.15 ERA) or LHP Joe Vicini (1-1, 1.32 ERA) vs. TBA
Follow The Game
Radio: WIUX 100.3 FM (Bloomington) & wiux.org
Gametracker: IUHOOSIERS.com
Inside The Series
-Indiana and Hartford have only met one time prior to this weekend's three-game set. The Hoosiers took a 5-4 contest on March 15, 1999, in Boca Raton, Fla.
-First-year Hoosier skipper Tracy Smith also is 1-0 against Hartford and owns a 3-0 record in his 10-year career against America East opponents.
-Hartford head coach Jeff Calcaterra spent 17 years as a member of the Hoosier baseball family. Calcaterra played for Indiana from 1989-92 and was an assistant coach from 1997-2004 with a stint in between as a volunteer assistant.
Inside Hartford
Hartford enters this weekend's three-game set with a 1-13 record, including a 0-6 mark on its spring trip. However, the Hawks are coming off a competitive effort against No. 12 Tennessee, dropping an 8-7 decision in Knoxville on March 22.
Junior catcher Ryan Crowley leads Hartford with a .449 batting average, 13 RBI, a .592 slugging percentage and a .491 on-base percentage. Batting in the cleanup spot, Crowley also owns one home run, four doubles and seven runs.
Hitting in front of Crowley, senior second baseman Frank Cipolla is hitting .363 with eight RBI, six runs, four doubles and a pair of steals.
Hoosier Spring Trip Review
IU went 3-4 on its spring trip with three of those losses coming by one run, including a 10-inning defeat to Bradley on March 14. Center fielder Reggie Watson hit a team-high .444 (12-for-27) on the trip and led the club with 12 hits, 11 runs, seven stolen bases in seven attempts and a .485 on-base percentage. The senior recorded a hit in each game to extend his team season-best streak to eight games. In his best game on the trip, Watson went 4-for-5 with one RBI, three runs, his first home run of the season and one stolen base against Eastern Illinois (March 12).
On the mound, southpaw Clint Crosier and right-hander David Trager picked up their first career victories against Fairfield and Vermont, respectively. Additionally, right-hander Josh Lewis earned his first career complete game victory, downing Northern Iowa by a 3-1 score.
