Maryland baseball falls to Indiana in series opener, 15-4

The Terps appeared they would get through the eighth inning cleanly, needing just one more out to get out of the frame. But an RBI line drive from Nick Mitchell into the right field sparked a two-out rally.

Mitchell’s RBI was one of four runs to score in the eighth inning — the Hoosiers’ second four-run inning of the game.

Indiana’s big inning late allowed it to cruise to a 15-4 victory over Maryland baseball on Friday, taking game one of the weekend series in College Park.

The Terps (21-9, 3-4 Big Ten) had been prone to big late-inning comebacks all season, but eight runs in the game’s final two innings proved too much for Maryland to overcome. The loss resulted in just the Terps’ second loss at home all season and the first time they’ve had a losing conference record since the start of the 2021 season.

Maryland scored the game’s first run. Then, Indiana (17-14, 2-2 Big Ten) immediately responded, opening the second inning with three consecutive hits to tie the game — the last a Joey Brenczewski RBI single.

The Hoosiers’ lineup exploded in the third inning, scoring four runs to take a commanding 5-1 lead. Mitchell and Brenczewski got the big inning started with a pair of run-scoring knocks. A costly passed ball scored another run. Jake Stadler’s double, Indiana’s second two-base hit of the frame, continued the scoring.

Brenczewski entered the day batting just under .300 on the season with 18 RBIs. The redshirt freshman did most of the Hoosiers’ offensive damage early on in Friday’s game. Despite not ranking top three on the team in either category, he finished the game 4-5 with three RBIs.

Brenczewski continued to terrorize Maryland starter Kenny Lippman in the fifth inning. His third hit off the right-hander pushed Indiana’s run total to six against Lippman.

After Lippman’s worst start of the season against Michigan in his prior outing, he bounced back with a longer outing — pitching six innings — but allowed six earned runs. Lippman hasn’t looked the same since his excellent beginning to this season, as the start against Indiana marked the third time in his last four outings he’s allowed at least five runs.

“Kenny’s got to be better, it’s as simple as that,” coach Matt Swope said. “We gotta have a better start out of him.”

While not perfect, Lippman’s long outing was crucial for the Terps’ bullpen, as the unit had been leaned on heavily in the past few games due to short outings from the starting pitching.

The bullpen fared poorly in just three innings of relief. Three arms allowed nine more Indiana runs to blow the game open for the Hoosiers. 

Ty Bothwell started for Indiana, entering the game with a 4.93 ERA. Bothwell faced immediate damage but responded well, putting in one of his best outings of the season. He tied a season-high in innings pitched with six and struck out seven.

“That guy is good,” Swope said. “He’s been pitching for five years [and] his ERA isn’t great, but he’s a pitcher. He’s good.”

Bothwell has struggled in his recent outings, but his performance Friday night allowed the Hoosiers to stay ahead of the Terps nearly all game.

Maryland’s lone lead was when it struck in the opening frame. Eddie Hacopian got the Terps on the board, blasting an 0-2 two-out pitch off the scoreboard in left field for a solo home run.

The Terps showed their mental toughness and resilience and responded with a three-run inning in the fourth after going down by four.

An Indiana error to begin the frame allowed Sam Hojnar to advance safely on a dropped third strike. Jacob Orr capitalized on the Hoosiers’ mistake by singling through the right side to score Hojnar. A sacrifice fly from Alex Calarco and a Jordan Crosland’s RBI single to center pulled the Terps to within one.

“I thought we did a good job punching back,” Swope said. “I think maybe the last stand was Hojnar’s rod to right in the seventh … he hits a homer right there, it’s tied, and the other night, we win it. That’s just baseball right there.”

Then, Indiana’s bullpen shutdown Maryland’s bats. Three Hoosier relievers combined to shutout the Terps over the final five innings to claim the win.