By Jacob Miller
Iowa (10-23) needed a win against Northern Iowa (20-15) to create much-needed momentum marching into a double-header against Nebraska (16-20) today at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.
The Hawkeyes got that win against their in-state opponent, 4-2, thanks to some strong pitching from freshman Allison Doocy.
Doocy had 8 strikeouts in six innings for her fifth win of the season.
“It’s always fun and exciting to play against in-state teams,” head coach Marla Looper said in a release. “UNI is a quality ball club. It’s always going to be a battle when you get on the field with them. I have a lot of respect for Ryan Jacobs and what he has done with this program.”
The Hawkeyes scored early in the first inning. It started with junior Angela Schmiederer hitting an RBI single to the right side to score junior Allie Wood. Sophomore Mallory Kilian did the rest.
Kilian hit a 3-run homer over the left field fence that sealed the deal.
The Hawkeyes had a 4-0 lead by the end of the first and coasted through the rest of the game. Doocy got her team out of a bases-loaded jam in sixth inning, and the Panthers were unable to make a comeback in the bottom of the seventh.
This win propelled Iowa into double digits in the win column.
“It’s nice to head into a double-header against a tough Nebraska team with a win,” Looper said in a release. “It wasn’t clean, so our challenge is to play cleaner in that double-header. A game like this against a great UNI team allows us to prepare for Nebraska.”
The Huskers have won eight games in a row and are one of the hottest teams in the Big Ten. They have a 6-3 conference record, and they not only swept the Rutgers, they also swept Wisconsin, 7-4, 8-3, and 9-4. The Badgers won their series against the Hawkeyes, 2-1. Their lone conference losses all came against Minnesota, the best team in the Big Ten with 35 wins and 3 losses.
The only thing that favors the Hawkeyes is that the Huskers have the third-worst pitching unit in the Big Ten. Their team’s average ERA is 5.01, whereas Iowa’s is 3.33.
If the Hawkeyes are going to have a chance against the Huskers, they need to continue getting quality at-bats. Iowa only had 4 hits against UNI. The Panthers had 8 hits, yet the Hawkeyes came out on top.
The Hawkeyes have proven that they can win with a minimal number of hits. The key against the Huskers will be to score early and keep the pitchers rattled if they are going to come away with two wins today at home.
Tickets for today’s game at Pearl Field are $5.