Indiana University Athletics
Indiana Closes Out Regular Season at OSU
4/30/2015 2:17:00 PM | Softball
| Indiana (17-35, 7-11 B1G) at Ohio State (26-21, 9-11 B1G) | |
| Date | May 1-3 |
| Location | Buckeye Field • Columbus, Ohio |
| Game 1 (Friday) | 6 p.m. ET | GameTracker | Listen Live |
| Game 2 (Friday) | 2 p.m. ET | GameTracker | Listen Live |
| Game 3 (Sunday) | 4 p.m. ET | GameTracker | BTN | Listen Live |
| Game Notes | Indiana |
| Social Media | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram |
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana softball heads to Columbus, Ohio this weekend to close out the regular season with a three-game set against the Buckeyes beginning on Friday evening.
With a combination of Indiana's series win against Michigan State and Wisconsin dropping a pair of games to Minnesota on Wednesday, the Hoosiers clinched a berth in next week's Big Ten Tournament in Columbus.
Stay tuned to IUHoosiers.com and @IUSoftball for all the latest news and info from Ohio State.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hoosiers traveled to Indiana State on Tuesday for the final non-conference game of the season. Despite junior Kelsey Dotson's 13 home run of the season, Indiana fell to the Sycamores in six innings, 9-1.
Indiana closed out the home portion of the 2015 schedule with a three-game set against Michigan State over the weekend. Due to inclement weather on Saturday, the two teams played a doubleheader on Friday with the day resulting in a split.
In game one, the Hoosiers scored a season-high 16 runs in a 16-9 victory. Senior Shannon Cawley scored four of the runs, tying the single-game program record. The barrage of runs included a nine-run sixth inning, which is the most the Hoosiers have scored in a single inning this season. Despite junior Michelle Huber's first career grand slam, Indiana dropped game two to the Spartans, 9-8. Sunday's finale also marked Senior Day for Lora Olson, Miranda Tamayo and Bri Meyer as the three suited up for the final time at Andy Mohr Field. Led by Olson's fantastic outing in the circle and multiple hit games from four Hoosiers, including a 3-for-3 outing by sophomore Erin Lehman, the Hoosiers clinched the series with a 10-4 victory.
SCOUTING THE BUCKEYES
After dropping the first four conference games of the season, Ohio State responded with a 9-7 mark since March 27 loss against Maryland. The Buckeyes have taken series from Maryland, Rutgers and Michigan State, who they swept in East Lansing.
Ohio State's offense has 11 different players batting above .300, led by a .383 average by Erika Leonard. Seven Buckeyes have recorded at least 40 hits with Caitlin Conrad sitting at 60 on the year. With 62 long balls, Ohio State sits in fifth place in the conference in home runs. Maddy McIntyre, who is second in the Big Ten with a .545 on-base percentage, has hit 14 homers.
Olivia O'Reilly has the most appearances in the circle with 32, including 27 starts. O'Reilly has a 4.57 ERA with a 12-9 mark. Shelby Hursh (29 appearances, 5.58 ERA, 6-4) and Lena Springer (25 appearances, 6.62 ERA, 6-5) have also seen a lot of time in the rotation.
The two teams met in a battle in Bloomington last season. Indiana picked up the comeback win in game one on a walk-off grand slam by Dotson. The Hoosiers came back from seven runs down, marking the largest comeback in 20 years. However, the Buckeyes won both games of the next day's doubleheader in five innings to capture the series.
CAREER WEEKEND
During Indiana's three-game series with Michigan State, numerous Hoosiers either tied or bested single-game career highs. New marks include:
•Senior Shannon Cawley -> 4 runs in game one
•Sophomore Erin Lehman -> 2 walks in game one
•Junior Michelle Huber -> 4 RBI in game two
•Junior Kelsey Dotson -> 3 runs in game three
Ties in career highs include:
•Freshman Rachel O'Malley -> 2 hits in game one
•Sophomore Erin Lehman -> 3 hits in game three
•Sophomore CaraMia Tsirigos -> 2 hits each in game one and two
In addition, with a win on Sunday, Olson now sits in a 7th-place tie with Janelle Campbell and Mariangee Bogado for career program victories at 39.
LEHMAN LIGHTING EM UP
The sophomore has been on a tear lately, carrying a six-game hitting streak into this weekend's series at Ohio State. Since last week's game at Ball State, Lehman is hitting .647 with 11 hits, seven runs, five RBI, three walks and three doubles in six games played (didn't play in game one against Purdue). Her big week includes two 3-for-3 outings (Ball State and game three of Michigan State).
DOTSON DIGGING IN
Also with an impressive showing last week was Dotson, who hit .524 with 11 hits, 9 runs, 9 RBI, five walks, three home runs and two doubles. Dotson has recorded hits in seven out of the last eight games, including her current four-game hitting streak. In addition, she has safely reached base in eight straight games. In Sunday's finale against the Spartans, she went 2-for-3 with three runs, two RBI, a walk, a double and a home run.
BLITZING THE DEFENSE
Blitz is the lone Hoosier to start in all 52 games this season. The centerfielder not only makes spectacular plays in the outfield, she also gives the opponent's defense a tough assignment. The Birmingham, Ala. native leads the team with 55 base knocks and has scored 40 runs starting primarily in the lead-off spot.
TSIRIGOS HEATING UP
Sparked by her grand slam against Penn State on April 11, sophomore CaraMia Tsirigos has picked up a hit in nine out of the last 12 games. During Sunday's game against Michigan State, Tsirigos went 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI. In the first 40 games Tsirigos played this season, she batted .189 with 14 hits and 10 RBI, however in the last 12 games, she has batted .323 with 10 hits, six runs and 11 RBI to raise her average to .229 on the year.
HOOSIERS DIG THE LONG BALL
With Tsirigos' grand slam on April 11 at Penn State, Indiana set a new program single-season record for home runs with 41. The previous high of 40 was set back in 2006.
Led by Dotson's 13 home runs, 10 different Hoosiers have homered this season. With a first-career grand slam by Huber in game two against Michigan State, the Hoosiers have now recorded six bases-loaded homers this season. Dotson, Conenna, Tsirigos and Shannon Cawley (2) have also smashed grand slams this year.
IMPRESSIVE HITTING
In addition to the program's home record, the 2015 Hoosiers sit near the top of numerous statistical categories, including ranking second in runs (276, record is 328), RBI (246, record is 278) and walks (178, record is 209). In addition, the team currently sits at seventh all-time in hits with 414.
WHAT ELSE IS ON TAP FOR 2015?
After closing out the regular season at Ohio State, the Hoosiers will venture back to Columbus for the Big Ten Tournament, beginning May 7.
Media Contact: Caitlin Davis, davis288@indiana.edu
