April 16, 2008
OMAHA, NE – The Iowa baseball team scored eight straight runs in the middle innings en route to an 8-3 triumph over the Creighton Bluejays Wednesday night. The game was played in front of 2,207 fans at Rosenblatt Stadium. Iowa has now won five of its last six contests, including four straight.
Tonight was Iowa Head Coach Jack Dahm’s first game against his alma mater. Dahm spent 18 seasons at Creighton, four as a student-athlete and 14 as an assistant and head coach.
“We had a great approach, both on the mound and offensively,” Dahm said. “Zach (Kenyon) got us off to a tremendous start. Tonight was the best I’ve seen him throw.”
Eight different Hawkeyes recorded a hit in victory. Sparking the Hawkeyes, offensively, tonight were Kevin Hoef, Caleb Curry, Justin Toole and Kyle Riffel. Curry went 2-for-4 with a double and home run, collecting a season-best four RBI and scoring a run. Hoef went 2-for-4 and scored two runs. Curry and Hoef each have 14 multi-hit games to lead the Black and Gold this season. Curry also boasts a team-best, 10 multi-RBI performances. Toole went 1-for-4 with an RBI and two runs, while Riffel went 1-for-4 with an RBI and two runs.
Freshman Zack Kenyon made his fifth start, throwing four solid innings. The right-hander only yielded two runs, both unearned, to earn his first win. Earning his third win for the Hawkeyes tonight was junior Nick Erdman. Also throwing in relief tonight for the Hawkeyes were Kyle Heim, Steve Turnbull and Andrew Porter. Porter struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth to preserve the Hawkeye victory.
Creighton (24-11) scored an unearned run in the bottom of the first and second innings to grab an early 2-0 advantage. Both runs were scored on sacrifice flies.
Iowa (13-18) plated four runs in the top of the third to claim a 4-2 lead. Kody McManis and Justin Brauer started the frame with back-to-back singles. Hoef loaded the bases after being hit-by-a-pitch. Riffel singled to left, driving in McManis and his 25th RBI of the season. Two batters later, Curry followed with his seventh double of the year to right field, scoring both Brauer and Hoef. Kurtis Muller brought home Toole, and Iowa’s fourth run of the night, on a sacrifice fly to right.
Iowa scored another run in the top of the fifth to make it 5-2. Hoef lead-off with his sixth double of the season. Two batters later, Hoef scored on a throwing error by Creighton’s shortstop.
The Hawkeyes kept at it in the top of the sixth adding three unearned runs, all with two outs. After the first two Hawkeyes were retired, Riffel extended the inning by reaching base on a passed ball on a strikeout. Toole then doubled to left center to score Riffel. Curry then stepped to the plate and smacked his second home run of the season over the right field fence to give the Black and Gold an 8-2 cushion.
Iowa returns to conference action this weekend with a four-game series vs. Northwestern in Iowa City. Game one is slated for Friday at 6 p.m. at Duane Banks Field.
GAME SUMMARY Iowa 004 010 300 - 8 11 3Creighton 110 000 100 - 3 5 1
WP - Kenyon (1-1)LP - Roemmich (2-1)