April 3, 2009
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WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – The Iowa Hawkeye baseball team slugged past the Purdue Boilermakers, 15-7, in the weekend series opener Friday afternoon at Lambert Field. Iowa plated 15 runs, five each in the second and ninth innings, on 18 hits en route to its 11th overall and second Big Ten triumph. Today’s offensive output was Iowa’s second-highest scoring and hitting performance of the season. The Hawkeyes scored 25 runs on 25 hits at Tennessee-Martin earlier this season.
Six Hawkeyes registered multiple hits and Iowa’s 1-4 hitters combined for 10-20 (.500) with two walks, six RBI and five runs scored. In total, Iowa hitters pounded out a season-high eight doubles, two each by Wes Freie and Chett Zeise.
Justin Toole went 4-for-5, collected two RBI, one walk and three runs. Toole extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a double in the fourth inning. Also, today marked his second game this year the senior had four hits in a contest. Zeise had 2-for-5 with a career-high four RBI, two runs and a walk. Ryan Durant went 3-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored. T.J. Cataldo was only 1-for-2, but walked a career-high four times and also scored three runs and had an RBI. The four walks ties the school record, which has occurred eight previous times. Nate Price was the last Hawkeye to accomplish the feat, vs. North Dakota State in 2006.
The visitors led off the second, third, fourth and sixth innings with doubles to left field. The Hawkeyes were able to cash in those leadoff two-baggers in the second, third and sixth innings.
Iowa jumped out to a 5-0 lead with five early runs in the top of the second off Purdue ace Matt Bischoff. The Hawkeyes sent nine batters to the plate, scoring the five runs on four hits and one Boilermaker error. Zeise had an RBI double, Durant recorded an RBI single, Toole walked with the bases loaded, Kevin Hoef collected a sacrifice fly and Durant scored on a pass ball. Bischoff got the loss, his second of the year; allowing eight runs, six of which were earned.
After allowing two runs in the bottom of the second, Iowa plated its one run in the top of the third on a Durant sacrifice fly to right field to make the score 6-2.
The Hawkeyes padded their lead to 8-2 in the sixth, with a pair of runs. Kody McManis, who entered the game in the first inning after starting catcher Dallas Burke left the game after a foul ball was fouled off his right hand, recorded his first hit of the year with a double off the left center field fence. Toole then singled up the middle to collect his 16th RBI of the season. Two batters later, Toole was driven home by Freie on an RBI groundout to second base.
Purdue (11-12, 1-2) chipped away at the Hawkeye advantage with two runs on three hits, two of which were extra base hits, in the bottom of the sixth.
Nick Brown, who went five and a third, allowed four runs on eight hits and striking out four. After allowing two early runs, Brown settled down and recorded his second victory of the year, including his first Big Ten win.
Iowa got back its two runs it surrendered in the bottom of the sixth in the top of the seventh to re-claim a six-run cushion (10-4). Hoef hit a sacrifice fly to plate Durant. Later in the frame, Kurtis Muller registered Iowa’s sixth double of the game to left center to score Toole from third base.
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With the win, Iowa evened its 2009 Big Ten Conference record to 2-2. The Hawkeyes and Boilermakers will play two games Saturday in West Lafayette.
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The Hawkeyes plated five additional runs in the ninth on five hits to put the game out of reach, 15-4. The inning featured a Zeise base clearing three-RBI double off the right field fence, a Cataldo bases loaded walk, his fourth of the game, and a Trevor Willis RBI single.
Steve Turnbull relieved Brown in the sixth inning, throwing three and a third, allowing three runs and three hits. Today’s performance was Turnbull’s longest outing of the year. Turnbull, ultimately, ran out of gas and Kevin Lee was inserted and recorded the final out. Purdue scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth.
Due to expected inclement weather in West Lafayette Sunday, Iowa and Purdue will play a doubleheader Saturday at Lambert Field, starting at 11 a.m. (CDT).
GAME SUMMARYIowa 051 002 205 -- 15 18 0Purdue 020 002 003 -- 7 11 2
WP - Brown (2-1)LP - Bischoff (2-2)