Indiana University Softball beats Penn State in Extra Innings to Advance in the Big Ten Tournament Sophomore Sarah Stone hits a walk off homer in the ninth inning to lift the No. 2 Hoosiers (41-15) over No. 7 Penn State (31-16) in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals at Eichelberger Field on Thursday afternoon. Sophomore Brianna Copeland went yard in her first at bat to give the Hoosiers a 1-0 lead. Penn State evened it up in the top of the fifth with an RBI sacrifice fly. Avery Parker followed suit as she hit a first pitch solo homer to regain the lead. The Nittany Lions tied it up with an RBI single, 2-2.
In the top of the eight, PSU hit a two RBI home run to take the lead, 4-2. Sophomore Kinsey Mitchell slaps one into the left field advancing freshman Cassidy Kettleman to second. Redshirt junior Cora Bassett hits a two RBI stand up double down the left field line to tie the ball game. In the bottom of the ninth, sophomore Sarah Stone hits a walk off homer over the center field wall. The Hoosiers went yard three times against the Nittany Lions bringing the season total to 75 home runs. Copeland hit her 12th home run with Parker earning her 10th on the season and improved to 21-2 inside the circle. Bassett hit her 14th double on the season. Indiana is 1-0 in extra-inning games on the season. The Hoosiers will play No. 3 Minnesota this evening in the Big Ten Tournament Semifinals at 6pm at Eichelberger Field at the University of Illinois televised on the Big Ten Network.
Indiana University Men’s Basketball to open the 2023-24 season at home against Florida Gulf Coast
Indiana’s 2023-24 schedule is coming together piece by piece. Coach Mike Woodson and the Hoosiers will open the 2023-24 season on Nov. 7 against Florida Gulf Coast, according to Jon Rothstein. Florida Gulf Coast is coming off a 17-15 season in year one under coach Pat Chambers. The Eagles went 7-11 in Atlantic Sun play, good for a ninth-place finish. Florida Gulf Coast won 71-64 at USC in its 2022-23 season opener. Florida Gulf Coast drew national attention during the 2013 NCAA Tournament when the No. 15 seed Eagles defeated No. 2 seed Georgetown. Florida Golf Coast earned the nickname “Dunk City” as it went on to beat No. 7 seed San Diego State before losing to No. 3 seed Florida in the Sweet 16.
Indiana fans might remember Chambers when he coached Penn State from 2011-20, posting a 148-150 overall record. Chambers has a 3-12 record against Indiana, including one win at Assembly Hall, a 66-65 victory on Feb. 12, 2014, behind 14 points from Tim Frazier. Florida Gulf Coast was led in scoring in 2022-23 by another familiar face, former Purdue guard Isaiah Thompson. Following three seasons as a Boilermaker, Thompson, a 6-foot-1 guard, transferred to Florida Gulf Coast, where he scored 14.9 points per game. Thompson was a three-star recruit out of Zionsville High School in Indiana, and he has a 5-1 record against the Hoosiers.
While the full 2023-24 schedule has not been released, Indiana has a handful of known opponents. The Hoosiers will host Kansas at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, along with neutral-site games against Auburn in Atlanta, Ga. and Harvard in Indianapolis, Ind. Indiana will also participate in the 2023 Empire Classic at Madison Square Garden, playing two games against UConn, Texas or Louisville. The Big Ten recently released home and road opponents for the 2023-24 season. Dates, times and television information hasn’t been released, but here’s a breakdown of Indiana’s Big Ten opponents.
Home and away: Purdue, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin.
Home only: Iowa, Michigan State, Northwestern.
Away only: Illinois, Michigan, Rutgers.
2023-24 Indiana University Women’s Basketball Season Tickets on sale with Reserved Seat option available
Season tickets for the 2023-24 Indiana Women’s Basketball campaign are now on sale and fans will have a new reserved ticket option to consider in addition to the traditional general admission ticket. Reserved season tickets will be available for the upcoming IU Women’s Basketball season on the east side of the Main Level of Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Rows 1-25. Adult reserved season tickets are $112, while reserved senior season tickets (65+) and youth season tickets (18-and-under) are $48. IU faculty and staff can purchase reserved season tickets for $80. The remainder of the arena will remain general admission for 2023-24, with seating available on a first-come, first-served basis. Adult general admission season tickets are $96, while general admission youth and senior tickets are $48.
The new ticket option comes in response to overwhelming demand from IU fans for a reserved ticket option for IU Women’s Basketball games. In the last three years, Coach Teri Moren’s program has seen its average home attendance increase more than 200 percent, with a program-record average home attendance of 8,104 in 2022-23. IU ranked second in the Big Ten and in the top 10 nationally in average home attendance during its recently completed Big Ten Championship season. The change also brings IU in line with what other Big Ten universities offer for its women’s basketball games. Prior to this addition of this new option, IU was the only Big Ten school that didn’t have at least a portion of its arena set aside for reserved seating. Indiana heads into the 2023-24 season with four starters returning from a team that went 28-4 overall, was a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and won the program’s first-ever outright Big Ten regular season championship. Headlining the list of returnees is senior-to-be Mackenize Holmes who earned First-Team All-America honors after ranking seventh nationally in scoring (22.3) last season.
Taryn Kern named top 10 finalist for TUCCI/NFCA National Softball Freshman of the Year Indiana freshman Taryn Kern was named as one of the ten finalists for the TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year award, the National Fastpitch Coaches Association committee announced on Wednesday afternoon. Kern was most recently awarded with four Big Ten postseason awards including the Big Ten Player and Freshman of the Year. She was also named to the All-Big Ten First Team and the All-Big Ten Freshman Team. The San Jose, Calif., native was unanimously selected by the league’s coaches for the underclassman awards. She is the only Hoosier to win both Player and Freshman of the Year awards in program history.
