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Baseball:
Huskers Win 13-10 Slugfest in NCAA Opener
May 30, 2008
Lincoln, Neb. - The NCAA Lincoln Regional opened with an offensive flurry on Friday at Hawks Field, as Eastern Illinois and Nebraska combined for 23 runs and seven home runs, as the host Huskers advanced in the winner's bracket with a 13-10 victory in front of 6,367 fans. Nebraska scored in seven of its eight innings at the plate, pounding 16 hits, including a season-high four home runs. Husker Coach Mike Anderson acknowledged that it was a rare day at Hawks Field, with the ball carrying to all parts of the park. "I've never seen the park play like this in the whole time I've been here," Anderson said. "Some of our home runs, I was amazed that they were home runs because of how they were hit. I would say the same thing for them. I've never seen this ballpark play like this. It added a lot of challenges to us today. I'm proud of the kids. "We had a lead. We lost that lead. We got down, but once we got down, we learned how to fight back again. At this point, I'm not overly concerned about how we do it, just that we get it done." Senior Jake Opitz led the way with a career-high two homers while driving in three runs for Huskers. Tyler Farst and Craig Corriston also homered for NU, which battled back from a 5-3 deficit heading into the bottom of the fourth inning. Even with the power display, it was a balanced effort for Nebraska, as every player with an at bat recorded at least one hit, while eight of the nine starters scored a run. With the win, top-seeded Nebraska (41-14-1) advanced to Saturday's 7:05 p.m. semifinal against the winner of Friday night's contest between No. 2 seed UC Irvine and third-seeded Oral Roberts. Eastern Illinois (27-29) falls into Saturday's 1:05 p.m. elimination game. Brett Nommensen paced a strong offensive attack for Eastern Illinois with a 3-for-5 effort that included a double and four RBIs. Overall, the Panthers pounded out 13 hits on the day, including three home runs of their own. Thad Weber (9-4) earned the victory for Nebraska by allowing two runs in 3.1 innings of relief. Reliever Brian Morrell (5-2) took the loss for Eastern Illinois, as he was charged with six runs in two innings.
After NU starter Dan Jennings retired the side on just eight pitches in the top of the first, Nebraska struck quickly in the bottom of the frame. Bryce Nimmo led off the inning with an infield single and stole second before Opitz gave NU a 2-0 advantage by drilling a towering two-run home run to right field with one out in the inning. "I didn't think (my first home run) was out," Opitz said. "Like he (Coach Anderson) said, this field has never played like this in my four years here. If you got that ball in the air, you had a chance to get it out of here." Zach Skidmore pulled the Panthers even in the top of the third when he ripped a two-out, 3-2 pitch to right center for a game-tying two-run homer. In the bottom of the frame, the Huskers loaded the bases with only one out before DJ Belfonte's sacrifice fly plated Mitch Abeita to give NU a 3-2 lead. Eastern Illinois once again used a big blast to tie the score in the top of the fourth, as Jordan Kreke lined a 1-2 pitch over the wall in left center for a leadoff home run. Nommensen then gave the Panthers the lead with a clutch two-out, two-run double that put Eastern Illinois in front 5-3. Nebraska answered in the bottom of the fourth, as Abeita ripped a 1-2 pitch over the second baseman's head for a game-tying, two-run single. The home run barrage continued two batters later, as Tyler Farst drilled his second career homer and first at Hawks Field with a two-run shot to center that gave the Huskers a 7-5 lead. Jake Mort pushed the Huskers' lead to 8-5 with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth. Abeita then added his third RBI of the game with a two-out, two-strike RBI single that gave NU a four-run cushion. Eastern Illinois continued to fight back with two runs in the sixth to cut the lead to 9-7, as Nommensen came through again by bouncing a two-run single through the right side. Nebraska got a run back in the bottom of the inning when Belfonte reached on a one-out triple and scored one batter later on Corriston's RBI single. Opitz's second home run of the game, a solo blast with one out in the seventh, pushed Nebraska's edge to 11-7. Opitz also pulled even with Abeita for his 10th homer of the year, before Corriston wrapped up NU's scoring with his fifth homer of the year, a two-run blast in the eighth to give the Huskers a 13-7 lead. Eastern Illinois continued to battle, as Alex Gee capped a solid finish for Eastern Illinois when he launched a two-out, three-run homer in the top of the ninth. Nebraska Game Notes • With the victory, Nebraska improved to 41-14-1 on the season and 29-3-1 at Hawks Field. The Huskers also improved to 31-23 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, including a 14-5 mark at Hawks Field (19-5 overall at home including games played at Buck Beltzer). • Jake Opitz recorded his first career multi-home run game, launching a two-run shot in the first and a solo blast in the seventh. His multi-homer effort was the first by a Husker this season. With his two homers, Opitz moved into a tie with Mitch Abeita for the team lead with 10 homers this season. Opitz hit 10 home runs in his first three seasons combined. The two homers were also Opitz's team-leading 26th and 27th extra-base hits of the season. He has seven homers in his last 17 games. • Opitz finished 2-for-4 in the game, extending his career-long hitting streak to 12 games. During the hitting streak, Opitz is batting .429 (21-for-49) with four homers, nine RBIs and 13 walks. He has also reached base safely in 24 of the last 25 games. • Mitch Abeita reached base in each of his five plate appearances on Friday and has now reached base safely in 53 of 54 games this season. Abeita recorded three singles while drawing a pair of walks and increasing his team-leading total to 42. • Tyler Farst hit his second career home run and his first at Hawks Field in the victory. • Craig Corriston's eighth-inning homer was his fifth of the season and his first since homering at Baylor on April 27. • Nebraska hit a season-high four home runs as a team on Friday, producing its fourth multi-home run game of the season. • Every Nebraska starter had at least one hit, while eight players scored at least one run and six produced an RBI. • The Huskers scored in seven of their eight innings on Friday. Nebraska has now scored in 14 of its last 17 innings at Hawks Field. • Nebraska scored at least nine runs for the third straight home game. • Nebraska scored first in Friday's game, marking the first time in the last seven home games that the Huskers scored first at Hawks Field. • Nebraska has trailed in six straight home games, rallying to win five of those contests. Overall, the Huskers fell behind at home for the 10th time in their last 11 home games (8-2 record in those 10 contests). • Bryce Nimmo tied his career high with two stolen bases, marking his third game this season - and seventh of his career - with two stolen bases. Entering Friday's game, Nimmo had not stolen a base since swiping two bases against Kansas State on March 15, a streak totaling 39 straight games. • Dan Jennings had allowed just two home runs in 76.0 innings this season (and only two total home runs in 104.2 career innings) before surrendering two homers in a span of three batters over the third and fourth innings on Friday against Eastern Illinois. • Jennings lasted just 3.2 innings, marking the shortest start of his career. The left-hander was also tagged for a career-high five earned runs. • Nebraska has given up at least 10 hits in eight of its last 11 games. • The average time of Nebraska's last five home games is 4:02. |
