IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa baseball team defeated Upper Iowa, 16-0, in seven innings on Tuesday night at Duane Banks Field.
The Hawkeyes used a 12 run first inning to pull away and the pitching put up a zero as Iowa would tack on four more runs to end the game early.
“Really impressive how we came out offensively,” said Heller. “Had nine two out RBIs in a row. Just barrel after barrel after barrel. Guys were locked in. Petersen had the grand slam, and Dorighi hit some balls. Did a lot of damage really quick.”
Three Hawkeyes had three or more RBIs in the contest. Brennen Dorighi was 2-for-2 with three RBIs, Raider Tello was 0-for-2 with two walks and brought home three RBIs as well, and Sam Petersen was 1-for-2 with a grand slam.
Michael Seegers added two RBIs and four other Hawkeyes also brought in a run.
Zach Voelker got his first start for Iowa and earned the win. He threw two innings and allowed one hit and one walk. Five other Hawkeyes saw action out of the bullpen and allowed just three hits while striking out eight.
“Pitching staff for the most part did a really nice job,” said Heller. “They limited free bases. Four hit shutout. Defensively we were solid. We got everybody in the game, and that was as good as you can draw it up.”
Of Note
- Iowa improves to 30-10 on the season and are now 16-2 at Duane Banks Field.
- This win marks the eighth time in the Rick Heller era that the program has won 30 or more games. Iowa has had 30 or more wins in each of the “non-COVID” seasons under Heller (2020 and 2021 were altered because of the pandemic).
- The grand slam for Petersen was the sixth of the Hawkeyes season. Petersen has six home runs including two grand slams.
- The Hawkeyes recorded nine two out RBIs in a row in the first inning. Iowa has 111 two out RBIs on the year.
- Heller spent 12 years as the head coach at Upper Iowa (1987-99), recording a 291-194-3 overall record and being named the Iowa Conference Coach of the Year four times. As a player at Upper Iowa from 1982-86, he was a four-year starter at shortstop, and he also lettered in football and basketball. He is a member of the Upper Iowa Athletic Hall of Fame.
Up Next
The Hawkeyes face Penn State at 4 p.m. (CT) in State College, Pennsylvania. The game will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network and the Hawkeye Radio Network.