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The Nebraska baseball team won for the 13th time in their last 16 games Saturday March 17.
The Huskers took on Louisiana Tech in the third of the four-game series in Lincoln at Haymarket Park and downed the Bulldogs 11-4.
The Bulldogs started off the game with an early home run and three hits against Husker starter Tom Lemke. But the Huskers fired right back when shortstop Chad Christensen hit his sixth home run of the season over the left field fence. The hot bats continued for the Huskers in the bottom of the second when third baseman Josh Scheffert hit a home run giving Nebraska a 2-1 lead.
Lemke pitched well through the third but he was replaced in the fourth by sophomore right hander Brandon Pierce with two outs and a runner on first. Pierce retired the batter ending the Bulldog threat.
Scheffert led off the top of the fourth with a single and was brought home two batters later when catcher Sam Stucky hit a ball hard into left field. Bryan Peters would then score Austin Darby from second base with a single, giving the Huskers a 4-1 lead.
Louisiana Tech continued to struggle to get batters on base in the fifth. A good-looking rip into center field showed potential for the Bulldogs but Husker center fielder Rich Sanguinetti made a phenomenal catch for the second out.
In the sixth the Bulldogs mounted a threat when they loaded the bases with one out. Husker head coach Darin Erstad made a pitching change and junior right hander Dylan Vogt came into the game. But the next Bulldog batter got a base hit past Husker first baseman Richard Stock, allowing the runner on third to score making it a 4-2 game.
The Huskers started the bottom of the seventh with designated hitter Mike Pritchard walking. He was brought home by Christensen with a double into right field. Scheffert had his fourth hit of the day when he hit a double, bringing Christensen across home plate to make the score 6-2.
In the eighth the Husker’s Kale Kiser started off another hitting spree with a double into left field. Later, with runners on first and second, third baseman Kurt Farmer hit a home run over the left field fence bringing three runs across the plate. The day wasn’t over yet for Scheffert who had his fifth hit and later scored after a base hit from Darby, extending the Huskers lead to 11-2.
The Bulldogs did score two runs in the ninth making the final score 11-4.
The fourth and final game of the series against Louisiana Tech will be Sunday March 17 at 11:05 a.m. (CT) at Haymarket Park.
Story by Sean Whalen, NewsNetNebraska
The rain never came Sunday. Neither did the hits.
After scoring 20 runs in the first two games of a four game set against Cal, the Nebraska bats went silent with just three hits in a 4-0 loss to Cal.
The loss dropped NU to 9-6 overall and 1-2 in the series with the Golden Bears. Sunday was the first game in the series – and just the second game all year – that never looked to be going NU’s way. While Cal’s pitching was strong, coach Darin Erstad felt his Huskers just weren’t ready to play, repeatedly taking responsibility for the lacking performance.
“That’s the way it goes sometimes,” Erstad said. “We didn’t come to play today. I don’t know if we thought it was going to rain, but it’s on me – I’ve got to get them ready to play and I didn’t do my job today.”
The lack of thunder ruined a strong start by junior Tom Lemke, who threw 6.2 strong innings, giving up three runs and allowing no walks. If catcher Sam Stucky hadn’t dropped the ball during a tag in the seventh, his line would have been two earned in seven full innings.
Erstad was pleased with his starter.
“He pitched great, fantastic,” Erstad said. “I was probably a little concerned with the colder weather with his arm, didn’t know how it would respond. But he did a fantastic job of keeping us focused and keeping us in the game.”
Lemke found Cal’s offense, which did get nine hits off him, to be formidable.
“One through nine they’re really scrappy,” Lemke said. “They take advantage of your mistakes.”
There were few bright spots on the offensive end. Cal starter Kyle Porter threw four no-hit innings to get the win, and NU as a team got its first hit with two outs in the seventh inning. Kale Kiser, after a walk and two sacrifices in the sixth, was the only Husker to reach third base. Overall, the Huskers had six total base runners, with three hits, two walks and a Cal error.
The offense hopes to get going again today, as the Huskers and Bears play the final game of their four-game set. Tyler Niederklein will take the mound for NU, hoping to guide Nebraska to a series split.
A key to the game will be whether or not NU can set the pace. Cal has taken at least a three-run lead to start each game so far this series, something that worries Erstad.
“It’s an ongoing process and we’ve shown signs of doing it on a consistent basis,” Erstad said. “We’re good at responding to a fight, but we’re not good at starting a fight. And that’s something we need to work on.”
