Nebraska

Nebraska Softball Is Back: A Preview

Published

2 years ago

February 5, 2024

Guess what time it is? That’s right, it’s Nebraska Softball time and I know we’re all excited for it. Nebraska sets their sights on Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, hoping to get off on the right foot.. or left, whichever one.

Puerto Vallarta College Challenge

The Huskers will play four games in three days in Mexico, they will face two top 15 teams in their first two games. Nebraska will first square off with #7 Washington on Thursday at 6:30 pm (Central) and then #11 Duke on Friday at 12:30 pm (Central). The Red Team will also see Long Beach State on Friday at 3:00 pm (Central) and finally will finish their games on Saturday with Utah Valley at 10:30 am (Central).

All games during the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge can be watched on FloSoftball ($) by purchasing a subscription. A monthly subscription is $29.99, while an annual one is $150.

The Huskers are returning all but three players from last year, when Nebraska went 36-22. NU made the NCAA Tournament in 2023, advancing to the regional final to post a top 20 national finish while receiving votes in the final top 25 poll.

Preseason Honors

It was probably no surprise that the Huskers were already getting ranked in the preseason or maybe it was, regardless, it’s real and it’s happening. Nebraska received a ranking in all four major polls; 13th (D1 Softball), 15th (Softball America), 17th (ESPN.com/USA Softball), and 18th (NFCA). The Huskers will start of the season ranked 18th, which is the first time since 2018 Nebraska has earned a preseason ranking.

Billie Andrews, Jordy Bahl, and Katelyn Caneda all received individual preseason rankings as well. Andrews, a senior shortstop, was ranked the No. 42 (D1 Softball) and No. 56 (Softball America) Overall Player in the country as well as the No. 5 (D1 Softball) and No. 6 Softball America) Shortstop in the country. Bahl, the Oklahoma transfer, was ranked the No. 2 player nationally and No. 2 pitcher in the country, was named to the preseason watch list for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, and was also tabbed as a preseason first-team All-American by D1 Softball and Softball America. Caneda, only a sophomore, was ranked the No. 9 second baseman in the country by D1 Softball.

The Returners

Like stated before, Nebraska is returning a good majority of their team from last year and are adding quite the newcomer class. Here’s a look at what Nebraska is returning.

Abbie Squire, who unfortunately will miss the 2024 season due to injury, was still named one of the captains for the year. Coach Rhonda Revelle had this to say about Squire, “Abbie’s an even better leader this year than she was a year ago just simply by the work she’s put in.” Revelle also added, “That she (Squire) is leading every way she can and is intent on making a difference for the team.”

Billie Andrews, is back after leading Nebraska with 16 homers, 29 extra base hits, 50 runs, 28 walks, a .677 slugging average, and a .441 on base percentage. Andrews is sixth in school history in extra base hits and seventh in homeruns.

Katelyn Caneda, returns after leading NU with a .366 batting average in 2023. That average was the third highest mark by a freshman in school history, while Caneda was the first freshman to lead in average since 2013.

Brooke Andrews led Nebraska in RBIs with 45 last season and was second on the team with a .575 slugging percentage.

Caitlynn Neal hit .307 last season and led NU with 14 doubles.

Sydney Gray is a career .305 hitter, she batted .313 in 2022 with eight doubles, 11 homeruns, and 45 RBIs.

Ava Bredwell, who was the 2022 Freshman of the Year, hit .285 last season and was second on the team with 36 runs scored.

Sophomores Talia Tokheim, Alina Felix, and Ashley Smetter are back after being productive despite limited action in their freshman season. Tokheim hit .359 with 10 extra base hits in only 39 at bats before an injury ended her season. Felix started 10 games and hit .259 and scoring seven runs. Smetter was 3-for-8 in limited at bats with one double.

Dakota Carter, Mckinley Malecha, Abbey Newlun and Haidyn Warner all had at bats in 2023.

Kaylin Kinney is also back this year after her season ending injury in 2023. Kinney will give Nebraska another strong arm in the circle, she had a 0.84 ERA before she missed the rest of her season.

Sarah Harness is another pitcher coming back, who appeared in 31 games last season with 25 starts, posting a 10-5 record with a 3.40 ERA.

The Newcomers

Jordy Bahl comes back home after two incredible seasons at Oklahoma. Bahl was a first-team All-American and Big 12 Pitcher of the Year in both 2022 and 2023. She owns an insane 44-2 career record and a 0.99 ERA in the circle with a 3.50 batting average.

