MINNEAPOLIS — The Wildcats simply ran out of steam.
The Northwestern baseball team was bounced from the Big Ten tournament after losing 8-1 to Indiana on Thursday.
The game was delayed four hours because of rain, which continued to drizzle throughout the contest.
“We had a lot of high hopes coming into this,” said NU first baseman Travis Tharp. “It’s a shame we didn’t get to capitalize on what we can do as a team.”
As in recent weeks, a lack of timely hitting plagued the Cats.
While sixth-seeded Indiana (34-21) racked up 13 hits, fifth-seeded NU (25-25) was held to five.
The Hoosiers scored all eight of their runs with two outs on the scoreboard.
It all started going downhill for the Cats when NU starting pitcher J.A. Happ had a chance to end the fourth inning with outfielder Reggie Watson at bat.
But with the count 1-2, Watson singled to left field for Indiana’s first two runs.
“That’s been a problem for me all year — I’ve been having trouble closing it out once I get the two outs,” Happ said.
Happ attributed the Hoosiers’ five runs in the fourth to the fact he couldn’t throw his off-speed pitches or control his curveball.
While NU was struggling for hits, Indiana first baseman Kevin Maher finished 3-for-3 with a two-run home run.
Maher and the rest of the Hoosiers provided Indiana starting pitcher Josh Lewis all the run support he would need in his complete-game victory.
The Cats’ lone run against Lewis came on a Dan Brauer single up the middle in the fifth inning.
Although Lewis picked up a loss last Sunday against the Cats, he said he had a better idea of what to expect in the rematch.
“It’s definitely a benefit having played (NU) most recently,” Lewis said. “Because they’re the last guys you’ve seen, you know what kind of pitches they like.”
Tharp, the senior, said it could have hurt the Cats that they clinched a tournament bid with a week left in the season.
NU picked up a majority of its wins in the first half of the season, giving the Cats freedom to relax in their last two series, Tharp said.
“Coach always says that we play best when our backs are up against the wall,” Tharp said. “Everyone always calls teams from Northwestern the ‘Cardiac Cats.’
“I kind of wish we had that this year, like when we scratched and clawed our way to some wins and had a momentum heading into the tournament last year.”
Thursday marked the last collegiate game for NU’s five seniors — Tharp, Brandon Ackley, Frank Favia, Ken Padgett and Eric Roeder.
Although Tharp was the only one to come through with a hit, Stevens said he couldn’t be prouder of the group.
“These seniors, they’ve been to the tournament three out of four years, and that hasn’t happened around our parts often,” Stevens said. “I’m real proud of all my guys.
“Nobody’s happy about going home after two, but the fact of the matter is I’m still very proud of what they’ve accomplished.”
