May 6, 2001
The Purdue baseball team its second game over the Indiana State Sycamores on Sunday, an 8-2 victory at Lambert Field. Dave Gassner picked up his sixth win of the year as Purdue improved to 28-20.
Purdue got three runs in the second inning, and held a 3-0 lead until Indiana State scored a run in the fifth. Nate Sickler walked to lead off the inning, then stole second. After Kris Luce struck out, John Gusich picked up his second hit of the day, a sharp single to center field, which scored Sickler from second. Brad Kriner and Mike Duursma both walked to load the bases. Gusich then scored on a Daniel Underwood sacrifice fly. Kriner scored in the next at-bat, off a wild pitch by Indiana State starting pitcher Travis Soppe.
Purdue led 3-1 after five and a half, before scoring one more run in the bottom of the sixth inning. Sickler walked for the second time of the game, with one out. Gusich singled to center, his third hit of the game, advancing Sickler to second. After Kriner reached base on a fielding error by the shortstop, loading the bases for the second time in the game, Duursma was walked, scoring Sickler.
The Boilermakers held a 4-1 lead before adding four more insurance runs in its final inning at the plate. Luce led off the inning with his first hit of the game, a single to right field. Gusich followed with a walk. Luce was forced out at third on a Kriner bunt, with Kriner being safe at first on the fielder's choice. Duursma reached base on a fielding error by the second baseman, loading the bases for the third time of the day. Underwood came to bat, and drilled his seventh double of the season to left field, clearing the bases and giving Purdue a commanding 7-1 lead. Underwood scored on a Dave Blomberg single to left field.
Indiana State scored a run in the ninth, but Billy Lester and Adam Green combined to shut down the Sycamores in the ninth, giving Purdue an 8-2 win.
Dave Gassner, who earned Big Ten pitcher of the week honors last week, was dominant once again. He finished with eight innings pitched, yielding just the one run in the fifth and striking out three. He improves to 6-4.
The Boilermakers have two midweek games before their final weekend series against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Tuesday, Purdue travels to Chicago State for a 3 p.m. game with the Cougars. The Boilermakers return home Thursday to host in-state rival Evansville at 3 p.m. at Lambert Field.
NOTES - The Boilermakers still stand in second place in the Big Ten standings after Ohio State has taken 2-out-of-3 so far this weekend from Indiana ... Purdue (16-6) currently trails Ohio State (17-6) by a half game, as the Buckeyes conclude their series at Indiana tomorrow ... In the three-game series with the Sycamores, Purdue put runners on base in 24 of 26 innings ... In today's series finale, the six through nine spots of the Purdue lineup were a combined 4-for-12 with four walks and five runs scored ... Gusich's three hits give him his third game of the season with at least three hits ... McIntyre picked up his 70th hit of the season, 13 hits away from establishing a new single-season record ... Underwood's four RBI were the second time this season he had at least four RBI in a game ... Gassner has only given up earned runs in three of his last 29 innings, allowing only four earned runs over that span (1.24 ERA).