May 1, 2010
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Indiana baseball team scored four runs with two out in the bottom of the ninth and pulled off a come-from-behind victory on a single from relief pitcher Chris Squires in the bottom of the 11th to knock off Purdue 12-11 at Sembower Field on Saturday.
The Hoosier victory evened the crucial three-game series at one win each and dropped the Boilermakers to 25-17 for the year and to 7-7 in the Big Ten. IU improved to 21-20 overall and into a tie with Purdue at 7-7 in the league race.
Trailing 11-6 after a seven-run Purdue fifth and a one-run sixth, IU rallied for a single run in the seventh on an Alex Dickerson solo home run to make it 11-7 before waiting until its final out in regulation to pull even.
The game-changing ninth started innocently enough with a leadoff single by Michael Earley off of reliever Matt Morgan followed by back-to-back pop ups from Josh Lyon and Tyler Rogers for the first two outs in the frame.
A catcher's indifference allowed Earley to reach second and an infield single to short by Brian Ritz placed runners on the corners with two down.
Morgan walked pinch hitter Blake Monar to load the bases and allowed a two-run single Micah Johnson to cut the four-run edge in half before ceding the mound to left-hander Matt Jansen.
IU pinch hitter Ethan Wilson rudely greeted Jansen with a game-tying, two-run double down the left field line to even things up at 11-11.
Jansen got Jerrud Sabourin to ground to short end the inning with the potential game-winning run at second and force the game into extra innings.
After a scoreless complete 10th and top of the 11th, IU's Rogers led off the home half of the frame with perfectly executed bunt single to second and advanced all the way to third on a sacrifice from Ritz when he found nobody covering the bag after third baseman Cameron Perkins had charged to field the bunt.
Hoosier pitcher Squires (4-1), who was forced to bat after IU lost its designated hitter in a multitude of pinch hitters and defensive replacements, helped himself pick up his fourth win of the season with a line-drive single that glanced just off the glove of a drawn-in Barrett Serrato at short for the game-winning hit.
The Boilermakers jumped out to the ill-fated edge with the huge fifth inning. Ryan Bridges swatted his first collegiate home run, a two-run shot to left, Kevin Plawecki added a two-run single and Bridges, Angelo Cianfrocco and Cameron Perkins chipped in with run-scoring base hits.
Plawecki also hit his seventh home run of the season, a solo shot in the second, to move into a tied with freshman classmate Perkins for the team lead.
Despite a 16-hit day from the Purdue offense, the Boilermakers still managed to stranding 16 runners on base in the one-run loss.
A day after tossing 2 1/3 scoreless innings out of the bullpen to earn his first save of the season, Jansen (2-4) was charged with the loss after allowing two runs on four hits in 1 2/3 innings pitched.
Purdue and Indiana will vie for the three-game series win and the Crimson and Gold Cup point in the rubber game on Sunday. First pitched is slated for 1 p.m. with right-hander Drew Wurdack the scheduled starter for Purdue.