Peyton Cody, the sixth year transfer, started 139 games and posted a .319 batting average with 29 doubles, 20 homeruns, and 100 RBIs in her five years at St. John’s.

Bella Bacon, an Omaha native, transfers to Nebraska after spending her freshman year at Purdue. Bacon played in 26 games and had an average of .250 with a .381 on base percentage with the Boilermakers.

Freshman Samantha Bland starred for Chino Hills High School in California and with the Corona Angels. Bland was a two-time league MVP and two-time Los Angeles Times all-star for Chino Hills.

Emmerson Cope, a freshman from Topeka, Kansas, was a two-time Kansas 6A Pitcher of the Year. The nation’s No. 26 overall recruit, Cope posted a 14-3 record with a 1.50 ERA as a senior while batting .577 with 15 homeruns and 43 RBIs.

Elisa Gulfin was a standout pitcher for Saint Paul High School in California. She was the Del Ray League Pitcher of the Year and a first-team all-league and all-area selection.

Caitlin Olensky is Nebraska’s first left handed pitcher since 2018 and is just the second player from New Jersey to play for Nebraska. Olensky was ranked as the nation’s No. 60 overall recruit after posting a 0.92 ERA and .449 career batting average at Montville High.

Lincoln native Malia Thoms was a four-time all-conference and four-time all-state selection for Waverly High School. She was tabbed as the No. 42 recruit in the country by Extra Inning Softball.

Quick Hitters

Billie Andrews has started 159 consecutive games at shortstop. Andrews also has six games with multiple home runs in her career, the Nebraska record for most multi-homer games is seven held by Tristen Edwards.

Jordy Bahl carries a 27.1-inning scoreless streak into this season. She did not allow a run over her final six appearances last season, all of which were in either an NCAA Super Regional or Women’s College World Series game. Bahl has not allowed a run in 50 of her 71 career appearances, while allowing one run or less in 60 of her 71 career appearances.

Caitlynn Neal enters the season with 93 career hits, seven shy of 100.

Rhonda Revelle is three wins shy of recording 1,100 win as a Husker.

Nebraska’s Notable Games

Nebraska will play a very strong schedule, the brunt of that coming very early on. The Huskers will face eight currently ranked teams #7 Washington, #10 UCLA, #11 Duke, #13 Utah, #15 Oregon, #16 Arkansas, #20 Northwestern, and #24 San Diego State.

The Big Ten is no cake walk either, but these early games will give Nebraska Softball fans a look into what to expect and where the team matches up.

A reminder that Nebraska opens up their season in Puerto Vallarta against #7 Washington at 6:00 pm (Central). The games can be watched on FloSoftball, if a subscription is purchased, you can also listen to Nate Rohr on the call available at Huskers.com/listen or on the official Huskers app.

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Nebraska

Big Ten Report – Nebraska takes first place from Michigan, is 16-0

Published

8 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Press Room

Big Ten Report – Nebraska takes first place from Michigan, is 16-0

It was a very exciting and high-scoring Saturday in Big Ten basketball. Michigan’s flaws finally caught up to the Wolverines. Their loss to Wisconsin became a source of hope for everyone else in the Big Ten. Nebraska keeps rolling, and the Huskers now look like the top team in the conference, with star Lamar Wilkerson going off in yet another game.

Here are the scores and the rest of my analysis from Saturday night in Big Ten basketball:

No. 10 Nebraska 83-77 vs Indiana

Jamarques Lawrence and Lamar Wilkerson battled in a shootout as both players had career nights. Indiana has been hot this season, almost as hot as Nebraska. Ultimately, the Cornhuskers proved to be battle-tested once more, and Lawrence led the Cornhuskers to overcome a 16-point deficit to secure a big victory. The Cornhuskers continue to be one of the best stories in college basketball, as their win streak moves to 5 in a row in the Big Ten. They are 16-0 overall.

Wisconsin 91-88 vs No. 2 Michigan

Down goes Goliath. Just like I said in one of the last Big Ten reports, no game is a layup. Michigan almost lost its last game to Penn State. Every team the Wolverines face will give them their best, and all they have to do is upset them. The Badgers did exactly that. Nick Boyd and John Blackwell both had 20-point showings and looked like stars. The Badgers entered the second half down 14 points, and just like last game for the Wolverines, another lead was lost. Michigan missed 8 of their last 9 shots, to end the game, which was one of the biggest reasons for the loss of the lead. The Wolverines were not on their game, and for the first time this season, and it cost them big time.

