Huskers Look for Wins at No. 23 OU

This Week’s Schedule
Fri., April 13 at --/23/24 Oklahoma (24-11, 4-5 Big 12) 7 p.m.
Sat., April 14 at Oklahoma 3 p.m.
Sun., April 15 at Oklahoma 1 p.m.
Polls are in the following order: Collegiate Baseball/Baseball America/Sports Weekly

Probable Starters
Fri. NU-Tony Watson, Jr., LHP (3-1, 3.33 ERA, 46 K, 48 IP)
       OU-Stephen Portier, So., RHP (4-3, 3.15 ERA, 62 K, 52.1 IP)
Sat. NU-Johnny Dorn, Jr., RHP (5-1, 4.89 ERA, 37 K, 46 IP) 
        OU-Heath Taylor, Jr., LHP 6-1, 2.86 ERA, 46 K, 50.1 IP)
Sun. NU-TBA 
          OU-TBA

Follow the Huskers This Week
Live Radio: Husker Sports Network (see network list on page 4) and for free on Huskers.com
Satellite Radio: Saturday and Sunday’s games will be on SIRIUS Satellite Radio (Channel is TBA)
TV: Saturday’s game at Oklahoma will be carried live on Fox Sports Net (Ch. 37 in Lincoln, Ch. 47 in Omaha)
Live Stats: Huskers.com 
Live Video: HuskersNside (Subscription required)

Huskers Look for Wins at No. 23 Oklahoma
The Nebraska baseball team returns to conference action, as the Huskers travel to No. 23 Oklahoma for a three-game series this weekend. The series from L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman commences with a 7 p.m. start Friday night with afternoon games set for both Saturday (3 p.m.) and Sunday (1 p.m.).

Radio broadcasts of all three games this weekend will be carried across the state on the Husker Sports Network, including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln, KFAB 1110 AM in Omaha and KRVN 880 AM in Lexington and for free on the Internet at Huskers.com. Saturday’s game may be joined in progress, as the Huskers football has its annual Red/White Game on Saturday. Both weekend games will also be available on SIRIUS Satellite Radio (Ch. 140).

Saturday’s game against the Sooners will also be carried nationally on FSN, the first of two regular-season Husker games carried as part of the Big 12’s baseball television package. Fans should check with their local cable or satellite operator to see if the game will be shown on a live or tape-delayed basis.

The Huskers are 20-13 on the season and 0-1 on their current four-game road trip after losing to No. 11 Wichita State, 5-3, on Wednesday night. NU, which had won  eight of its last 11 contests before Wednesday, built a 3-1 lead after strong performances from starter Drew Bowman and Matt Foust, only to see the Shockers rally for four runs in the bottom of the eighth. Offensively, Bryce Nimmo had two hits, scored twice and had a stolen base, while Mitch Abeita went 2-for-4 with an RBI.

NU took 2-of-3 from nationally ranked Oklahoma State last weekend and sits 5-7 in conference play entering this week’s action. The Huskers could move rapidly through a jumbled conference race, as the four teams above NU are all within one game of the .500 mark.
Oklahoma will pose a strong test for the Big Red this weekend, as the Sooners are 24-11 overall after defeating Dallas Baptist, 2-1, on Wednesday night in Norman. OU, which is tied with Kansas State for sixth place in the league with a 4-5 mark, has been tough at home, winning 17 of 19 games at L. Dale Mitchell Park this spring.  The Huskers have enjoyed success in Norman in recent years, winning 10 of 12 meetings at OU since the start of the 1999 season, including sweeps in both 2001 and 2003.

Following this weekend, the Huskers, who have played just 12 of their first 33 games at home, begin a 15-game homestand, including three home conference series, over the next month.

