April 20, 2005
IOWA CITY – The University of Iowa baseball team defeated the North Dakota State Bison, 4-1, Wednesday night at Banks Field.
The Hawkeyes (15-16, 8-4) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Skyler Moss singled and moved to second when Andy Lytle walked. Both runners moved up on a wild pitch, and Moss came home on an RBI groundout from Nate Yoho.
Neither team could generate much offense until the Hawkeye bats briefly woke up in the fifth, scoring three runs on three hits on a Bison error. Moss started things off with a leadoff double, Lytle walked, and Yoho got his second RBI with a double down the rightfield line. Dusty Napoleon ripped a single that scored Lytle, while a Brian Burmester groundout plated Yoho for the third run.
North Dakota State managed a run in the top of the sixth, but the Hawkeye bullpen clamped down the rest of the way to close out the game.
Senior Jeff Maitland made his return to the hill after missing all of last season with an elbow injury and threw well, allowing one hit over three innings and striking out three. Senior Brian Furlong saw his first action of the year, picking up the win in an inning of hitless relief. Freshman Ben Geelan threw a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth to get his first save.
Moss was the only Hawkeye with multiple hits, going 2-of-3.
Iowa returns to action this Friday when it kicks off a four-game weekend series with Penn State. Friday’s opener starts at 6 p.m.