No. 5 Purdue 93-85 vs Penn State

Braden Smith puts together a complete game, flashing his scoring ability and his elite decision-making. The Boilermakers took care of business and handled Penn State exactly like Michigan should have. Penn State’s hot three-point shooting start kept them in this game, but it was the Boilermakers’ insane crowd, insane defense, and stars stepping up that propelled them to an 8-point win.

UCLA 67-55 vs Maryland

Another day, another game where the Terps get outmatched. The Bruins were coming off two losses heading into this game, and they got the exact bounce-back game they needed. While the Bruins were amazing defensively, the Terps still dominated the glass. That makes for trouble for the Bruins against the competent Big Ten teams. Had the Terps been able to buy a bucket, they fairly well could have stolen this game. Instead, the Terps move to 0-5 in the Big Ten. The Terps can’t catch a break early in this season, while the Bruins get the exact break they needed to move forward.

Overview

Michigan does not learn from its last game, and they suffer their first loss of the season. The Badgers get a huge scoring outburst from their two guards, as another guard, Braden Smith, is dominant in an impressive win by Purdue over Penn State. As the Big Ten is continuing to ramp up the dominant newcomer, the Nebraska Cornhuskers are now the leader of the sole undefeated team in the conference.

What’s next

Illinois and Iowa highlight the day with a big-time matchup to start the Sunday slate. Big implications in this game, and whoever wins can really consider themselves a legitimate Big Ten contender. Northwestern and Rutgers will match up after that one, and both teams could desperately use a win to get back on track and build some type of momentum. The final game will be Ohio State and Washington squaring off. The Buckeyes will look to build some consistency before their matchup against Michigan. Bruce Thornton getting hot again would definitely help with that.

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Nebraska

Nebraska Football Offers In-State Legacy Offensive Lineman

Published

20 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Press Room

Nebraska Football Offers In-State Legacy Offensive Lineman

New Husker offensive line coach Geep Wade has stayed busy in his first few weeks on the recruiting trail for Nebraska football.

Nebraska extended a scholarship offer Saturday to in-state offensive lineman Barrett Kitrell. The 6-foot-4, 270-pound Class of 2027 interior lineman from Ashland confirmed the offer on social media. Iowa offered him earlier in the week, and he has other Division I offers from South Dakota State, Kansas and Iowa State.

Kitrell has visited a number of schools through his junior season, stopping at South Dakota State, Wyoming, Iowa State, Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska.

God is so good! After a great conversation with coach @GeepWade I am blessed to receive my 6th D1 offer from Nebraska! @HuskerFootball @AGBluejayFball pic.twitter.com/h3ciXeG727
— Barrett Kitrell (@BarrettK54) January 10, 2026

Kitrell has family ties to Nebraska football across two generations. His father, Barry, was a fullback for the Huskers from 1984-88. His brother Bo was a Husker fullback and tight end 2014 to 2018.

In addition, Barrett’s brother Blake was a Tulsa wide receiver, while brothers Brett and Bryce played at Ohio, having been recruited by Frank Solich.

Barrett Kitrell is a three-sport athlete for Ashland-Greenwood, competing in football, basketball, and track and field for the Bluejays. He has seen varsity action in all three seasons of his football career, playing in 33 games. The Bluejays have won a playoff game each of the past three seasons, advancing to the Class C1 semifinals this past year.

Kitrell becomes the third offensive line prospect offered by Wade and the Huskers this week, joining Grinnell, Iowa, prospect Will Slagle and 2028 prospect Wyatt VanBoening from Mundelein, Illinois. VanBoening also is the son of a former Husker, Simon VanBoening, a linebacker on the Huskers’ 1997 roster.

Nebraska offensive line coach Geep Wade | Nebraska Athletics

The Huskers are aiming for a massive overhaul of their offensive line, starting with replacing Donovan Raiola as the position coach. Wade, who came to Nebraska from Georgia Tech, has been retooling his line in early 2026 with transfer portal additions, bringing in Iowa State’s Brendan Black and South Carolina’s Tree Babalade. Nebraska has seen three linemen choose to exit via the portal: Brian Tapu, Houston Kaahaaina-Torres and Jason Maciejczak.

