The Iowa Hawkeyes were in action for the home opener at Duane Banks Field this afternoon vs the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Trenton Wallace was on the mound for the Hawkeyes and picked up right where he left off last week.
With multiple MLB scouts in attendance, Wallace quieted the Husker bats, allowing just two hits and striking out eight over 7 innings pitched as Iowa cruised to a 3-0 victory.
“I trusted by my defense and forced the Nebraska hitters to put the ball in play,” Wallace said and the defense was there behind him.
In the 5th, Nebraska had a runner on first with two outs, when Spencer Schwellenbach hit one deep to left center field. CF Ben Norman made a leaping catch, while crashing into the outfield wall to rob Schwellenbach of a sure extra base hit.
“The catch Ben made brought a lot of energy to the dugout,” said Coach Heller.
The catch ended the inning and saved a run from scoring. In the 6th, Brendan Sher led off with a blast off the scoreboard in left field to give the Hawkeyes a 1-0 advantage.
“We needed something to happen and someone to come through,” said Coach Heller and Brendan Sher did just that.
Then after a Brayden Frazier double, Ben Norman took the Husker starter Cade Povich deep to right center field for the Hawks second home run of the inning. That was all the Hawkeyes needed, as Trace Hoffman would come in in the 8th inning and throw two innings, while recording a save. The Hawkeyes had runners in scoring position in the 3rd, 5th and 7th, but were unable to cash in on those opportunities.
Although, the big 6th inning propelled Iowa to victory, there are still chances that the Hawkeye bats have not been able to produce on. Over the last two wins, the pitching and fielding has been leading the way, with great performances from Duncan Davitt and then Trenton Wallace tonight on the mound. If Iowa can start taking advantage of opportunities with runners in scoring position and the pitching continues to excel, this team will be hard to beat.
The Hawkeyes take on the Huskers tomorrow at 2:05pm at Duane Banks Field. The projected starters are Drew Irvine for Iowa and Chance Hroch for Nebraska.
The two faced off last weekend at US Bank Stadium, with that round of battle going to Hroch.
Notes
- 3B Matthew Sosa failed to reach base in a game for the first time this season going 0-4
- CF Ben Norman now has two home runs on the season.
- Over his three starts, Trenton Wallace has struck out 26 batters, while walking just nine. He has allowed zero runs over his last 16 innings pitched.
- Today’s contest was the first Big Ten game at Duane Banks Field, since 2019.
