The 2016 Big Ten Conference Baseball Tournament got underway on Wednesday morning with an upset, as the #6 Maryland Terrapins defeated the #3 Indiana Hoosiers 5-3 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska.

Maryland strikes first

Maryland scored right away in the first inning when Marty Costes hit a one-out triple to center field, which set up Nick Dunn for an RBI single to left, scoring Costes and putting the Terrapins up 1-0 before the Hoosiers even got up to bat.

Indiana did not score until the bottom of the third inning, as Austin Cangelosi drew a leadoff walk. He advanced to third when Colby Stratten hit a groundball to third base that was not played cleanly, resulting in an error. Alex Krupa then stepped up to the plate and reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop, scoring Cangelosi. Craig Dedelow then struck out swinging to end the inning.

Both teams score in the fifth

Both teams added runs in the fifth inning. Maryland got three in the top half, as Zach Jancarski hit a one-out single to left field, which was followed by a single through the left side by Anthony Papio. Costes then stepped up and doubled to left center field, scoring Janacarski and advancing Papio to third base.

Dunn was the next batter, and he singled to right field, scoring Papio and advancing Costes to third. After a wild pitch that advanced Dunn to second base, Kevin Smith grounded out, but that allowed Costes to score. 

The Hoosiers got two runs in their half of the inning, as Brian Whilhite drew a leadoff walk. He scored when Stratten doubled to left center field. After a strikeout and a single, Logan Sowers stepped up to the plate and flew out to right field, scoring Stratten. Ryan Fineman then flew out to end the inning.

That was all that Maryland pitcher Mike Shawaryn needed, as he went the full nine innings, striking out an incredible 16 batters, while allowing just four hits and three runs. He threw 125 pitches, with 91 of those being strikes. His counterpart, Hart, did not fare so well, as he went five innings, giving up four runs on eight hits. He threw 78 pitches, with 56 strikes. 

Dunn led the Terrapins by going 3-4 with a double. Costes added a double and a triple to help the Terrapins to victory. The Hoosiers were led by Miller, who went 2-4, but struck out twice. They will need more offense on Thursday if they want to remain in the tournament.

What's next

Maryland now will play on Thursday against the winner of #2 Nebraska and #7 Michigan State. Indiana will also play on Thursday, against the loser of Nebraska and Michigan State. The loser of that game will be eliminated, while the winner will face a long road back to the championship.

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About the author
Stevie Larson
NASCAR Editor, Minnesota sports fan. Contact: [email protected]