Peyton Williams hits for cycle as Iowa baseball takes down Bradley
The first baseman hit for his first career cycle on Tuesday afternoon as the Hawkeyes notched a 15-8 victory against the Braves.
Iowa first baseman Peyton Williams hits the ball during the second baseball game of a doubleheader between Iowa and Illinois at Duane Banks Field in Iowa City on Saturday, April 9, 2022. Williams batted six times and scored one home run. The Fighting Illini defeated the Hawkeyes in 13 innings, 7-5.
April 20, 2022
Iowa baseball took down Bradley, 15-8, on Tuesday afternoon to complete the two-game season sweep against the Braves.
While the Hawkeye bullpen faltered, Iowa’s offense put up 15 runs on 16 hits.
The first five innings saw both teams trading runs. Iowa struck first with an RBI single from first baseman Peyton Williams. Both Williams and designated hitter Will Mulflur hit home runs.
The Hawkeyes used a barrage of pitchers on Tuesday afternoon, including six in the first five innings. Sophomore Luke Llewellyn got the start for Iowa, pitching one inning and allowing two runs. In total, the Hawkeyes used nine pitchers.
“Those guys need to get out there,” head coach Rick Heller said postgame. “We are gonna need all of those guys at some point in the season, conference tournament, regional tournament, whatever it is. All those guys need to fight through it.”
After the Braves cut the deficit to two runs off a wild pitch from Hawkeye pitcher Will Christophersen in the seventh inning, the Hawkeyes scored six runs in the bottom of the seventh to push their lead to 14-6. Williams had a bases-clearing double to start the rally.
“It is good to hit the ball, which is the main thing I’m trying to do right now,” Williams said. “Even if I get out, I am trying to worry about my success of hitting the ball hard and letting my game play out that way.”
Williams capped off his night in the eighth inning with an RBI triple for his first career cycle. He is the first Hawkeye to hit for the cycle since 2018. Williams is hitting .360 on the season with nine home runs and 29 RBIs.
“I was really happy with our offense because we took what they gave us,” Heller said. “We put pressure on them and scored runs, each inning we answered.”
Big Picture
Iowa notched its fifth straight victory on Tuesday night after losing back-to-back contests against Illinois on April 9 and 10.
Last weekend, Iowa swept Minnesota in a three-game series at Duane Banks Field for the Hawkeyes’ first conference sweep of the season.
Up Next
Iowa will travel to Piscataway, New Jersey, to take on the Big Ten-leading Rutgers baseball team. The weekend series will kick off on Friday at 1 p.m.
Rutgers is 31-6 in the 2022 season and 11-1 in Big Ten play.
“We felt like they were a really good team last year when we went out there,” Heller said. “We played really well when we went out there last season and we are gonna need to do that again. I think our guys are looking at it like it’s two good teams going at it.”