Kern is also a six-time Big Ten weekly award winner, most recently winning the award after her performance in the series sweep over Michigan State to close out the regular season. She continues to lead the Hoosiers offense as well as eight offensive statistical categories in the Big Ten: slugging percentage, OBS, OPS, RBI, home runs, walks, and hit by pitch and runs scored. In addition, she is tied for most home runs in the nation with 22. Kern has also set new program single season records for home runs and RBI. The top 10 finalists will be announced on May 11, with the three finalists being named on May 25.
The TUCCI/NFCA Freshman of the Year is set to be revealed on May 30. The TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year award was created in 2014 to honor outstanding athletic achievement among Division I freshmen softball student-athletes. In order to be eligible for this award, each student-athlete must be a true freshman or a redshirt freshman and be nominated by their member head coach.
Indiana University Track and Field sweeps weekly Big Ten Awards
Following an outstanding weekend at the Billy Hayes Invitational, four Hoosiers earned Big Ten Track and Field Weekly Honors, as announced by the conference office on Wednesday afternoon. (Camden Marshall Men’s Track Athlete of the Week), Tyler Carrel (Men’s Field Athlete of the Week), Alyssa Robinson (Women’s Field Track Athlete of the Week) and Paola Fernandez-Sola (Women’s Co-Field Athlete of the Week) provided the Hoosiers with strong performances ahead of this week’s Big Ten Championships. These four weekly honors bring IU’s total to six this outdoor season, joining previous recognition for Marshall (April 5) and Jayden Ulrich (April 12).
Marshall earned his second weekly award of the season after running one of the best times in program history across 800 meters. In ideal running conditions, Marshall turned in a time of 1:47.24 to comfortably win the Billy Hayes Invitational. His time moved him into fifth in program history in the 800 meters while pushing him to second in the conference in 2023. He’s the only athlete to possess top-five times in the conference in both the 800 meters (1:47.24) and the 1500 meters (3:39.51) this season. The Corydon, Ind. native is a three-time Big Ten finalist in the 800 meters while also winning the event indoors in 2022. He is entered in a strong field this weekend at the conference meet as he aims for IU’s first title in the event outdoors since 2019.
Carrel produced one of the best pole vault series in program history on Friday night, clearing four bars past his previous personal best in a winning effort of 5.54m/18-2. The sixth member of the 18-foot club outdoors at IU, Carrel moves into third in school history behind only Olympian Dave Volz and NCAA Champion Mark Buse. He is No. 2 in the Big Ten this year and No. 11 nationally. Carrel will be among a strong field of contenders in the pole vault at the Big Ten Champions which features the Big Ten leader from Michigan State (Trevor Stephenson) and the two-time defending outdoor conference champion from IU (Nathan Stone).
Robinson stormed to an all-conditions personal best of 11.34w (+2.2) on Friday to win the 100 meters at the Billy Hayes Invitational. Albeit being slightly over the allowable wind reading for record purposes, Robinson’s 11.34 is among the fastest all-conditions times in program history and is top-eight in the Big Ten this season. In addition to her time in the 100 meters, the Indianapolis native took second leg duties in the 4×100 relay as the Hoosiers ran a season-debut time of 45.43. Robinson will be busy at the Big Ten Championships where she is entered in the 100 meters, 200 meters, 4×100 relay and 4×400 relay.
Fernandez-Sola closed her regular season with another strong performance in the long jump. She was victorious with a mark of 6.32m/20-9 in her final tune-up before the conference meet. Over her past three meets, she’s been out to 6.49m/21-3.5, 6.42m/21-0.75w and 6.32m/20-9. She was an All-American indoors and the conference’s runner-up. IU hasn’t had a Big Ten Champion outdoors in the long jump since 2007. The Puerto Rican was also a member of IU’s 4×100 relay team, anchoring the Hoosiers home in 45.43. IU begins its postseason journey this afternoon at the Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Bloomington. Hope Purcell begins things on the women’s side in the heptathlon while Sean Mockler begins action for the men in the hammer throw.
Indiana University Men’s Soccer celebrates 50 years as a varsity program
Thursday, May 11, 2023, marked the 50th anniversary of Indiana men’s soccer as a varsity program. On May 11, 1973, the Indiana University Board of Trustees voted to establish men’s soccer, previously a club team, as a varsity sport. Following the decision, head coach Jerry Yeagley told the Indiana Daily Student that, “What seemed like and impossible dream for such a long time is here. I hope the soccer can enhance the school’s image as other varsity sports have done.” In the 50 years since, no NCAA Division-I men’s soccer program has won more national championships (8), games (806), or NCAA Tournament matches (100) than IU. Indiana is the NCAA’s winningest program, by percentage, with a .776 mark.
IU men’s soccer played its 50th season in 2022 which culminated with the program’s 22nd appearance in the NCAA College Cup and 17th appearance in the national title match. Both achievements are NCAA records. At the conference level, Indiana is a 32-time champion of the Big Ten. Seventeen of those titles have come as regular season championships, while the Hoosiers have won the Big Ten Tournament on 15 occasions. Indiana University will celebrate the 50th anniversary of its esteemed men’s soccer program and its Tradition of Excellence, May 19-21, when it welcomes alumni, former staff and friends of the program to Bloomington.
Follow us on Facebook
For more local news . . . Check out our archived episodes of What’s Happenin’ and Talkin’ Sports with Nick Jenkinson