<strong>BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – </strong>The Wisconsin softball team (18-27, 7-12) won in a barn burner against Indiana, outscoring the Hoosiers 8-6. Wisconsin went up big thanks to a five-run fourth inning, before shutting down Indiana's sixth inning rally to even the series at one apiece.<br /> <br /> <strong>How it Happened:</strong><br /> <br /> Just as they did yesterday, the Badgers started the game off by putting a run on the board. A walk and stolen base put a runner in scoring position for Brooke Kuffel, who looped a pitch into left field to put the Badgers on the board early.<br /> <br /> Indiana's response came in the bottom of the second, where a single and a double set up runners on third and second with just one out. Starter Shelby Jacobson got the batter to groundout, but sacrificed a run in the process.<br /> <br /> The big inning for the Badgers came in the top of the fourth. With two outs and a runner on second, Skylar Sirdashney collected her second hit of the day with a single up the middle to give the Badgers the lead. One walk later and it was Ava Kuszak's turn at the plate. Kuszak skied a ball to right field, that was dropped. With the runners in motion on contact, both Badgers came across the plate to tack on two more runs. The next batter, Hilary Blomberg, blasted a pitch to left-center, clearing the wall for her fourth home run of the season. At the end of the inning, Wisconsin was up 6-1.<br /> <br /> Indiana earned one run back in the bottom of the fourth, with an RBI single, but ultimately Jacobson got out of the inning. Through five innings of work, Jacobson allowed just four hits and two earned runs against the conference's best offense.<br />   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">🔼4th | HILARY BREAKS THE GAME OPEN!<br /> <br /> After two runners score from an error, <a href="https://twitter.com/BlombergHilary?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BlombergHilary</a> hits a two-run blast to increase the lead!<br /> <br /> WIS 6 | IU 1 <a href="https://t.co/cAeL8QNXai">pic.twitter.com/cAeL8QNXai</a></p> — Wisconsin Softball (@BadgerSoftball) <a href="https://twitter.com/BadgerSoftball/status/1784297519423295898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 27, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br /> <br /> Emily Bojan doubled to started the sixth inning, and Blomberg singled to put two runners on base for Brooke Kuffel. After driving in the first run of the game, Kuffel added two more RBI to her final stat line by hitting a double to left that would score both runners, the score now 8-2.<br /> <br /> After coming back from a five-run deficit last game, Indiana looked poised to fight back again. The Hoosiers knocked Jacobson out of the game in the sixth inning after allowing four straight base runners, a sac fly, and another single that brought home four runs total in the inning. Blomberg came on to replace Jacobson, getting out of the inning with a groundout.<br /> <br /> Pitching for the first time this season with a lead, Blomberg was tasked with closing out the game in the seventh. She coaxed three straight groundouts, one to third, one to short, and one to second, to give Wisconsin the victory 8-6.<br /> <br /> Jacobson went 5.2 innings, allowing seven hits and six runs. She earned her third win on the season, now 3-11. Blomberg picked up the save, going 1.1 innings and didn't allow a baserunner.<br />  <br /> <strong>Batting Cleanup</strong> <ul> <li>Hilary Blomberg went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI. Over her past four games, Blomberg is 8-for-15 with three home runs and two doubles. The freshman also earned her first career save.</li> <li>Brooke Kuffel went 2-for-3 with a double and three RBI. It's her third game with three RBI this season.</li> <li>Skylar Sirdashney went 2-for-3 with a run and a RBI. Sirdashney is enjoying a career year, with new highs in batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage.</li> <li>Wisconsin was 11-for-30 as a team. Their damage came with two outs, where they went 5-for-11 and scored six runs. They also moved their baserunners, going 11-for-21 on advancement opportunities.</li> </ul> <strong>Up Next: </strong>The Badgers finish their series against Indiana tomorrow at 2 PM CT. The game can be watched on Big Ten Plus. Live stats are available on the Badger softball schedule on uwbadgers.com, and live updates will be given on the @badgersoftball Facebook, X, and Instagram pages.<br />