Leading Off
?-The Huskers are currently in the middle of a stretch where they play 13-of-16 games against ranked opponents. The stretch began at Texas A&M and will continue through the end of a three-game series with Texas April 20-22. NU is 3-4 against ranked foes during this stretch heading into this weekend’s series with Oklahoma.
?-Jeff Tezak (12 games), Andrew Brown (12) and Andy Gerch (10) all bring double-digit game hit streaks into this weekend’s series with Oklahoma. As a team, Nebraska only had two players record double-figure hit streaks during the 2006 season.  In fact, the last time NU had three players with active hit streaks of at least 10 games took place in March of 2005 (Alex Gordon, Brandon Fusilier and Joe Simokaitis).
?-The Huskers have been on an offensive surge in recent weeks, batting .318 as a team over the last 12 contests after hitting just .250 over the previous 13 games. NU, which has reached double figures in hits in each of the last eight contests, is hitting .331 in April and has raised its team batting average to .289 - its best average since March 5. Nebraska has also had at least 10 hits in each of the last eight games, the longest stretch of the year.
?-Nebraska has gotten off to fast starts this season, outscoring its opponents 36-12 in the opening inning of games. OSU’s two runs last Sunday marked the first time a Husker opponent had scored in the first inning since March 15, a span of 16 games.
?-Nebraska Head Coach Mike Anderson became the fourth Husker coach to reach 200 career wins in a 5-2 victory over No. 13 Oklahoma State on April 6.
?-Nebraska’s bullpen has 12 saves this season, a total that already ranks fifth on single-season charts. Five pitchers have at least one save, including four by Steve Edlefsen and three by Erik Bird.
?-If you remove the April 3 game against Creighton - a game where NU had six errors in sub-freezing conditions - NU’s defense has committed just eight errors over the last 12 games, good for a .981 fielding percentage.  NU had just two errors on the weekend in the series win over Oklahoma State.
?-Nebraska’s triple play against Northern Colorado on March 28 was the first one by the Huskers since the 1998 season and only the sixth in Big 12 history (since 1997). The Huskers join Texas A&M as the only teams to turn more than one triple play, while the last two in league play have both involved the Huskers.
?-Several Huskers have enjoyed their best success in two-out situations during the 2007 season. Andy Gerch has driven in 14 of his 17 runs with two outs, while Jake Opitz (13 of 27) and Craig Corriston (12 of 26) have combined to drive in nearly half their runs in two-out situations.
?-The Huskers are second in the Big 12 with 48 sacrifices this season, as 13 players have  recorded at least one sacrifice bunt this year.
?-Nebraska’s 12 runs against Missouri in the sixth inning on March 25 were the Huskers’ highest single-inning total since putting up 13 runs in the fifth inning against Chicago State on March 16, 1999.
?-Nearly half of Nebraska’s 13 losses this season have come at an opponent’s last at-bat this season, including four in conference play.
?-NU’s shutout against Western Illinois on March 21 marked the first shutout of the year for the Huskers, and the first since consecutive shutouts of Texas (6-0) and Wichita State (11-0) last April.
?-The Huskers are 15-2 when out-hitting opponents this spring, but just 5-11 when the opponent has as many or more hits.
?-Nebraska is looking to pick up its first extra-inning win of the year, as the Huskers are 0-2 so far this season. NU won all five of its extra-inning contests during the 2006 campaign.

Scouting Oklahoma
The Sooners come into this weekend’s series with Nebraska at 24-11 and ranked as high as 23rd nationally. Oklahoma had its mid-week game at Wichita State rained out before pulling out a 2-1 victory over Dallas Baptist on Wednesday night. The Sooners, who went 45-22 en route to the school’s first Super Regional appearance last season, are coached by Sunny Golloway, who is in his second full year at OU.

Oklahoma features a veteran offensive lineup what has five starters hitting over .300. Outfielder Joe Dunigan leads the Sooners in all three triple crown categories with a .348 average, six homers and 35 RBIs. Freshman first baseman Aaron Baker is also hitting .348 and is second on the team with 32 RBIs, while Aljay Davis (.326 with 13 stolen bases) and Aaron Reza (.326 with 12 stolen bases) give the Sooners a balanced offensive attack.

