Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Indiana
Baseball Team Splits With Indiana Again
4/9/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 9, 2000
EVANSTON, Ill. - Led by a gutty pitching performance from senior Dan Padgett, the Northwestern baseball team gained a split with Indiana for the second day in a row in Bloomington. After dropping the opener 10-3, NU won an 8-7 thriller in Game 2.
With the split the Wildcats moved to 15-14 overall, 2-6 in the Big Ten.
Padgett, a lefthander, went the distance and threw a total of 175 pitches to gain the win. In a back-and-forth game, Indiana drew within a run and loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, but on a 2-1 pitch Dan Haegele popped one up and NU shortstop Jeremy Kurella gloved it to secure the win.
It was a rousing victory for the Wildcats, as the Hoosiers scored three runs in the first inning and looked like they might run away with it as they had in Game 1.
Northwestern came back with two runs on four hits in the second inning, though, then manufactured a run in the fourth to tie it. Kris Musselman led off with a single, advanced to second on a groundout by Travis Tharp, then reached third when Kurella bunted his way on. J.P. Williamson then roped a grounder that the IU third baseman barely stopped, allowing Musselman to score.
Indiana responded with two runs in the bottom of the inning, but Padgett got out of a major jam when, with runners on first and third and one out, Indiana attempted a double steal that was thwarted as Benji Clause was thrown out at home. One pitch later, Padgett set down Rich Berich.
Northwestern took its first lead in the fifth, scoring three runs including a two-run homer from Musselman. Indiana again tied it in the bottom half, but in the sixth J.P. Williamson went the opposite way for a home run to make the score 7-6. In the seventh, Wesley Robinson and Brandon Ackley led off with singles, and two batters later Frank Favia scored pinch runner Andy Adams with a sacrifice fly that brought home what proved to be the winning run.
In Game 1, J.J. Standring was tagged for seven runs in a little more than two innings, as IU took control with three runs in the second and six in the third on eight hits including six for extra bases. The crushing blow was a 2-run homer by Vasilli Spanos in the third.
Michael Nall also pitched for Northwestern, going 3.2 innings and allowing three runs and five hits.
Northwestern will be home for the next six games, hosting Wisconsin-Milwaukee Tuesday afternoon and Wisconsin-Parkside Wednesday. First pitch for both games is set for 3 p.m. Central.
