Huskers Split Twinbill with Kansas

Lawrence, Kan. ? All-American Alex Gordon went 4-for-7 with three homers and six runs scored, helping No. 9 Nebraska split a twinbill with Kansas Saturday afternoon.

Nebraska (20-3, 1-1 Big 12) dropped the opener, 7-6, to end an 11-game win streak before rebounding with a 9-3 win over the Jayhawks (21-9, 1-1 Big 12) in the nightcap, snapping KU’s eight-game winning streak in the process.

Gordon, who is hitting .439 with 10 homers and 26 RBIs, had his second multi-homer game in the opener before going 2-for-5 with his Big 12-leading 10th homer in the nightcap.

Game 1: Kansas 7, No. 9 Nebraska 6
Gus Milner’s RBI single in the bottom of the ninth broke a 6-all tie, lifting Kansas to a 7-6 victory over the Huskers in game one. Milner, who went 1-for-2 with a pair of RBIs, hit a walk-off single off of NU closer Brett Jensen, snapping Nebraska’s 11-game winning streak.

The Jayhawks loaded the bases in the ninth on an infield single by Matt Baty, an error by Jensen ? the first error by NU in 61 innings - and a fielder’s choice before Milner brought home Baty with a single to right.

Jensen (1-1) suffered the loss, allowing one run on two hits, while Don Czyz (2-1) earned the win for Kansas with 1.2 innings of no-hit ball.

The Jayhawks’ ninth-inning heroics thwarted NU’s comeback, as the Huskers trailed 6-4 before rallying back on Curtis Ledbetter’s solo homer in the sixth and Brandon Buckman’s eighth-inning RBI double.

Gordon paced the Husker attack, going 2-for-2 with two homers ? his eighth and ninth of the season ? with three RBIs and three runs scored, while Buckman went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs in a losing effort.

Behind Buckman and Gordon, the Huskers built a 4-0 lead on Buckman’s first inning RBI single and Gordon two round trippers, a solo blast to right in the third and a two-run shot over the scoreboard in the fifth.

NU starter Joba Chamberlain took a no-hitter into the fifth, but struggled with his control throughout the contest, as he allowed only one hit, but walked four and hit four more and didn’t factor into the decision.

In the fifth, he loaded the bases on a walk, single and hit batter. The Husker right-hander then hit Ritchie Price and A.J. Van Slyke, the top two hitters in the KU lineup, putting the Jayhawks within 4-2. After a sacrifice fly, Sean Richardson tied the score with an RBI infield single off reliever Dustin Timm. The Jayhawks then took their first lead of the day on Mike Dudley’s RBI single before pinch hitter Jared Schweitzer greeted NU reliever Tony Watson with a run-scoring single, capping the Jayhawks six-run frame.

Watson settled down and pitched well, tossing 3.1 innings of one-hit relief to keep the Huskers within striking distance, as NU chipped away on the Jayhawk lead. Ledbetter pulled the Huskers within 6-5 in the top of the sixth on a solo homer of KU starter Mike Zagurski that hit the foul pole in right.

The Huskers got the tying run in the eighth off KU reliever Kodiak Quick, as Gordon led off the inning with a walk and moved to third on Brandon Fusilier’s single to right. Buckman then doubled a 3-2 pitch past a drawn in infield, scoring Gordon with the tying run.

Game 2: No. 9 Nebraska 9, Kansas 3
Andy Gerch had two hits, including a key two-run double in the third, as Nebraska rebounded for a 9-3 victory in the nightcap.

Gerch’s two-run double off KU starter and loser Sean Land hit keyed the Husker rally, as NU totaled 11 hits including two each from Jesse Boyer, Alex Gordon and Daniel Bruce. Brandon Buckman also drove in a pair of runs, as NU scored in six of nine frames.

Nebraska received strong pitching efforts from Zach Kroenke and Johnny Dorn, who combined to allow just three runs in the nightcap.

Kroenke (3-0) went the first six innings, allowing three runs and striking out four to pick up his third straight win, while Dorn was dominant out of the bullpen. The freshman fanned a career-high six Jayhawks, including five in a row, over three innings of one-hit relief for his first career save.

Buckman spotted the Huskers a quick 1-0 lead in the first, driving in Joe Simokaitis with an RBI double to left. Simokaits reached on an error and eventually got to third before Buckman’s run-scoring hit.

Kansas came back against Kroenke in the bottom of the second, as back-to-back two-out RBI singles by

Matt Baty and Ritchie Price gave the Jayhawks a 2-1 lead.

The lead would be short-lived, as Nebraska chased Land with three runs in the third, scoring all three times with two out. The Huskers had runners on first and second before Bruce tied the contest with an RBI single. Andy Gerch then gave the Huskers the lead for good with a bases clearing double that staked NU to a 4-2 lead.

Land, the first of six Kansas pitchers, allowed four runs on five hits in just 2.2 innings to drop to 2-2 on the year.

After an RBI single by John Allman pulled KU within 4-3, Nebraska pushed across two runs in the fourth on an RBI single by Curtis Ledbetter and Buckman’s sacrifice fly to center.

The Huskers tacked on single runs in the fifth and seventh before Gordon’s tape measure shot to dead center, an estimated 450-foot blast that easily cleared the 24-foot high wall and hitters’ eye, gave the Huskers their final run in the eighth.

Baty and Allman had three hits apiece for Kansas, combining on nearly half of the Jayhawks’ total.

The Huskers and Jayhawks will conclude the three-game series with an Easter Sunday matchup. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. and the game will be carried on the Pinnacle Sports Network, including KLIN 1400 AM (Lincoln), KFAB 1110 AM (Omaha) and KRVN 880 AM (Lexington).