IUBaseBlog: One Weekend Down...
2/19/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- One weekend down, with many more to go for first-year head coach Chris Lemonis and the Indiana Baseball team. Overall, the Hoosiers played well in their 2-1 weekend on the road against No. 18 Stanford. The Cardinal took advantage of some late-game mistakes in the series finale to win, but a few early season blunders are expected. Here are some things I noticed from the first weekend:
THROWING STRIKES
The Hoosier pitching staff didn't walk a single batter through the first two games, and finished with only two for the entire weekend. A few pitches got away and resulted in a hit-by-pitch (5), but that's going to happen when you assert yourself on the inside part of the strike zone.
NICK RAMOS
Ramos was named Big Ten Player of the Week for his weekend performance against the Cardinal. He led the Hoosiers with a .429 batting average, but impressed me most with his .545 on-base percentage. Nick had one hit in each of the three games, but continuously produced in the seventh spot in the batting order. He took three walks, put down a sacrifice bunt, and brought home a big run on Sunday with a sacrifice fly. Lemonis also praised Ramos for his defense at shortstop in our radio interview (link below).
AROUND THE BIG TEN
Indiana was one of six conference teams that won their weekend series. Illinois (4-0), Maryland (3-0) and Ohio State (3-0) went perfect, while Iowa and Michigan State join the Hoosiers at 2-1.
RADIO INTERVIEW
I spoke with Lemonis about his first weekend as head coach of the Hoosiers and what's next for his team. Take a listen: CLICK HERE
UP NEXT
A trip down to Greenville, SC is next on the menu. Let's take a look at the different opponents Indiana will see:
PRESBYTERIAN COLLEGE: 4-1, Big South Conference
The Blue Hose are one of eight teams that went 4-0 to start the season, though the team fell to 4-1 after its first loss vs. Wofford on Wednesday. They swept Delaware State last weekend, and outscored the Hornets, 31-12 in four games. D1 Baseball projected PC to finish 10th (of 11) in the Big South.
FURMAN: 1-3, Southern Conference
Although the First Pitch Invitational is not at their typical home field, Furman is the host school for the weekend. After dropping two of three games against Akron to start the season, the Paladins lost against No. 5 South Carolina on Tuesday. Their top offensive threat is Chris Ohmstede, who hit .318 with 14 home runs last year.
XAVIER: 2-2, Big East
The Hoosiers end the weekend with a familiar foe. Indiana has beaten the Musketeers in five of their last six meetings, including a 2-1 win in last year's home opener. The biggest difference this year is that former Hoosier Tim O'Conner will be wearing the other uniform, who started three games in the outfield last weekend. O'Conner transferred to Xavier to pursue a graduate degree.
