March 30, 2005
NORMAL, IL – The University of Iowa baseball team was defeated by Illinois State, 5-2, Wednesday at Redbird Field in Normal, IL. The Hawkeyes fell to 4-11, while Illinois State upped its record to 9-13.
The Hawkeye bats were mostly silent during the game, as Iowa managed only three hits on the day.
In the bottom of the second, Illinois State took a 2-0 lead off Iowa starter David Conroy with three singles and two sacrifice bunts.
The Hawkeyes took advantage of sloppy Redbird fielding in the top of the fifth to tie the score. Dusty Napoleon started things off by reaching on an error, then came around on a throwing error on Jason White’s grounder to second. A sacrifice bunt from Ryan Considine moved White to third, and he came home on a passed ball.
The Redbird’s scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the sixth on a RBI single off the bat of Kyle O’Brien. Illinois State added a pair of insurance runs in the eighth to take a 5-2 lead.
Sophomore Ryan Dupic took the loss despite throwing well. He allowed one run and four hits in three and 2/3 innings pitched, while striking out three.
The Hawkeyes will open the 2005 home season this weekend when they host Big Ten rival Michigan State in a four-game set. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 6 p.m.