Nebraska baseball needed to reset quickly after having less than 24 hours to move past its 4-2 loss to Louisville. The Huskers battled against former Big 12 foe Kansas State, losing 5-3.
The Huskers grabbed a lead in the third inning thanks to a string of extra-base hits. Unfortunately for NU, the bullpen had its struggles with command allowing K-State to grab a late lead.
Here is an instant recap from the Huskers second loss of the weekend….
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Clutch two-out hitting benefits NU early
Carson Jasa was tasked with starting the game on the rubber for NU and performed well overall. Jasa set a dominant tone early, showcasing an elite fastball that sat between 96-98 mph throughout the opening frames. The sophomore right-hander paired his high-velocity heater with sharp slider command, using the breaking ball to freeze former Husker Robby Bolin for a called third strike to open the game.
K-State countered with Donte Lewis, who utilized a steady mix of a 91-93 mph fastball and a sweeping 81-83 mph slider. Lewis leaned heavily on his breaking ball, frequently targeting the back door against Nebraska’s left-handed hitters to disrupt their timing.
The Wildcats manufactured the game’s first run in the top half of the second inning to take a brief 1-0 lead. K-State utilized a small-ball approach to move the runner and eventually cross the plate on a situational groundout.
The Huskers finally broke through against Lewis in the bottom of the third inning to seize a 2-1 lead. After Mac Moyer sparked the rally with a one-out single, Case Sanderson and Joshua Overbeek delivered consecutive two-out doubles. Overbeek’s barrel drove in both Moyer and Sanderson, providing Jasa with his first lead of the night and shifting the momentum toward the Nebraska dugout.
Wildcats knot it up with big sixth inning
NU extended its lead to 3-1 after a botched double-play attempt by the Wildcats when the shortstop’s errant throw to first following the force at second allowed Jeter Worthley to hustle home. The defensive lapse and Lewis’s sudden inability to find the zone forced K-State to the bullpen, bringing in senior Carson Liggett to stabilize the game.
Jasa continued to overpower the Wildcats through the middle frames, racking up his seventh strikeout of the night in a clean fifth inning. However, the sophomore right-hander began to lose his fluidity in the sixth, appearing to guide his slider rather than throwing it with the conviction seen early on.
As he grew fatigued pitching coach Rob Childress opted to stick with Jasa to face the left-handed Shintaro Inoue. The decision proved costly as the next batter Carlos Vasquez hammered a hanging slider for a two-out, two-RBI single to tie the game, finally chasing Jasa in favor of J’Shawn Unger, who induced a massive strikeout to strand two.
Command collapse hands K-State the win
The pitching staff’s grip on the zone slipped away in the eighth as the relief appearances completely lost the zone. After Unger surrendered a leadoff single, the command issues became contagious when Grant Cleavinger and Kevin Mannell entered only to struggle with their location, issuing back-to-back walks that loaded the bases.
The lack of strikes allowed the K-State offense fire up as the free passes forced the Huskers into a defensive shell. The Wildcats took full advantage of the lack of control, using a sacrifice fly and an RBI single to turn a tie game into a two-run lead. The Husker pitching staff allowed 7 walks in total and struck out 9.
Chase Olson entered for NU and impressed with a clean inning. Unfortunately for NU, Liggett continued to dominate. Buettenback and Worthley flew out before Moyer ended the game on a pitch-clock violation to end a frustrating night at the plate for NU. Liggett finished with 4 1/3 innings pitched, 3 strikeouts and allowing only one hit
The Huskers will have a quick turnaround into Sunday. They will battle No. 16 Florida State at 2:30 p.m..
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