Shutdown Arms Spark Series Victory

Sunday, April 5

Bloomington, Ind.

1 p.m.

Indiana University

12-19, 0

Rutgers

16-15, 0

Rutgers

Indiana

4/5/2026 5:00:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The starting pitching from the Indiana Baseball team (12-19, 5-10 B1G) this weekend was as good as it has seen all season. Sophomore southpaw Brayton Thomas continued that in an 8-2 win over Rutgers (16-15, 5-7 B1G) on Sunday (April 5) afternoon at Bart Kaufman Field.

Thomas was the first in a line of three pitchers that helped keep the visitors to just two runs on five hits. He worked 4.2 scoreless innings while picking up five strikeouts. Redshirt junior right-handed pitcher Jacob Vogel (W, 1-1) worked out of trouble in the fifth inning to pick up his first win of the year. Junior right-handed pitcher Jackson Yarberry got the final eight outs of the game on just one hit.

IU's offense broke the game open in the middle of the contest with a collection of singles and walks. Redshirt freshman catcher Brayden Ricketts started the scoring with a solo home run in the fourth inning. A big two-run single in the sixth from red hot sophomore outfielder Hogan Denny helped put the lead away for good. The Hoosiers racked up 13 hits, led by three from Ricketts.

Sunday's win in the rubber match moved IU to 11-1 against Rutgers at Bart Kaufman Field. The Hoosiers have won all four conference series between the two sides in Bloomington. Head coach Jeff Mercer is now 24-5 in Big Ten weekends played at his home stadium during his tenure.

Midweek action against Ball State on Tuesday (April 7) will keep IU in town for one more game. Big Ten play takes the Hoosiers on the road for the final road weekend of April as they head to College Park for a three-game set at Maryland (April 10-12).

Scoring Recap
Bottom Fourth
Brayden Ricketts broke a scoreless affair with a solo home run to right field.
Indiana 1, Rutgers 0

Bottom Fifth
Jake Hanley's RBI double scored Hogan Denny from second base. Hanley eventually came around to score on an RBI groundout from Caleb Koskie
Indiana 3, Rutgers 0

Bottom Sixth
Will Moore added to the lead with an RBI single in the sixth inning. Denny kept the train rolling with a two-run single up the middle. Koskie provided a sacrifice fly for his second RBI of the day.
Indiana 7, Rutgers 0

Top Seventh
Matt Chatelle singled through the right side to get Rutgers on the board. A sacrifice fly from Yomar Carreras scored a second run in the inning.
Indiana 7, Rutgers 2

Bottom Eighth
Moore scored on a wild pitch.
Indiana 8, Rutgers 2

Top Hoosier Performers
#42 Ricketts, Brayden
3-3, HR, 2 R, RBI, BB

#34 Hanley, Jake
2-5, 2B, R, RBI

#38 Yarberry, Jackson
2.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 K

Inside the Box Score
• All but one starter for IU had a base hit. Four different players had multi-hit efforts.
• IU's pitching staff racked up 10 strikeouts – five of those from Brayton Thomas.
• The Hoosiers had 13 hits but only two for extra bases. IU also reached four times on walks.

Notes to Know
• Sophomore outfielder Caleb Koskie continues to ride the longest hitting streak of the season for any IU player. He has hit safely in 12-straight games after an early single on Sunday afternoon. Koskie also provided a pair of RBIs in the win on a groundout and a sacrifice fly.

• Redshirt junior right-handed pitcher Jacob Vogel came on to earn the win with a strong performance out of the bullpen. He pitched three times this week, striking out seven betters and not allowing a walk. He has given up just seven earned runs in 22 full innings of action this year.

• IU's three starters pitched brilliantly to keep the bullpen lined up for next week. Sophomore left-handed pitcher Brayton Thomas, graduate student left-handed pitcher Tony Neubeck and graduate student right-handed pitcher Reagan Rivera combined to throw 16.2 innings while giving up just three runs. The trio struck out 18 batters on the weekend.

• Head coach Jeff Mercer won his 24th Big Ten home weekend in 29 tries as the skipper of the Hoosiers. He has now won back-to-back home weekends after dispatching of Minnesota and Rutgers. He has still yet to lose multiple home conference series in the same year during his eight-season tenure. Mercer improved to 14-9 in Big Ten rubber matches with the victory.

• Sophomore outfielder Hogan Denny finished a tremendous week by hitting .471 (8-17) over four games. He scored eight times and had four walks, four RBIs, two doubles and a home run. On the season, he leads IU with a .450 on-base percentage.

Up Next
IU ends a four-game homestand at Bart Kaufman Field with a visit from Ball State on Tuesday (April 7). First pitch is set for 6 p.m. ET on B1G+ and the Indiana Sports Radio Network via IUHoosiers.com/Audio.