Indiana Baseball: Mathison, Doanes Home Runs Help Hoosiers Beat Indiana State

Indiana trailed by four runs entering the ninth inning of its game with Indiana State on Tuesday, but rallied behind home runs from Carter Mathison and Tyler Doanes to win 6-5 in Terre Haute, Ind.

Indiana was in a deep hole Tuesday when coach Jeff Mercer called on freshman slugger Carter Mathison to pinch hit in the ninth inning. Indiana State reliever Joey Hurth left a pitch up in the zone, and Mathison made him pay with a three-run home run.

Mathison's homer, his seventh of the season, tied the game and kept the lineup moving for West Virginia transfer Tyler Doanes. The Indiana second baseman followed Mathison's lead, launching a home run over the left center field wall to put Indiana ahead. Reliever Braydon Tucker struck out two Sycamores in the bottom of the ninth to secure a 6-5 win for Indiana, moving the Hoosiers' record to 13-18.

Freshman Carter Mathison hit one from Terre Haute to Plainfield to tie the game with two outs in the 9th. A 3 run shot. pic.twitter.com/snJUwpFq2z

— Martha the Mop Lady (@TheMopLady) April 13, 2022

The Indiana bats were quiet most of the night, with just one hit entering the ninth inning. The only Hoosier to touch home plate in the first eight innings was Doanes, who scored on a Peter Serruto groundout in the third inning. Indiana's top three hitters struck out a combined eight times on Tuesday, and it took a pair of lead off walks in the ninth to kickstart a comeback. 

The story of Indiana's season has been giving up early leads, as seen by its 7.26 team ERA, and the same was true on Tuesday. Starting pitcher John-Biagio Modugno allowed five hits and three earned runs in two innings of work before Mercer handed the ball to Ty Bothwell out of the bullpen. 

Bothwell kept the Hoosiers in the game, allowing one run on three hits across four innings. And once Mathison and Doanes gave the Hoosiers the lead in the ninth with a pair of clutch home runs, it was time for Tucker to record his third save of the season. Tucker started the inning by striking out Grant Magill and ended the game with a punch out against pinch hitter Jackson Taylor to end the game. 

This win gave the Hoosiers their fourth road win of the season and could build some momentum for a five-game road trip beginning on Friday at Rutgers. Indiana will play a three-game weekend series with the Scarlet Knights before a pair of midweek tilts at Miami of Ohio and Cincinnati on April 19 and 20.

The Hoosiers won't return to Bart Kaufman Field until April 22 when they begin a weekend series with Nebraska at 7 p.m. ET.