The Iowa baseball team opened its season in Goodyear, Arizona, this weekend, participating in the MLB Desert Invitational. The Hawkeyes fell to Kansas State, 15-6, in the first game on Friday. Rick Heller’s squad bounced back with a 5-4 win over Air Force on Saturday, before taking down Northeastern, 21-13.

Kansas State

The Wildcats jumped ahead immediately, scoring two runs in the first inning and tacking on one more in both the second and third innings. Iowa cut the lead to 5-2 with runs in the third and fourth, as redshirt junior Kellen Strohmeyer drove in Gable Mitchell in the third with a double, and senior center fielder Miles Risley doubled in the fourth.

Kansas State brought in six runs in the bottom of the fourth, led by a Dee Kennedy grand slam on the first pitch from Hawkeye reliever Justin Hackett. Iowa responded in the fifth with a two-run homer by Kooper Shulte.

The Hawkeyes then added one run in the sixth, where Mitchell scored on a wild pitch. Senior Caleb Wulf then singled in Joey Nerat in the eighth for the sixth Iowa run.

Sophomore Tyler Guerin was tagged with the loss, throwing three innings and giving up seven runs on six hits. The 6-foot-6 two-way player also walked five batters and struck out two.

Strohmeyer had the best day at the plate for Iowa, going 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Mitchell reached base every time he stepped into the batter’s box, collecting two hits, two walks, and being hit by a pitch.

James Guyette was the winning pitcher for the Wildcats, allowing four runs in five innings, racking up eight strikeouts and walking just one.

Air Force

The Hawkeyes opened the scoring against the Falcons in the top of the second inning with a sacrifice fly from graduate transfer catcher Matthew Delgado. Air Force immediately responded in the bottom half of the frame with RBI singles from T.J. Oster and Wyatt Hanoian to take a 2-1 lead.

After four straight scoreless innings from both sides, Iowa snatched the lead with three runs in the seventh. Redshirt sophomore Jaixen Frost drove in Jaylen Ziegler with a sacrifice fly, and Mitchell followed by bringing home Nerat with a single to right field. Wulf drove in Mitchell with a single to left, extending the Hawkeye lead to 4-2.

The Falcons responded with one run in the bottom of the seventh, but redshirt freshman Kyle Alivo shut the door to secure the Iowa victory and earn his first career save.

Graduate transfer right-handed pitcher Logan Runde got the start on the mound for the Hawkeyes, throwing 5 1/3 innings and allowing just two runs on seven hits. Runde also struck out six batters and didn’t allow any walks, as Iowa allowed just four walks compared to its 11 in the loss to Kansas State.

Leading the way for the Hawkeyes at the plate was the left fielder, Nerat, who went 3-for-4 with one run scored and a double.

Northeastern

In what felt like an Iowa football game, the Hawkeyes fell behind to the Huskies early, giving up four runs in the first inning and one more in the second. Iowa got one back in the bottom of the second inning, as redshirt sophomore catcher Max Burt drove in Nerat with a line-drive single.

Behind 6-1 in the third inning, the Hawkeyes posted eight runs to take the lead, 9-6, before adding six more in the fourth. Nerat drove in the first run in the third, sparking a rally that was capped with an RBI single by Wulf to center to score Mitchell.

With Iowa leading 17-6, Northeastern fired back with its own six-run inning in the top of the sixth to cut the Hawkeye lead to 17-12. Iowa tacked on three more runs in their half of the sixth, and each squad posted one more run in the seventh.

Graduate transfer Joe Husak earned the win for the Hawkeyes on the mound, with junior transfer Maddux Frese collecting the save. Husak pitched three innings, striking out three Huskies and giving up two runs on three hits. Frese tossed 3 2/3 innings, allowing just one run on three hits and striking out three.

Burt was nearly perfect from the plate, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs and four runs scored, along with two walks. Mitchell, Wulf, Nerat, and Strohmeyer each delivered two or more RBIs for Iowa.

Up Next

Iowa will open up its home slate with a game against Wisconsin-Platteville at Duane Banks Field in Iowa City on Tuesday, Feb. 17. First pitch is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. CST. It will be streamed on Big Ten Plus and broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network.