Kitrell could add athleticism to the offensive line, as he finished second in the Class B discus as a sophomore with a personal-best throw of 172’2 while finishing fourth in the shot put. Kitrell averaged four points and four rebounds per game for the Ashland-Greenwood basketball program as the Bluejays claimed the Class C1 championship in 2025.

Kitrell becomes the 16th interior offensive line offer for Nebraska’s 2027 class. The class is headlined by four-star quarterback Trae Taylor and in-state rising stars Tory Pittman III and Matt Erickson.

IU dominated but then ‘it was just turnovers’ to blow 16-point lead vs Nebraska

Published

1 day ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

IU dominated but then ‘it was just turnovers’ to blow 16-point lead vs Nebraska

Indiana men’s basketball lost to Nebraska 83-77 after leading by as many as 16 points.
Coach Darian DeVries cited a bad stretch, including key fouls on Tucker DeVries and turnovers, as the turning point.
The Hoosiers have three more opportunities for a Quad 1 win in their upcoming games.

BLOOMINGTON — Indiana men’s basketball coach Darian DeVries thought his team played well for about 28 minutes Saturday afternoon.

In those 28 minutes, IU built up as much as a 16-point lead against undefeated Nebraska. The Hoosiers went on a 12-2 run to end the first half, then extended that lead early in the second half.

Then, the defense started crumbling. Tucker DeVries picked up two fouls in the course of 21 seconds, forcing him to the bench. The Hoosiers started turning the ball over.

And Indiana’s upset bid fell apart, as the Hoosiers dropped an 83-77 decision to the Cornhuskers (16-0, 5-0 Big Ten).

“It’s disappointing, for sure,” Darian DeVries said. “We played well for a good 25, 27, 28 minutes, whatever, and then just had a bad stretch in there, and the game flipped. That’s why the turnovers are a big piece of that. We had, (a 16-point lead) and Tucker picked up his third and fourth foul on back-to-back possessions. Then they went on a 10-0 run right after that. That was a big turning point in the game, I thought, when he picked those two up.”

It seemed like the coaching staff (and fans) didn’t agree with those fouls, either.

Tucker DeVries’ third foul came as he fell on the ground while trying to defend Berke Buyuktuncel’s shot. Buyuktuncel continued to attempt a shot after the fall, and he got tangled in DeVries’ legs, falling himself, and officials called a foul on DeVries. Both Tucker and Darian DeVries, along with the crowd of 13,000 fans, didn’t agree with that foul.

Tucker DeVries’ fourth foul, which forced him to the bench for eight minutes, came just 21 seconds after his third. On the Hoosiers’ next offensive possession, DeVries attempted to shoulder his defender to get more space, and got called for the offensive foul and the turnover.

Indiana (12-4, 3-2) turned the ball over on four of its next five possessions, Darian DeVries said, and Nebraska capitalized for a 12-2 run to tie the game.

“I just think we didn’t have the type of possessions we needed after (Tucker DeVries) went out again, and most of them, it was just turnovers,” Darian DeVries said. “We didn’t get shots at the goal. I thought there might’ve been one or two in there where I think Lamar (Wilkerson) drove it hard and tried going through contact, and we didn’t get one there, but outside of that, we just didn’t get very good possessions. Our movement wasn’t as good.”

After Nebraska went on that run, all the momentum shifted to the Cornhuskers. In ways, the Hoosiers couldn’t get out of their own head, and the mistakes kept coming.

“We’ve talked to them a lot about that next play mentality,” Darian DeVries said. “Win that next play, and not compound mistakes. I thought tonight, again, for a stretch there was a period where we let one mistake turn into two. Then, instead of digging in and really making sure we get a quality possession the next time, we compounded it with another turnover. It led to back-to-back-to-back. All of a sudden your lead is gone, and momentum is real. It shifted pretty quickly there.”

This game, especially taking into account the 16-point lead Indiana once had, was a crucial opportunity for the Hoosiers to get their first Quad 1 win of the season.

But the Hoosiers, sitting at No. 30 in the NET rankings, still have three straight Quad 1 opportunities coming up in two road tilts at Michigan State and Michigan and a home game against Iowa in the next two weeks.

Those games, much like Nebraska, will be tall tasks. But, DeVries said, if the Hoosiers can execute for a full game like they did in those 28 minutes on Saturday, they’ll have a chance at them.

“When they’re executing the way that they did the first 25 minutes, it looks really good,” DeVries said. “And they’re doing a great job, and they’re defending and getting movement and things.”

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