The Iowa baseball team could not complete the sweep of Middle Tennessee State on Sunday, as a 6-run bottom of the ninth doomed the Hawks as they dropped just their second game of the year.

Though the Hawks had built up a substantial 8-3 lead going into the ninth inning, pitcher Tyler Radtke repeatedly got behind in the count and walked three-straight batters to set up the eventual game-winning hit.

“We thought we were in great shape with the bonus run we scored in the ninth, but [Tyler] Radtke came in and unfortunately didn’t have it,” head coach Rick Heller said in a release. “He walked three guys, and that sets things up for a nightmare finish, and that’s exactly what happened.”

The loss drops the Hawks to 9-2 on the season with a little over three weeks left until the start of Big Ten play.

“If you walk guys leading off an inning, it’s going to come back to haunt you,” Heller said in a release. “We had an error that was costly, and if the play is made, you win the game. We made a horrible mistake on an 0-2 pitch that gets hit for a grand slam to lose the game.”

Iowa had previously been winners of nine straight including their first two games of the weekend against the Blue Devils. 

Offensively, the Hawks showed up in a big way, taking advantage of pitching matchups against Middle Tennessee that resulted in 11 total hits for the Black and Gold.

“I was happy with how we came out and swung the bats, the best we have this year,” Heller said in a release. “It was a real positive to see us come out, and jump on a guy, and put some runs on the board. You put a 7-spot on the board, and you are usually in a good spot with our pitching staff.”

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