On the mound, sophomore transfer Stephen Porlier has moved into the Friday night spot, going 4-3 with a 3.15 ERA in nine appearances, striking out 62 in 54 innings to rank second in the Big 12. Left-hander Heath Taylor leads OU with six wins and has a 2.86 ERA while holding opponents to a .192 average. Freshman Garrett Richards anchors the Sooner bullpen with a Big 12-leading nine saves in 18 appearances.

Oklahoma leads the all-time series, 134-93-1, but Nebraska has enjoyed the better of the rivalry in recent years. Since 1998, Nebraska is 23-8 against Oklahoma, including a 10-2 mark in Norman in that span.

Mid-Week Recaps
Tuesday (Nebraska 7, Iowa 6): Dan Jennings earned his first career victory, while Jake Opitz and Jeff Tezak drove in two runs apiece in a 7-6 win over Iowa. Jennings turned in the best performance of his career in a spot start, allowing one earned run over four pre-determined innings, fanning four without a walk   Opitz and Tezak both had two hits in the victory, as Opitz’s two-run single in the bottom of the third helped NU overcome an early 2-0 deficit, while Tezak’s sixth-inning solo homer gave the Huskers (20-12) a seemingly safe four-run lead.
Iowa pulled within 7-6 in the ninth and had the bases loaded with two outs. Matt Foust finally thwarted the Hawkeye comeback by getting Kevin Hoef to foul out to end the contest and earn his second save.

Wednesday (Wichita State 5, Nebraska 3): Damon Sublett’s two-run eighth-inning single capped a four-run comeback, as No. 11 Wichita State rallied for a 5-3 victory.  The Shockers trailed 3-1 entering the bottom of the eighth, but rallied for four runs on four hits and two walks against the Husker bullpen, as Sublett’s two-run single off Erik Bird capped the outburst.  The loss spoiled strong performances from starter Drew Bowman and Matt Foust, who combined to allow just one run over the first seven innings. Bowman allowed one run on six hits over 5.2 innings while Foust got the Huskers out of a two-on, two-out jam in the sixth and pitched a perfect seventh. 
Center fielder Bryce Nimmo went 2-for-4 and scored twice for NU, while catcher Mitch Abeita also had two hits, as the pair combined for nearly half of Nebraska’s 10 hits on the night. Thad Weber and Ryan Wehrle also contributed RBI singles in a losing effort.

DJ Making Name for Himself
Freshman DJ Belfonte has quickly made the transition to the college ranks. The outfielder from Kansas City is hitting .299 from the leadoff spot while appearing in all 33 contests for the Huskers, the only player to appear in every game this season.

He leads NU in five offensive categories, including runs scored (28), walks (22), hit-by-pitches (11), stolen bases (eight) and sacrifices (10). He leads all Big 12 freshmen in walks and sacrifices, as he is second nationally among freshmen in sacrifices per game in this week’s NCAA rankings.

Belfonte is making a strong bid to become the first Husker freshman to ever lead Nebraska in runs scored in a season.

Corriston, Tezak Make Immediate Impact
Junior college transfers Craig Corriston and Jeff Tezak have flourished during the first half of the 2007 campaign, their first in a Husker uniform.

Corriston, who has started at five different positions (1B, 3B, SS, RF and DH), is hitting .318 on the season with four homers and 26 RBIs, tying for the lead in both multi-homer and multi-RBI contests, while hitting a team-high .400 in two-out situations. In league play, he is hitting .365, as his 19 hits in 12 games tied for the league lead. In last weekend’s sweep of Oklahoma State, he hit .455 with a homer, two RBIs and four runs scored, snapping a 1-for-22 slump in the process.

Tezak, who transferred in from Palomar (Calif.) JC at the start of the spring semester, is a switch-hitter who has found a role as NU’s designated hitter. On the year, Tezak is hitting a team-high .383, an average that is seventh in the Big 12, with a pair of homers and a team-high 29 RBIs. He has reached base safely in 22 of 25 starts and brings a team-best 12-game hit streak into Friday’s series opener. He has driven in 18 of his 29 RBIs in conference action, a total that is second in the league. Against Missouri on March 25, Tezak drove in a career-high six RBIs, including his first grand slam, and followed up with four RBIs in an 11-4 win over No. 14 Texas A&M on March 31.