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Story by Sean Whalen, NewsNetNebraska
While the Huskers defeated Kansas State on the diamond Tuesday, the real story was in the stands. 4,169 fans came out on a windy afternoon to cheer on Darin Erstad, who made his Hawks Field debut.
The Husker’s Ty Kildow attempts to drive in a run against the Lopers in the second inning.
Story and Photo by Tom Grant, NewsNetNebraska
The 40-degree weather wasn’t quite full of sunshine like Tuesday afternoon, but in the end, the results for the Husker baseball team remained the same. Nebraska continued their winning ways with a 4-1 victory over visiting Kearney, the Huskers’ eighth win in nine games.
The Husker struck first in the bottom of the third inning with Stucky doubling to center and advancing to third on a passed ball from the Kearney catcher. Richard Stock’s infield single scored Stucky and gave the Huskers a 1-0 lead after three complete innings.
Dexter Spitsnogle started the game on the mound for the Huskers before giving the ball over to reliever Ryan Hander after three solid innings of work. Hander was quickly forced into action after giving up a leadoff single and walking a batter before finally escaping the jam with fly ball to centerfielder Ty Kildow. Hander calmed down following his open-inning jitters and followed with two straight 1-2-3 innings of his own.
UNK got out of a jam of their own in the bottom of the fifth inning after two hits and walk loaded the bases for third baseman Blake Headley. With two outs and facing an 0-2 count, Headley went down looking to help the Lopers keep the score 1-0 after five innings of play.
Nebraska was finally able to break things open in the bottom of the sixth inning when they scored three runs on three hits led by Kale Kiser. Kiser started off the inning with a solo home run to right field to double the Husker lead. It was Kiser’s second home run in two days.
“I’ve been seeing the ball well the last couple of days,” Kiser commented after the game. “It took awhile but the ball is starting to fall a little bit for me and that’s how baseball works sometimes.”
Kildow then reached first following Kiser’s home run with a walk before advancing to third on an error by Kearney first baseman Eric Ringbloom. Darby would than drive in Kildow with a single to right before a fielder’s choice by Chad Christensen scored Richard Stucky to cap the inning and mount a 4-0 Husker lead.
Reliever Jeff Stovall replaced Hander for the 7th and was quickly welcomed to the game by Chase Sexton who doubled off the left field wall. Kearney native Brandon Landanger then drove Sexton in with a bloop single to right that got the Lopers on the board with their first run of the day.
The Husker bullpen continued their solid run using three different pictures in the final three innings to close out the tight contest. Head coach Darin Erstad said he was pleased with how his bullpen has responded after a tough start to the season.
“We have a lot of faith in those guys and they threw the ball well today,” Erstad said. “We’ll need them all season and we knew they’d bounce back.”
Following a solid win over Big 12 member Kansas State on Tuesday afternoon, Erstad said his coaches preached the importance of not getting caught up against a smaller instate school like UNK before a big weekend series against visiting California.
“We talked about all (possible distractions) before the game,” Erstad said. “This was a trap game and we came out a little flat. We were lucky to win.”
Senior Valerie Calberry is one of two seniors on this year’s squad.
Photos and Story by Matt Haron, NewsNetNebraska
When asked who the most successful team has been at Nebraska in recent years you might be surprised to hear that the answer is women’s bowling.
Nebraska won the NCAA championship, in 2009. A year later the Huskers lost the NCAA championship game by just a few pins. It was one of the closest games in NCAA history.
After finishing third at last year’s NCAA Championships the Huskers lost some of their top athletes to graduation. This year, the team knows that it will have to stick together if it wants to continue that winning tradition.
“We have a very young team with a load of talent and I think that in time they’re going to be very successful,” said Coach Bill Straub.
The Huskers have relied on seniors Kayla Johnson and Valerie Calberry to take the leadership reigns this year after four seniors graduated from last year’s squad.
The Huskers have had four athletes finish on all-tournament teams this season.
Lizabeth Kuhlkin, Kristina Mickelson, Calberry and Johnson have all taken their turns at leading the Big Red. Johnson recently earned first place individually at the Prairie View A&M Invite in Arlington, Texas.
Johnson and her teammates are quick to credit many of their achievements to their coach.
“He not only teaches things on the lane but he teaches life lessons and those life lessons carry over to make my bowling even better,” said Johnson.
