Hoosiers Baseball Swept by Tar Heels to Begin Season

Indiana baseball has won at least 32 games each of the last three years, but for the second straight season, the Hoosiers lost their first three games after getting swept by North Carolina over the weekend.

However, if there's a silver lining in all of this, it's that the Hoosiers started last year 0-4 and still finished a respectable 32-24 in 2025.

Hoosiers swept by No. 11 Tar Heels

Indiana really wasn't in the first two games against No. 11 North Carolina, though. IU lost its season opener 9-4 before losing game one of its Saturday doubleheader 12-2.

The Hooisers' best shot at winning was in game two of its Saturday doubleheader, but ended up losing 4-3 in 11 innings.

In fact, IU was one out from winning the series finale, but second baseman Aiden Stewart muffed the throw to first on a routine grounder -- which would have ended the game -- and instead allowed UNC to score a pair of runs to tie the game, and later walk it off in the bottom of the 11th.

Indiana had the chance to end the game here in the 9th inning with two outs…

Instead, the University of North Carolina tied the game with two runs on this error, which sent it into extra innings — where UNC went on to win 4–3 😳

pic.twitter.com/HlUvjcVtQ6
— DraftKings Sportsbook (@DKSportsbook) February 15, 2026

Obviously, one play doesn't define a game, but there's no denying Stewart's throwing error really hurt Indiana.

Fortunately, there's a lot of baseball left for both IU and Stewart, so it's not like there's any need to panic. However, there's a lot Indiana needs to improve on moving forward.

Hoosiers defense makes five errors in opening series

Unfortunately, Stewart's throwing error in the series finale against UNC is going to get all the attention, but overall, Indiana's defense was an issue. The Hoosiers made five total errors against the Tar Heels, including a pair of two-error games.

You simply can't give good teams extra outs, and Indiana learned that the hard way against a potential College World Series team in North Carolina.

Overall Take

Opening up the year against a team of North Carolina's caliber is a tough task for any team, which is why I'm not all that concerned about IU moving forward. Yes, the bullpen, which allowed multiple runs in every game, and the defense need to improve, but there's still plenty of time for that to get corrected.

Offensively, Indiana needs to cut down on its strikeouts. The Hoosiers struck out 12+ times twice, but if IU can do that, the Hoosiers should be ok.

Next up for Indiana

Indiana's next game on Tuesday against Bradley also happens to be the Hoosiers home opener. First pitch against the Braves is at 4 p.m. (ET) and is scheduled to be televised on BIG+.

Don't forget to buy the SI Indiana National Championship Cover.