Indiana University Athletics
Softball Travels to Louisville on Wednesday
3/24/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
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| Indiana at Louisville - Louisville, Ky. | |
| Date | March 25, 2015 • 6 p.m. ET |
| Location | Ulmer Stadium • Louisville, Ky. |
| Live Stats | |
| Watch | GoCards.com |
| Radio | Listen Live |
| Game Notes | Indiana Game Notes |
| Social Media | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram |
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Hoosiers will head to Louisville, Ky. on Wednesday for a mid-week showdown with the Cardinals (18-8).
Stay tuned to IUHoosiers.com and @IUSoftball for all the latest news and info from Louisville.
LAST TIME OUT
Indiana opened up Big Ten play at home over the weekend, hosting Rutgers in the Scarlet Knights' first-ever conference series. Rutgers picked up game one of the series, 11-5, and looked like they were well on their way to a victory in game two as the Scarlet Knights held a 7-0 fifth-inning lead. However, the Hoosiers stormed back and scored eight unanswered, including Erin Lehman's game-winning RBI single to score Katelyn Conenna in the bottom of the seventh. In game three, the Scarlet Knights jumped out to an 8-2 lead, but it looked like another Indiana comeback was in the works as a grand slam by Conenna - her first homer of her career - made in 8-6 in the bottom of the fifth. Rutgers added two more runs in the sixth and with two Indiana runners on base and two outs, the game was called due to Rutgers' travel schedule.
The Hoosiers traveled to Lexington, Ky. on March 18 for a mid-week battle with No. 13 Kentucky. Indiana got on the board first with an RBI single by Kelsey Dotson in the first inning before Kentucky responded with three runs in the bottom of the frame. The Hoosiers matched the Wildcats hit-for-hit with seven base knocks and allowed only one more run in the final five innings, but ultimately dropped the game to Kentucky, 4-1.
LOOKING AT LOUISVILLE
The Cardinals are off to an 18-8 start, including an impressive 8-1 conference record. Conference wins include series sweeps against Georgia Tech and Virginia, as well as a 2-1 record against North Carolina. Louisville has played a couple other Big Ten schools the season, dropping a 4-2 decision to Minnesota on Feb. 7 and picking up two wins against Ohio State on March 18.
Louisville has a pair of Cardinals hitting above .400 in Maryssa Becker and Kelsi Jones, who picked up ACC Player of the Week accolades last week after hitting .556 and scoring nine runs in six games. The Cardinals pitching staff is led by Becker and Shelby McCombs, who combine for a 2.64 ERA.
Indiana defeated the Cardinals last season at Andy Mohr Field, 8-3, in a game that saw the Hoosiers jump out to an 8-0 fourth-inning lead. The win snapped a 10-year drought for Indiana against Louisville.
DOTSON'S BIG YEAR
Junior Kelsey Dotson has had a fast start to her season, hitting .329 with 28 hits - including six homers and six doubles - 11 runs, 27 RBI and 16 walks. For comparison, through 32 games last season, Dotson was hitting .211 with 12 hits, five runs and nine RBI. She finished the 2014 year with 30 hits (five homers and six doubles), 11 runs, 23 RBI and 13 walks.
BLITZ ATTACK
Indiana freshmen Rebecca Blitz had a big week, picking up four hits, three runs, two RBI and two walks in the series against Rutgers. Blitz' patience at the plate paid off in a big way in Indiana's 8-7 victory on Saturday as she drew a bases-loaded walk to tie the game at 7-7. In that game, she went 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBI.
Blitz currently leads the team in hits (36) and runs scored (21).
GRAND OLE TIME
Conenna's grand slam against the Scarlet Knights on Sunday marked the third time this season a Hoosier has gone yard with the bases loaded. Doston hit one in Indiana's 15-7 win against Lehigh on Feb. 27 while Shannon Cawley earned hers in a 9-5 loss to North Dakota State on March 16.
Indiana is fifth in the conference with 28 homers on the year, which is only two shy of the 30 home runs the team hit all of last season. In total, 10 different Hoosiers have homered so far this year.
COMEBACK KIDS
Indiana's 8-7 comeback win on Saturday tied with last season's 7-run deficit at Ohio State as the biggest comeback in the last 20 years in Indiana's history. For the season, Indiana has scored 29 runs in the sixth inning, second only to 32 third-inning runs. On the other side of the ball, Indiana's pitching and defense has shined in the late innings, with opponents scoring 23 runs in the sixth and 15 in the seventh inning, the lowest two totals of all seven innings.
1,000 PROGRAM WINS
Indiana's 9-2 win against IPFW on March 15 marked the 1,000th program win for the Hoosiers. Since the program began in 1974, Indiana has an all-time record of 1001-989-8.
TV TIME
Both games of Indiana's doubleheader with Purdue on April 8 will be shown on the Big Ten Network. In addition, seven Hoosier games will be available live on BTN Plus, a subscription-based web platform.
TUNE IN AND LISTEN UP
Every 2015 Indiana softball game will be broadcasted LIVE on IUHoosiers.com with Will Chukerman on the call. In addition, fans can also follow along with GameTracker, just click on the appropriate link in the schedule.
WHAT ELSE IS ON TAP FOR 2015?
The Hoosiers will face off in their first road conference series this weekend with a three-game set at Illinois. Other Big Ten road battles include Penn State, Michigan and Ohio State. At home, Indiana will play host to Maryland, Purdue and Michigan State.
Remaining non-conference matchups for the Hoosiers include Ball State (April 21) and Indiana State (April 28).
The 2015 Big Ten Tournament will take place May 7-10 in Columbus, Ohio.
Media Contact: Caitlin Davis, davis288@indiana.edu
