After dropping the three-game series vs. Washington (27-22, 15-9 Big Ten) on Saturday, Iowa baseball (32-15, 21-6) avoided the sweep Sunday afternoon with an 8-0 shutout win over the Huskies from Husky Ballpark in Seattle, Wash.
"I'm really proud of our team and how we were able to bounce back after two really tough losses," said head coach Rick Heller.
Reece Beuter got the start on the mound for the Hawkeyes and threw seven scoreless innings to improve to 6-0 on the season. The right-hander allowed three hits while matching a career-high with eight strikeouts in his performance, extending his scoreless innings streak to 13 frames. This is also Beuter's second seven-inning shutout this season.
Beuter's last three starts: 19.0 IP, 1 R, 9 H, 5 BB, 23 K
The righty has tossed 13 straight scoreless innings đźš«@ReeceBeuter x #Hawkeyeshttps://t.co/iasskz8eeS
"Reece Beuter was outstanding again today," said Heller. "He was in pretty much complete control for seven innings. Exactly what we needed when the offense hasn't been clicking."
Brant Hogue and Justin Hackett entered the game in relief efforts and combined for three strikeouts.
The Iowa pitching staff did a tremendous job stifling the Washington bats by limiting the Huskies to three hits and a .103 batting average.
The Hawkeyes took a 1-0 lead in the fifth when Ben Wilmes hit a solo bomb to left-center field, which gives him seven homers of the season.
Benny đź’Ł puts us on the board!#Hawkeyespic.twitter.com/puDVZokMZJ
— Iowa Baseball (@UIBaseball) May 4, 2025Iowa extended its lead to 2-0 in the sixth inning when Caleb Wulf slapped a pinch-hit RBI single up the middle that allowed Blake Guerin to score from second base.
CALEB IN THE CLUTCH!#Hawkeyespic.twitter.com/eO7SfA7s5V
— Iowa Baseball (@UIBaseball) May 4, 2025The Hawkeyes scored two runs in each of the last three innings, highlighted by RBI singles from Gable Mitchell and Reese Moore and an RBI double from Jaixen Frost.
Frost comes through! 🥶#Hawkeyespic.twitter.com/DD738IhNdq
— Iowa Baseball (@UIBaseball) May 4, 2025Mitchell led the Iowa offense Sunday afternoon, going 3-for-6 with two doubles, an RBI, and a run scored.
"You're going to run into some weekends where everything seems to go right, and this was really the first one where things went wrong. We just didn't find a way to get it done when we had opportunities in the first two games, but I will say I felt like we played really hard all weekend long," said Heller. "Two L's when we really played pretty well was tough. Weaker teams would've came out today and cashed it in."
Back on track.#Hawkeyespic.twitter.com/zgH79veiMj
— Iowa Baseball (@UIBaseball) May 4, 2025The Hawkeyes' offensive bounce-back from two low-scoring games to start the series was much-needed, with Iowa batting .306 overall. Even with the 8-0 shutout, Iowa could have added more as they stranded 12 runners on base.
"We'll enjoy the trip home and regroup and get back to work and hopefully play good baseball here these last two weeks," said Heller.
Heading home with a dub.
đź“ť: https://t.co/KuPo9lgGps#Hawkeyespic.twitter.com/Ptm9qAiC2o
In terms of the Big Ten standings, Iowa's win extends their lead over second-place UCLA to 2 1/2 games, as the Bruins dropped their series finale Sunday against USC.
It is worth noting that the Bruins have two Big Ten series remaining, as opposed to the Hawkeyes' one. This means that Iowa's three-game home set vs. Oregon, who currently sit 3 1/2 games behind first place, from May 15-17 will be one of the most impactful series the program has played in quite some time.
The Hawkeyes will return to the Midwest for their next matchup as they travel to Chicago, Ill., for a midweek contest vs. UIC (16-29, 12-9 Missouri Valley) on Wednesday, May 7, at 6 p.m. CT at Les Miller Field.
Wednesday's game will close out the home-and-home series between the Hawkeyes and Flames. Iowa won the first meeting 4-1 at Duane Banks Field on March 18.
While the game will not be televised, fans can follow along on the statistical broadcast and listen through the Hawkeyes Radio Network with play-by-play voice John Leo and color analyst John Evans.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa baseball avoids series sweep with shutout win vs Washington
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