March 30, 2008
ANN ARBOR, MI — The Iowa baseball team lost 3-2 Sunday in the nightcap of a doubleheader at Ray Fisher Stadium against the No. 25 Michigan Wolverines. Despite the rainy and cold Ann Arbor weather, Iowa scattered five hits and fell to 7-12 and 0-4 in the Big Ten. Michigan got their first Big Ten sweep of the year, improving to 13-6 and 4-0 in the conference.
Tony Manville started on the hill for the Hawkeyes and held the Michigan offense off balance for three scoreless innings in his second start as a Hawkeye. He allowed two runs, one of them earned, on six hits in four innings. The Iowa bullpen consisted of: Kyle Heim, Steve Turnbull and Andrew Porter. Turnbull got the loss.
To lead Iowa, Kevin Hoef went 1-for-4 with and scored a run. Justin Toole also scored a run and was 1-for-4. T.J. Cataldo was 1-for-4 and with a RBI.
The Hawkeyes came out in the top of the first and swung their bats with authority. The Black and Gold scored two runs on three hits. With an altered lineup, Toole led things off for the Hawkeyes with a single up the middle. Hoef continued things with another single up the middle. Caleb Curry loaded the bases after getting hit by Travis Smith pitch for Wes Freie. Freie hit into a fielders choice to the third baseman, and on the play Toole scored while Hoef moved to third. Cataldo added another run to the scoreboard with a RBI-single through the right side to score Hoef.
The Wolverines were off the board until the bottom of the fourth, when Alan Oaks hit a two-run shot to right field to tie it up, 2-2.
Michigan took a 3-2 lead in bottom of the seventh, on a Nate Recknagel RBI single through the left side.
“This weekend comes down to us needing to swing the bat better,” Coach Jack Dahm said. “We have older guys in big situations and we need them to perform for us. Our juniors and seniors need to play like their older and more experienced.”
The Hawkeyes’ next competition will be April 1, an exhibition game against the Iowa Cubs in Des Moines. The I-Cubs are the AAA affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. First pitch is set for 6 p.m.
Game Summary
Iowa 200 000 000 - 2 5 1
Michigan 000 200 100 - 3 10 0
WP - Jenzen (1-0)LP - Turnbull (0-3)