INDIANAPOLIS – The No. 22-ranked UIndy baseball team stepped onto their home turf for the first time in 2017 on Friday afternoon, opening up a three-game weekend series against the Notre Dame College Falcons.
 
In a wild back-and-forth affair, the Greyhounds (2-2) rallied from behind to tie the game up three times. But in the end, the Greyhounds couldn't find one more late rally, dropping a 12-11 heart-breaker to the Falcons (1-0).
 
Kyle Orloff had four hits and drove in three runs for UIndy, belting his first home run of the year in the fourth inning. Blake Richardson also drove in three runs and Jake Perreira scored three times for the Hounds, but UIndy stranded 13 runners on base throughout the day.
 
UIndy would leave the bags full of runners in the bottom of the first and Notre Dame made them pay for it in the top of the second, taking the lead on a Rick Phillips sac fly. The Hounds drew even in the bottom of the second when Perriera scored on a wild pitch to tie things up. UIndy loaded the bases once again with one out, but couldn't capitalize as Orloff rolled into a double play to end the threat.
 
In the top of the fourth, problems started for the Hounds on the other side of the ball. Notre Dame scored five times on three hits, taking advantage of a pair of walks, one wild pitch and one error to take a 6-1 lead.
 
Once again, the Greyhounds would match their opponent in the bottom of the inning. Storm Joop cut the lead in half with a one-out double that brought Perriera and Devon Hensley home. Richardson followed with an RBI double of his own and scored one batter later when Orloff launched a 1-1 pitch over the left center field wall to make it a 6-6 game.
 
UIndy left the bags loaded again in the fifth and just like earlier in the game, it would come back to haunt them. Rockhurst scored four times on five hits and took advantage of two critical UIndy errors in the inning to make it a 10-6 game.
 
The Falcons added another run in the seventh on a lead-off homer from TJ Lett to make it a five-run lead. But once again, the Hounds responded with a rally of their own in the bottom of the inning. Richardson brought home the first run when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and Orloff followed with a run-scoring single up the middle. Two batters later, John Eberhardt cut the lead to one with a two-run single through the left side.
 
That score held until two outs in the bottom of the eighth. Hensley singled with two outs in the inning and took off trying to steal later in the inning. The Falcons had Hensley picked off, but the throw from first to second hit Hensley in the helmet and re-directed into left field, allowing Hensley to score and tie the game.
 
The momentum was short lived as Notre Dame scored again in the top of the ninth on an RBI single from Lett. UIndy put the first two runners on in the ninth, but left them both stranded as Notre Dame got out of the jam and earned the win.
 
Brian Wichman made his second start of the year, but was lifted after he gave up three runs on three hits with four walks and four strikeouts in 3 1/3 innings. Chris Boettcher (0-1) took the loss after giving up the hit that became the winning run.
Kenny Pierson (1-0) earned the win after giving up two runs on four hits with three strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings of work.
 
The two teams will be back at it on Saturday at Greyhound Park. First pitch is set for 1:00 p.m.