Omaha Report: Hoosiers bow out of CWS, reflect on historic season
By CHRIS GOFF
ISL Correspondent
Indiana’s season came to an end Wednesday night with a 1-0 loss to Oregon State in the College World Series. Lefty Matt Boyd baffled the Hoosiers with 11 strikeouts in his complete-game shutout, making a tough-luck loser of Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Aaron Slegers. Indiana never really came close to pushing a run across and finished the year with a 49-16 record.
Josie Janavicius, who covers the team for IU Student Television, joins us a final time from Omaha, Neb., where the Hoosiers couldn’t quite put it all together, to answer our Five Questions below on the frustrating finale, the season’s unprecedented achievements and whether the Hoosiers can carry over their success to next spring.
1. The Hoosiers made four outs on the basepaths Wednesday (picked off twice, two caught stealings). Were they a little too aggressive, or were gambles necessary to try to get something going?
In those first couple innings, IU was not going to get on base from hits so the times they got on base from walks they needed to take advantage. The guys who attempted to run were also they best ones for the job. Justin Cureton led the team in stolen bases last year. It was worth the risk because odds were that the hitters were not going to advance them, especially early when they had not figured out the pitcher.
2. Rightly, a lot of attention went to Matt Boyd, but wasn’t Aaron Slegers nearly as good?
Slegers had arguably his best game of the season, in an elimination situation. Both pitchers threw over 100 pitches and threw a complete game. Slegers took advantage of the dimensions of the ballpark so even when his pitches were hit, they still resulted in outs. Boyd had the shutout but Slegers kept Oregon State at one. Impressive considering the fact that the Beavers were able to score 11 on Louisville.
3. For a team that entered red-hot offensively, Indiana scored just six runs in 27 innings in Omaha. What went wrong?
The opposing pitching was probably the biggest problem for IU. Left-handers and breaking balls posed the biggest challenge. There are few dominant left-handers in the Big Ten, and let alone with the variety of pitches that the ones in the CWS threw. Oregon State was also one of the strongest staffs as far as record in Omaha.
4. What will be remembered most about this season?
The 2013 Hoosiers are the first ever IU team to reach the College World Series so obviously that will stand out. They are the team that brought baseball into the mainstream at Indiana University. People have started following the team. They have expanded the fan base and, of course, had a dominant first season at a new stadium.
5. What is the early outlook for the Hoosiers next year?
The team will still be a good one. The loss of the seniors – Michael Basil, Cureton, Trace Knoblauch and Walker Stadler – and the possibility of the drafted players – Slegers, Dustin DeMuth and Ryan Halstead – departing will hurt them, but it will not be devastating. The return of Kyle Schwarber and Sam Travis will ensure some similar offensive productivity in the Big Ten, and coaching changes by other teams in the conference will showcase IU’s stability.
