Iowa baseball opened its day with an 11-1 loss to Nebraska in its second game of the Big Ten Tournament on Friday. The defeat forced the Hawkeyes to bounce back for another game and chance to keep their championship hopes alive against Minnesota the same night.

But the Gophers closed the book on an Iowa run – and likely its season – by stifling the Hawkeye offense, 3-0, on Friday.

The Hawkeye bats went cold in the tournament. The four runs against No. 1 seed Indiana were enough for a tournament-opening win on Wednesday, but things fell apart in the next two games, as Iowa only mustered 1 run in its next two contests.

Despite not scoring any runs against the Gophers, the Hawkeyes found chances. Iowa totaled 7 hits in its nightcap, getting runners into scoring position on six separate occasions.

Still, the game’s only run in the first eight innings came on an Eli Wilson single to center field in the top of the third that put Minnesota up 1-0.

The Gophers then added 2 insurance runs in the top of the ninth that proved to be huge.

With runners on first and second in the final frame, Brendan Sher was called out at first on a bang-bang play, but he moved the runners to second and third to set the table for Chris Whelan with two outs.

A comeback wasn’t in the cards, however, as Whelan struck out on a fastball on the outer third of the plate in what could be the final at bat of his college career.

While offense was hard to come by for the Hawkeyes, pitching – and Minnesota’s inability to cash in on opportunities – kept Iowa in the game. Starter Cam Baumann tossed four solid innings, giving up only 1 earned run on 3 hits and 5 walks with 4 strikeouts.

Duncan Davitt then entered in a superb relief effort. The freshman from Indianola, Iowa, went four scoreless innings with 4 punchouts of his own.

Then, the Hawkeyes brought in reliable closer Grant Leonard, who uncharacteristically allowed the 2 Minnesota insurance runs.

The season proved to be one of ups and downs for Iowa, which hit its peak a bit too early. Despite a six-series winning streak sprinkled with impressive performances against top-30 teams throughout the season, the Hawkeyes no longer control their destiny after their tournament run found its resting place in Omaha.