U-M Splits Doubleheader With Indiana to Set Up Regular-Season Ending Rubber Match

Thursday, May 16

Bloomington, Ind.

1:00 PM

Michigan

30-24, 0

Indiana

28-22-1, 0

Michigan

Indiana

Collin Priest (Michigan Photography)

U-M Splits Doubleheader With Indiana to Set Up Regular-Season Ending Rubber Match

5/16/2024 9:02:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 PDF Boxscore (Game 1)PDF Boxscore (Game 2)Photo Gallery Photo Gallery 2

By: Conor Stemme

» Michigan split a doubleheader with Indiana, winning the opener 3-2 before falling 11-2 in game two.
» Collin Priest homered in both games to bring his season total to 10.
» Kurt Barr and Jacob Denner handled the pitching duties in game one with Denner earning his eighth win of the year in relief.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The University of Michigan baseball team split a doubleheader with Indiana on Thursday (May 16), winning a 3-2 pitchers' dual to open the series before falling 11-2 in the nightcap.

Michigan (30-25, 14-9 Big Ten) was led offensively by Collin Priest who homered in both games. His homer in the first game was the difference in U-M's win and his second-game homer accounted for both the Wolverines' runs. In game one, Kurt Bar drew the start and went 5.2 innings, allowing two runs and scattering six hits. Jacob Denner took over and pitched the final 3.1 innings to earn his eighth win of the season.

Indiana (29-22-1, 14-9 Big Ten) opened the scoring in game one with a leadoff home run to take a 1-0 lead, but Barr settled in and retired nine of the next 11 batters he faced.

The Wolverines offense used a two-out rally in the fourth to take the lead, putting a pair runners on after a Cole Caruso walk and Dylan Stanton single. Will Rogers hit a deep double to center field, scoring both runners and putting U-M in front 2-1. Barr fired a 1-2-3 inning in the fourth before giving up an RBI double in the fifth to tie the game at two. Both teams threatened over the next two inning but were unable to find the go-ahead run until the eighth.

Priest fell behind 0-2 but managed to work it full, then took the next pitch deep to right field for his ninth home run of the season and put the Wolverines ahead 3-2. Denner took the mound in relief of Barr in the sixth and retired the first four batters he faced. After facing just three batters in the eighth, assisted by a 4-6-3 double play, the Hoosiers opened the ninth with a leadoff double. Denner managed to stay under control and got a strikeout and groundout for two outs. After a hit by pitch, a flyout ended the game to give U-M the 3-2 series-opening win.

In game two, the Hooisers' bats awakened and scored 10 total runs over the first three innings -- four in the first, a pair in the second and four more in the third.

Jonathan Kim tallied the first U-M hit of game two with a leadoff double in the third inning and the Wolverines put their first, and only, runs on the board in the fifth on Priest's second home run of the day which scored Voit. Indiana scored a run in the bottom of the fifth to lead 11-2.

Wyatt Novara took the ball in the sixth and controlled the Hoosiers, allowing just two baserunners and striking out two. U-M could not take advantage and tallied just two hits -- a single and a double in the seventh and eighth, respectively.

Alexander Ogg and Sachem Ramos combined for a scoreless eighth, but the Wolverines were retired in order in the ninth to cap an 11-2 setback in game two.

Michigan will wrap up the series, and its regular-season schedule, against Indiana on Friday (May 17) at 6 p.m. at Bart Kaufman Stadium. The game will be streamed live on B1G+.