By Blake Dowson
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For the first time in more than a year, the Iowa baseball team was swept in a weekend series, on Feb. 19 through Sunday in Dallas.
The Hawkeyes failed to wake up the bats during the series against No. 31 Dallas Baptist, scoring 5 runs in three games.
“Other than the losses, it was a good weekend for us to learn about our team and find out what we need to do to get better,” head coach Rick Heller said in a release on Sunday.
Iowa dropped its season-opener on Feb. 19 by a score of 5-1, with senior Tyler Peyton saddled with the loss for the Hawkeyes on the mound, although he allowed no earned runs. Iowa picked up its lone run with one swing in the sixth inning when senior catcher Daniel Aaron Moriel belted a solo home run, which tied the game at 1.
The Hawkeyes gave the lead back to the Patriots in the bottom of the sixth, in part because of a fielding error by sophomore first baseman Grant Klenovich. With two outs and runners on the corners, Klenovich could not handle a ball thrown to him, allowing a run to score. Dallas Baptist added a pair of two-out singles to extend the lead to 5-1.
“We had some mistakes, and all of them hurt us,” Heller said in a release after the Feb. 19 game. “You learn if you give bases in a tight game, you’re probably going to lose.”
The Feb. 20 game was not any kinder to the Hawkeyes; they fell, 7-3. The Patriots took control in the first inning when first baseman Darick Hall sent a Nick Gallagher offering over the outfield wall for a grand slam. Dallas Baptist added 1 more in the second inning and 2 more in the sixth to put the Hawkeyes away.
Iowa got a run in the third on a Corbin Woods’ solo shot, the first of the junior’s career. RBI singles by Moriel and senior Eric Schenck-Joblinske in the fourth inning accounted for the Hawkeyes’ other 2 runs.
“The game didn’t start the way we wanted, about as bad as it could, and it could have been ugly,” Heller said in a release after the game. “Our guys bounced back and played a good game for the next eight innings and gave ourselves a chance.”
The Hawkeyes played the Patriots to a 1-1 tie heading into the eighth inning of the third game on Sunday, but a 3-run bottom half by Dallas Baptist put the game away.
Iowa scratched a run across in the seventh inning when sophomore Austin Guzzo and Woods drew back-to-back walks to start the inning and moved up on a passed ball.
After a failed squeeze attempt by junior Mason McCoy, senior Nick Roscetti’s RBI groundout tied the game at 1-1. Peyton squared a ball up with runners at second and third with two outs in the inning, but hit it right back to the mound to strand the pair of Hawkeye.
Dallas Baptist ruled in the bottom of the eighth inning. With one out in the inning, the Patriots loaded the bases, and catcher Matt Duce’s ground ball found its way through the infield to score a couple. The Patriots added another run on a sacrifice fly to move the score to 4-1.
“Offensively, we struggled,” Heller said in a release after the third game. “We had opportunities, we just couldn’t make it happen. We couldn’t get leadoff guys on or get two-out hits.”