Together, the team has finished no worse than fourth in all six of their tournaments thus far, including a third-place finish, last month, at their own Big Red Invite. Nebraska has finished runner-up twice this year including its finish last weekend at the Morgan State Invitational in Baltimore, Md.
When the Huskers travel to these tournaments they compete against anywhere from a dozen to over 20 teams. Even though they are usually one of the favorites, coming out near the top each time requires focus and concentration from the first day to the last.
“Every year we enter the bowling season as the favorite. So every year we’re determined to win,” said Johnson.
Nebraska finished third last year at the NCAA Championships and want nothing more than to get back into the finals of the NCAA Tournament this year.
“Our goal every year is to make it to nationals and once we make it to nationals we make our determination there that we want to win,” said Johnson.
Success has continued over the last decade because of Coach Bill Straub’s ability to recruit.
Mike Shady, a high school coach in Erie, Pa. and former All-American bowler at Nebraska said Coach Straub does a great job at finding the right athletes who can mesh into his program.
“Bill is superior at recruiting athletes, not just a bowler, but a player who is a multi-sport athlete and who also excels in the classroom,” said Shady.
In his years at Nebraska, Straub has coached 14 bowlers who have combined for 32 All-America awards. Seven women that he has coached have been named to national teams.
Straub’s women’s teams have never been ranked lower than seventh in the top 25 bowling poll since Nebraska named women’s bowling a varsity sport in 1997.
Although this year’s team is so young, they are hoping their success so far this season will again make them a favorite at the upcoming NCAA Championships in April.
Coach Straub says there is something different about this year’s team. He says that the team chemistry is something he’s seen only a few times in all his years of coaching.
“I think if they had the opportunity they’d all live in the same apartment complex,” said Straub.
And that may be exactly what will give the Huskers an advantage over their competition this April in Cleveland, Ohio.
The Huskers have one more tournament on their schedule before the NCAA Championships. They will next be in action March 16-18 at the Music City Classic in Nashville, Tenn.
Coach Straub says that it’s important to take it step by step and focus on the process in order to finish the season strong and get another shot at winning the national title this year.
“We do our best to make the next shot better than the last one. Hopefully that culminates with an invitation to the NCAA Championship, but I don’t agree with focusing on the end result. We try to focus on the task at hand which means one ball at a time,” said Straub.
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Video, story and photo by Ryne Stefankiewicz, NewsNetNebraska
When Nebraska basketball moved from the NU Coliseum to the Bob Devaney Sports Center in 1976, Gary Burk made the move too.
Burk has been an usher, ticket-taker and locker room attendant for Nebraska athletics for 39 years. He is one of hundreds who make game days run smoothly. But he is one of the few who have been doing it for more than 30 years.
Dan Dilla, left, and Gary Burk have worked a combined 66 years at Nebraska athletic events.
“Our event staff mean the world to me,” said Butch Hug, associate athletic director for events and facilities. “A lot of them have given a lot of years of service to the university, and their familiarity with how we run things make game days enjoyable for everyone else.”
Burk, 77, still visits the Coliseum when he works volleyball games. He also works soccer, baseball and indoor track.
Burk’s friend and coworker Dan Dilla has been working Nebraska athletic events for 27 years.
“I enjoy Nebraska sports in general,” Dilla said. “It’s great to be around the great players we’ve had. The fans are great, too.”
The two men are more than event staff workers — they’re fans. Dilla, 82, has gone to nearly every bowl game in the past 40 years with his wife. Burk also has trekked to numerous bowls in the past four decades.
Dilla enjoys bowl games because he spends his fall Saturdays at Memorial Stadium working.
“For football, I get there five hours before kickoff to check the staff in,” said Dilla, who officiated high school and small college football and basketball games for 40 years. “I get to know the people and they make it worth it.”
Unlike Dilla, Burk doesn’t work football games. He has season tickets. The section 18 tickets have been in his family since 1962, when Bob Devaney became Nebraska’s head coach.
“I enjoy going to football games,” Burk said. “My dad bought tickets when Coach Bob Devaney came in ’62. He bought two that year, then two the next year, so I have four now.”
As much as Burk and Dilla love football, they love getting to know the players and coaches more.
“Quite often we get to know the athletes,” Dilla said. “We get to see them coming and going and talk to them from time to time. My favorite player was Eric Crouch. He was the most rounded player, who could do just about anything.”
Burk enjoyed watching Bobby Reynolds, who was an All-American halfback in 1950, and Johnny Rodgers.
