April 24, 2016
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By JAMES ALLAN
hawkeyesports.com
IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa baseball team’s bats broke through and the Hawkeyes got seven strong innings from sophomore Nick Gallagher on the mound in an 8-3 victory over No. 18/21 Michigan in the series finale Sunday afternoon at Duane Banks Field.
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“I was proud of how the guys came out and played today after a couple of days where things didn’t go our way,” said UI head coach Rick Heller. “To bounce back like we did today with that kind of effort was tremendous. We got back to playing Hawkeye baseball.
“The big story for me was how we came out with positive energy and didn’t let the last two days get us down.”
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Iowa scored eight runs on 16 hits — a season-high in a Big Ten game this season. The hits came up-and-down the lineup with eight of the team’s nine starters collecting at least one hit. Senior Joel Booker finished 4-for-5 with two RBIs for his 16th multi-hit game and third four-hit game of the season.
Seniors Tyler Peyton (2-for-4), Nick Roscetti (2-for-5), and Daniel Aaron Moriel (2-for-5) all had two-hit games, while sophomore Corbin Woods was 2-for-3 with two runs scored in his second start in the last month.
The Hawkeyes trailed 2-0 when Gallagher entered in the second inning following a two-run home run from Wolverine designated hitter Dominic Jamett. The Iowa City, Iowa, native tossed six shutout innings and had three straight 1-2-3 innings in the sixth, seventh, and eighth frames before giving up his only run in the ninth.
Gallagher (5-2) earned his fifth victory, allowing six hits over seven innings, where he allowed one run and struck out a career-high seven batters. Freshman Zach Daniels got the final out with the bases loaded in the ninth to earn his second save.
“Gallagher was tremendous,” said Heller. “He had command of all his pitches, was aggressive, and went after their hitters against a good hitting team. He forced contact and I was really proud of him.”
The Hawkeyes cut their deficit in half in the third inning on a Booker RBI double, but a second run was nullified when Roscetti was thrown out at the plate for the third out. Iowa tied the game at two an inning later courtesy of an RBI double from senior John Barrett.
Iowa took its first lead of the day — and weekend — in the fourth, pushing three runs across the plate on four hits. Woods singled to lead off the inning before scoring on a one-out RBI single from Roscetti. Booker’s RBI single plated Iowa’s third run and a bases-loaded walk from freshman Luke Farley gave the Hawkeyes a 5-2 lead.
The Hawkeyes started the sixth with three-straight singles, including a Tyler Peyton base hit to center field to stretch Iowa’s lead to 6-2. Woods scored the seventh run on a double-play ball, extending the lead to 7-2.
Iowa loaded the bases in the seventh via a Mason McCoy single, an Eric Schenck-Joblinske double to center field, and a Robert Neustrom hit by pitch. Senior Jimmy Frankos tallied an RBI, wearing a Keith Lehmann pitch to give the Hawkeyes an 8-2 lead.
The Wolverines plated their third run in the ninth on a Jamett RBI single to centerfield and loaded the bases with two outs. Daniels got Matt Ramsey to fly out to centerfield to end the game and give Iowa its first victory over a ranked opponent this season.
Michigan starter Evan Hill (5-2) suffered the loss, allowing three runs on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings. He had two walks without a strikeout in the game. The Wolverines used seven different pitchers in the game.
Iowa (18-19, 7-8) returns to action Tuesday and Wednesday, hosting Grand View and Omaha in a pair of midweek contests. Game time is set for 6:05 p.m. (CT).
