Pitching Leads Hawkeyes to 6-1 Victory Over K-State

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April 12, 2013

Box Score

• Iowa vs. Kansas State Baseball Highlights from the 6-1 Iowa win Friday

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IOWA CITY, Iowa — Senior Matt Dermody and sophomore Nick Hibbing combined to hold Kansas State to one run on seven hits, leading the University of Iowa baseball team to a 6-1 win Friday at Duane Banks Field.

Dermody and Hibbing paired up to shut down a Wildcat offense that entered the contest ranked fourth-nationally in hitting with a .330 team average.

“Everyone knows that is a very talented offensive team, but it was a great day to pitch,” said UI head coach Jack Dahm. “Matt took advantage of it. He went after guys with his fastball and located pretty well. He was a lot more aggressive and confident today. Nick also did a very good job for us, and it was good to see.”

Dermody started on the mound, collecting his sixth win of the season. The Norwalk, Iowa, native scattered five hits over six innings, allowing one run and striking out five. Hibbing tossed the final three innings, holding Kansas State without a run. The Lindenhurst, Ill., native allowed two hits and struck out three en route to his team-best third save of the season.

The Hawkeye offense provided plenty of run support, tallying six runs on 11 hits. The 11 hits marked the sixth straight game Iowa has recorded a double-digit total. Sophomore Taylor Kaufman led the effort, going 3-of-4 with two runs and two RBIs. Classmate Ryan Rumpf, who started his first game since the season-opener against Austin Peay on Feb. 15, also posted a multi-hit performance, going 2-of-3 with a pair of RBIs.

“We strung some hits together, and it was good to see Kaufman deliver with runners in scoring position,” Dahm said. “It’s surely but slowly starting to come.”

After falling behind 1-0 on Jared King’s RBI double to left centerfield in the third inning, the Hawkeyes took the lead with two runs in the fourth.

With one out, junior Trevor Kenyon got things started with a double to right center before Kaufman followed with a single to right field to put runners on the corners. Senior Keith Brand executed a sacrifice bunt down the third base line to even the game at one. Rumpf followed with an RBI single to right field — his first hit of the season — to give Iowa a 2-1 advantage.

Iowa broke the game open in the fifth, scoring four runs on four hits and sending nine batters to the plate. With one out, sophomore Eric Toole reached on a walk before stealing second base and advancing to third via a Kenyon fly out. Kaufman followed Kenyon with a two-run single to right field, plating Toole and sophomore Kris Goodman. Rumpf scored Kaufman with an RBI single of his own, before sophomore Jake Mangler drove in the fourth run of the inning and gave the Hawkeyes a 6-1 advantage with an RBI single through the left side.

The Hawkeyes (12-16) return to Duane Banks Field for the second of a three-game series tomorrow beginning at 1:05 p.m. (CT).