“Those two were great athletes and fun to watch,” Burk said.
Burk saw Nebraska leave the NU Coliseum in 1976, and he’ll be around to watch it leave the Devaney Center, too, when Husker basketball moves to Pinnacle Bank Arena in 2013. Arenas, athletes and coaches have come and gone, but Burk and Dilla have remained. They don’t plan on stopping anytime soon, either.
“We’ll be here,” they said, “as long as the good Lord lets us.”
Nebraska seniors Curenski Gilleylen and Terrence Moore and redshirt freshman Donovan Vestal celebrate with the Corn Bowl Trophy. The Huskers beat Iowa 20-7 in the inaugural Heroes Game.
Story by Chris Peters and photos by Jon Augustine, NewsNetNebraska
John Duncan was heading for the exit, his Hawkeyes losing 20-0.
His father-in-law, Tim Cahill, kept jabbing him in the sides with the elbow of his scarlet-hooded sweatshirt, flaunting his Huskers’ eminent victory. The Huskers would go on to win 20-7.
“He’ll be a Nebraska fan after today,” Cahill said.
Cahill said the teasing is all in good fun. There’s no bad blood in this rivalry.
“It’s a pretty friendly one,” said Dan Hansen, a Nebraska student who came to the game with a member of Iowa’s marching band. “There’s honestly no reason for it to be anything else.”
The Heroes Game, as it’s officially called, brings together two fan bases from farming states – Iowa, “The Corn State,” and Nebraska, “The Cornhusker State.” The two teams have each been called the Hawkeyes at times, Nebraska’s tenure with the name ending in the late 1800s.
The game between Iowa and Nebraska, which is set for the Friday after Thanksgiving for the foreseeable future, is the first time the two have played since 2000, when Nebraska quarterback Eric Crouch threw for five touchdowns en route to a 42-13 victory. Nebraska has now won four straight in the series, which it leads with an all-time record of 27-12-3.
Hansen, as well as other fans of both Iowa and Nebraska, says this rivalry will be more positive and will reflect the mild-mannered reputation Midwesterners have.
“(The rivalry is) the exact opposite of the Colorado rivalry in my view,” said Hansen, who said the rivalry with Colorado was defined by poor sportsmanship by the Buffaloes.
Iowa fans filled about 15 percent of Memorial Stadium, which had more than 85,500 in attendance. Iowa has routinely sold out its stadium, building a sellout streak of 36, which ended in 2008. Nebraska has the NCAA record for consecutive sellouts at 319.
“I think they’re two great fan bases,” said Nebraska Head Coach Bo Pelini, who began his coaching career at Iowa as a graduate assistant in 1991. “I think it’ll be a great series for years to come.”
Story by Ryne Stefankiewicz, NewsNetNebraska
After suffering a humiliating loss at Michigan on Saturday, Nebraska turns its attention to new Big Ten rival Iowa, which comes to Lincoln on Friday.
Iowa replaces Oklahoma and Colorado as Nebraska’s day-after-Thanksgiving rival. The Huskers have played on Black Friday for 21 straight seasons – six against Oklahoma and 15 against Colorado.
Nebraska leads the all-time series with Iowa 26-12-3, but this is the first time the two will meet as members of the same conference. The Huskers and Hawkeyes haven’t met since 2000 – when Nebraska won.
Pelini said the rivalry with Iowa seems to be natural.
Friday also marks Senior Day at Memorial Stadium. Senior Day is always an emotional one for Pelini.
“Every kid who plays on our team means a lot to me,” Pelini said. “It’s never easy watching them go. It’s pretty emotional for them playing their last home game.”
Saturday’s loss took the Husker football team out of the Big Ten title race, but the volleyball team can still win a title if the Huskers can beat Iowa on Tuesday in Iowa City. It would be Nebraska’s first team to claim a Big Ten title.
“We have a great opportunity to make history this week,” volleyball coach John Cook said.
Other notes from Monday’s press conference
“That was a good experience,” Pelini said of his time in Iowa City. “It was my first job in coaching. It was enjoyable. I actually coached on the offensive side that year.”
That coaching staff included Mike Stoops and Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops.
“This program has come a long way,” he said. “Where this program was and where this program is right now; I’m proud of where this program is right now. I think we’re a better football program. Our kids are doing well academically. Our kids are doing a good job of representing this state and university.”
UNL College of Journalism and Mass Communications © 2010
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