Indiana Baseball Eliminated From Big Ten Tournament With 10-4 Loss to Nebraska

Indiana lost 10-4 against Nebraska in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals on Saturday at Charles Schwab Field, eliminating the Hoosiers from the tournament.

Indiana huddles on the mound. / Indiana Athletics

Indiana's Big Ten Tournament run came to an end Saturday with a 10-4 loss to Nebraska.

The loss put Indiana outside the projected NCAA Tournament field, according to D1Baseball on Sunday. In that ranking, Indiana came in at No. 66, and only 64 teams make the tournament.

Julian Tonghini started on the mound for Indiana, and Nebraska got to him in the second inning. The Cornhuskers loaded the bases with two walks and a batter hit by pitch, then Joshua Overbeek ripped a two-out, bases-clearing double to give Nebraska a 3-0 lead.

Indiana responded with an RBI single from Brock Tibbitts in the third, but Nebraska answered right back with a Josh Caron home run. That would be it for Tonghini, who pitched three innings and allowed three hits, four earned runs, three walks and three strikeouts.

Nebraska added to its lead in the fifth inning, thanks to a two-run home run from Gabe Swansen off of Indiana reliever Jacob Vogel. That put the Cornhuskers ahead, 6-1, and Overbeek extended the lead with an RBI double in the sixth.

Indiana got a run back in the seventh, as shortstop Tyler Cerny singled home left fielder Devin Taylor to make it a 7-2 game. But Nebraska stayed hot at the plate, scoring two more runs in the seventh. Rhett Stokes hit an RBI single, then Overbeek reached on an error from Cerny, which allowed an unearned run to score off Indiana reliever Ryan Kraft.

Kraft's day was done after 2.1 innings, allowing three hits, three runs, one earned run, two walks and four strikeouts. He was replaced by Ethan Phillips, who gave up a solo home run to Ben Columbus in the eighth.

Indiana showed fight in the ninth inning, but it's deficit had already grown too large. Nick Mitchell scored on a passed ball, and Carter Mathison drove in Cerny on a double to left center field. That made it a 10-4 game, but Nebraska stopped the rally right after to end the game.

Indiana will now wait and see if its name is called during the NCAA Tournament selection show on Monday at Noon ET.