Gorsett Blast Helps Huskers Past Redbirds

Lincoln ? Luke Gorsett and Jake Mort both drove in two runs in a five-run fifth inning, as No. 3 Nebraska posted its ninth straight win with a 12-6 victory over Illinois State Wednesday afternoon.

The Huskers (13-2) used the long ball, as Gorsett, Andrew Brown and Nick Jaros all homered in an 11-hit attack while NU scored eight unanswered runs to break the game open. Gorsett went 2-for-3 with three RBIs, while Mort, Jake Opitz and Ryan Wehrle all had two hits apiece in the win.

Trailing 5-4, Nebraska struck for five runs in the fifth off of ISU reliever Jim Sajewich to take a 9-5 lead. After a leadoff single by Wehrle, Gorsett gave the Huskers the lead for good with a two-run homer to left, his Big 12-leading eighth round tripper of the season. NU continued to apply pressure, loading the bases with one out before Mort ripped a two-run double past third to make it 8-5. Moments later, Bryce Nimmo’s sacrifice fly to center off of Mike Hlavacek provided NU with a 9-5 advantage.

The Huskers, who have won their last 17 games at Hawks Field and 31 straight at home against non-conference foes, added an RBI single by Jake Opitz in the sixth and two more runs in the eighth on Wehrle’s run-scoring single and Gorsett’s sacrifice fly to take a 12-5 lead.

The run support was more than enough for the Huskers pitchers, who struggled early but got better as the game progressed. Jon Klausing picked up his first win since May of 2004, as he fanned two on 2.1 innings of relief for the win, while Mike Harmelink, Dan Jennings and Erik Bird combined to hold the Redbirds to one run on four hits over the final four frames. Harmelink, making his 2006 debut, shined in relief, tossing two innings of one-hit ball.

Sajewich (0-1) took the loss for Illinois State, allowing eight runs on six hits over 2.1 innings, as four ISU pitchers combined to issue 11 walks.

After Nebraska plated an unearned run in the bottom of the first, ISU tallied single runs in the second and third off of NU starter Tim Radmacher to take a 2-1 lead, as the Husker starter didn’t get out of the third.

Jaros opened the bottom of the third with a solo homer, his second of the year, to tie the score at two before NU struck for a pair of two-out runs, both coming on Brown’s second round tripper of the year, a two-run blast to left that gave NU a 4-2 advantage.

The Husker lead would be short-lived as Illinois State plated three runs off of Klausing in the fourth, using an RBI single by Nick Crist and taking advantage of a Husker error that led to two runs, giving the visitors a 5-4 lead.

Crist had two of ISU’s nine hits, while Jay Molina drove in a pair of runs in a losing effort.

The Huskers continue their 16-game homestand this weekend, as they begin a four-game series with South Dakota State. The series opens Friday afternoon with a doubleheader scheduled for 12:05 p.m. (central).

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