IU Athletics Release
A career day from sophomore catcher Hogan Denny was everything that the Indiana Baseball team (8-12, 1-5 B1G) needed and more. The Indiana native was involved in all five runs in a 5-1 win over Vanderbilt (13-9, 2-1 SEC) on Tuesday (March 17) afternoon at Hawkins Field. He smashed two home runs (four RBIs) and scored on an RBI single from sophomore first baseman Jake Hanley in IU’s fourth midweek win of the year.
After being swept in a tight series at Oregon, IU traveled all the way to Tennessee and went right back to work. Four pitchers, led by graduate student southpaw Conner Linn (W, 2-0), combined to allow one run over nine innings. Linn worked 3.2 shutout frames while racking up a season-high five strikeouts. He earned his second win of the year – both in midweek victories.
The Hoosiers kept the hosts scoreless through the first seven innings before an RBI single from Chris Maldonado spoiled the shutout. Redshirt junior right-handed pitcher and graduate student right-handed pitcher Gavin Seebold combined on 3.1 scoreless frames in relief. Freshman reliever Ivan Mastalski struck out three batters in two innings without giving up a walk.
Denny’s seventh-inning home run was the clutch hit that IU has been searching for over the last two weeks. He extended IU’s lead to five runs and provided valuable insurance to counter Vanderbilt’s comeback attempt. All four of Denny’s hits went for extra bases. It was his second career game (both this year) with multiple home runs.
Tuesday’s win was the first over an SEC opponent since beating Kentucky in the 2023 Lexington Regional. It moves IU to 4-0 in midweek contests this season. In those four games, the Hoosiers are outscoring opponents 42-12. Sophomore outfielder Caleb Koskie, who had a two-hit day, is hitting .667 (8-12) in Tuesday/Wednesday games.
The Hoosiers are back home in Bloomington this weekend after a long spring break trip. Minnesota will be in town to face IU for a three-game conference set at Bart Kaufman Field. IU is looking to pick up its first conference series win of the year after dropping weekends with Washington and Oregon.