Indiana State University Athletics recently issued the following announcement.
Late rally pushes Indiana past Sycamores on Tuesday
Indiana connected on back-to-back home runs in the top of the ninth inning as a part of a five-run comeback to spoil a strong start from Indiana State's Brennyn Cutts as the Sycamores fell on Tuesday night, 6-5.
Trailing 5-1 in the top of the ninth inning, Indiana (13-18) pushed across their first run of the frame on a Hunter Jessee RBI single back up the middle off ISU reliever Joey Hurth (4-2). Carter Mathison followed with a game-tying three-run home run over the fence in left center scoring Matthew Ellis and Jessee to tie the score up at 5-5 with two outs in the frame. Tyler Doanes made it back-to-back blasts with a solo shot over the left field fence before Jose Cabrera came in to retire the final Hoosier in the frame.
The Sycamores (19-9) had a chance to tie in the bottom of the ninth inning as Jordan Schaffer and Sean Ross both drew walks off Indiana reliever Braydon Tucker (S, 3). However, the senior right-hander was able to escape the jam with a final strikeout to end the Sycamore rally.
Brennyn Cutts was brilliant in his second start of the 2022 season for the Sycamores. The Greenup, Ill. native went 6.0 innings giving up just one hit and one run while striking out a career-high 10 batters in the no decision. Cutts was particularly dominant against the top of the Indiana lineup holding them to a 0-for-8 mark with seven strikeouts on the evening.
Randall Diaz continued to flash the hot bat at the plate for the Sycamores as the freshman third baseman went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and a solo home run. Aaron Beck added two hits, including a double, while Sean Ross added his fourth home run of the season in the loss.
Ryan Kraft (2-1) picked up the win after going 1.1 innings in relief. Ty Bothwell was notable out of the bullpen for the Hoosiers with 4.0 innings while allowing three hits and one run while striking out three.
How They Scored
Indiana State took the 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning as Aaron Beck (double), Randall Diaz (double), and Jordan Schaffer (double) all connected on extra-base hits in the inning to give the Sycamores the early advantage.
Indiana took one back in the top of the third as Tyler Doanes drew a leadoff walk and worked his way around the bases with a stolen base and a wild pitch. Peter Serruto's grounder to short brought him home to cut the ISU lead to 3-1.
Randall Diaz drilled a solo home run to left field to lead off the bottom of the fourth and extend the Sycamore lead back to 4-1.
Sean Ross made it a 5-1 game in the bottom of the eighth as the redshirt senior connected on his fourth home run of the 2022 campaign to left field to add to the Sycamore lead.
Indiana mounted a five-run comeback highlighted by home runs from Carter Mathison and Tyler Doanes to take the 6-5 win.
News & Notes
Josue Urdaneta connected on his team-leading third triple of the 2022 season and Indiana State's fifth in the last five games in the top of the first inning.
ISU entered the contest leading the Missouri Valley with nine triples of the season, while Urdaneta's three-bagger gave them an even 10 on the year.
Randall Diaz's solo shot in the bottom of the fourth inning marked his third home run in 2022 and first since March 25 against Memphis.
Sean Ross' solo home run in the eighth marked his fourth home run of the year, tying him with Josue Urdaneta for the team lead. It was Ross' second home run over the last week with his previous one coming on April 6 at Purdue.
The Sycamores have homered in six of the last seven games with 11 of their 24 home runs of the season coming during the stretch.
Randall Diaz's three-hit game marked the first three-hit game of his Indiana State career and his ninth multi-hit game of the season.
Aaron Beck's two-hit game marked his third multi-hit game of the season and 15th of his career.
Brennyn Cutts became the second Indiana State pitcher to reach double-digit strikeouts this season joining Jack Parisi (13 vs. Merrimack, Feb. 25). Cutts and Parisi both went 6.0 innings in their double-digit strikeout games.
Matt Gauer hurled a shutout seventh inning in his first action since March 25. Gauer has posted four scoreless appearances on the year.
Sean Ross' solo home run extended his hitting streak to 11 consecutive games, tying Seth Gergely for the second-longest hitting streak in the 2022 season.
The Sycamores recorded their 17th double-digit hits game of the season and fifth in the last six contests.
ISU's pitchers hit double-digit strikeouts for the second time in the last three games and eighth time in 2022 aided in large part by Cutts' 10-strikeout game.
Up Next
Indiana State remains at Bob Warn Field on Tuesday, April 19, as the Sycamores welcome the University of Illinois to Terre Haute for a single game. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. ET with the game set to be carried live on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up