The Nebraska softball staff heads south this weekend to sq. off towards 4 top-10 groups on the TaxAct Clearwater (Fla.) Invitational starting Thursday.
“We’re going to see some actually good pitching and nice offenses,” junior outfielder Abbie Squier stated. “And I feel it’s simply going to problem us to raise our recreation.”
The Huskers will definitely have that chance. The event discipline is stacked, as Nebraska will play No. 2 UCLA, No. 4 Arkansas, No. 5 Oklahoma State, No. 8 Virginia Tech and unranked Texas A&M. Nebraska kicks off the Clearwater Invitational with a Thursday doubleheader towards OSU and UCLA, earlier than battling VT Friday, A&M on Saturday, and the Razorbacks on Sunday.
NU coach Rhonda Revelle stated nice competitors permits groups to search out out what they’re all about. It is a prestigious event that may present an early-season benchmark for the Huskers.
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“You get to know your id a little bit bit higher,” Revelle stated. “We need to be on the sector and be battle-tested with the most effective groups within the nation.”
Nebraska has performed in massive video games earlier than, each in common and postseason play, and Squier described how massive early-season matchups mirror key postseason ones.
“The velocity of the sport, and the pitching, it’s very comparable,” Squier stated. “And it positively carries over all through the season.”
The Huskers are contemporary off a powerful first weekend of play, going 4-1 on the Houston Invitational. Significantly spectacular have been the pitchers, who recorded 4 shutouts in 5 video games and allowed just one run and one extra-base hit the whole event.
Squier stated the success on the mound is a testomony to all of the offseason work NU’s pitchers put in.
“It began with their mentality,” Squier stated. “They have been making an attempt to place up zeroes each inning. They have been making an attempt to maintain the opposing staff from even reaching first base.”
Whereas that dominance is troublesome to maintain throughout a complete season, Revelle acknowledged it was a historic second for this system.
“I don’t know if we’ve ever put collectively a weekend within the historical past of Nebraska softball, or my time with Nebraska softball, that we are able to say it was like that,” she stated.
Senior captain and ace Courtney Wallace tossed three shutouts herself and was named Large Ten Pitcher of the Week.
Waiting for the extra daunting schedule NU faces in Clearwater, Revelle stated it is going to be key for the Huskers to stay to their recreation to have success, constructing off what they did final weekend.
“Actually making an attempt to only be pitch-to-pitch,” Revelle stated, “Keep within the current second, not get too far forward of ourselves.”
Revelle and Squier each spoke of the significance of veteran management and famous how that may assist Nebraska in massive moments.
“We’ve sort of been there earlier than,” Squier stated. “There’s been lots of people which have had expertise in some stress conditions, stress video games.”
The Huskers are conscious of the problem awaiting them this weekend. They understand how highly-ranked their opponents are. However they’re a assured group.
“We all know that we’re dealing with actually good expertise,” Revelle stated. “However we additionally know that we’ve one thing too.”