The Indiana Hoosiers are kicking off their softball season on the diamond, but not in Bloomington just yet. The Hoosiers kicked off their season on Opening Day far from home in Miami, Florida with a tough game against FIU. Indiana dropped their first game of the season against the Panthers 4-3, but bounced back on the weekend.
Playing in the Felsberg Invitational in Miami, Florida, the Hoosiers faced two other teams on the weekend, going 4-0 after the early loss to FIU. After the loss Thursday night against the Panthers, Indiana responded well against Stony Brook with a 10-0 win in five innings, run ruling the Seawolves
Left fielder Taylor Minnick and second baseman Melina Wilkison both hit their first doubles of the season and Wilkinson went 2-for-4 on the day with two RBIs and a run. Starting pitcher Taylor Hess threw four innings allowing just five hits, one batter walked and three strikeouts facing 15 batters. Jasmine Reyes came in to close out the game getting two strikeouts and allowing just one hit.
The Hoosiers faced a tougher challenge on Saturday, facing the Big 12's Iowa State, but Indiana didn't even flinch against the Cyclones. The Hoosiers took down the Cyclones with another run-rule win, beating Iowa State 9-1 and finishing off their Saturday with a 10-1 win over Stony Brook, yet for their third-straight run-rule win.
Sunday brought a little more drama for Indiana as they face the Iowa State Cyclones for the second day in a row. In the sixth inning, both teams were knotted 5-5 as Minnick walked up to the plate. The senior left fielder came up and smacked a 2-RBI triple to right field to give the Hoosiers a 7-5 lead, a lead they would not yield.
So after dropping their season opener, the Indiana Hoosiers were able to rally to win their next four games to be 4-1 on the season before they head to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to play in the Puerto Vallarta Challenge against North Dakota State, Illinois State, Boise State and BYU.