Tezak has been at the focal point of both of NU’s last at-bat wins this season, delivering a sacrifice fly against Western Illinois on March 20 while capping a five-hit day at No. 22 Alabama on March 10 with his ninth-inning RBI single. He was chosen as the league’s Player of the Week on March 12, hitting .728 with a homer, three RBIs and two doubles in the series win over the Crimson Tide.

Brown, Watson Garner Big 12 Honors
Andrew Brown and Tony Watson were rewarded for their performances last week, as both players earned Big 12 weekly honors on April 9.
Brown was named the league’s Player of the Week for the first time in his career after hitting .500 (8-for-16) with four doubles, a triple and five runs scored in four games. His eighth-inning RBI double against Creighton broke a 10-all tie on April 3. He also went 6-for-12 against OSU, including a 3-for-4 effort with a double and triple in the series clincher on April 7.

Watson collected his second conference honor in three weeks, sharing pitcher-of-the-week honors with Missouri’s Rick Zagone. Watson tossed a complete game against No. 13 Oklahoma State on Friday, holding the Cowboys to a season-low two runs, and striking out a career-best 12 hitters without a walk in a 5-2 win.

Welcome Back Nimmo
After missing nine games with a shoulder injury, center fielder Bryce Nimmo has returned to the Husker lineup with a flourish.  He is hitting .319 with six stolen bases and 10 runs scored in his last 14 contests.Nimmo, who saw his seven-game hit snapped Sunday against Oklahoma State, rebounded with two hits and scored twice at Wichita State on Wednesday.  In Big 12 action, Nimmo has been even better, hitting .346 with six runs scored in eight appearances.

Opitz Shows Offensive Punch
One of the offensive keys for NU this season has been the continued development of second baseman Jake Opitz. The junior second baseman is hitting .287 with four homers and 27 RBIs, ranking first on the team in triples and second in both homers and RBIs Opitz, who has started 31 games at second, has already matched career high in RBIs, which was 27 in 59 games a year ago. He also tops the Huskers with 11 multi-hit games and seven multi-RBI contests.

Opitz earned Big 12 Player-of-the-Week accolades for his efforts at the Rice Invitational in February, hitting .600 and scoring five runs in helping NU to a 2-1 weekend. At Stetson the following weekend, he showed his improved power, belting two homers and driving in seven runs in two games on Sunday, as he equaled his entire 2006 total of homers in one afternoon.

The junior from Littleton, Colo., nearly became the first Husker to hit for a cycle at Hawks Field on March 21, going 3-for-5 with a homer and triple in NU’s 8-0 win over Western Illinois. He provided the big hit in the win over Northern Colorado on March 28, a three-run triple that wiped out a 2-0 deficit.

Edlefsen, Weber Provide Dual Threats
The Huskers have relied on the two-way talents of Steve Edlefsen and Thad Weber during the 2007 season.

Edlefsen, who can play nearly every position on the diamond, has been one of NU’s most valuable performers this spring. An infielder in his first year at NU, he started nine games in right field while Bryce Nimmo was sidelined. Although he is batting just .214, Edlefsen enjoyed his best offensive weekend of the year at Texas Tech, hitting .444 with four RBIs, as he drove in a career-high three runs against the Red Raiders on March 16. On the mound, Edlefsen has moved into the closer’s role and is tied for eighth in the Big 12 with four saves in as many chances.

Weber, a junior college All-American at Hutchinson (Kan.) CC, is batting .257 with seven RBIs in 10 games, splitting time between designated hitter and first base. Weber has found his nitche in the Husker bullpen, where he is 1-0 with a 0.69 ERA in 11 appearances. He did not allow an earned run in his first 10 outing and earned the win against Creighton on April 3, fanning four over 2.1 innings of one-hit ball.

Husker Ace Has Been Dealing
All-American pitcher Tony Watson has returned to his dominant form after a slow start. The junior left-hander has been outstanding over his last three starts, going 2-0 with a 2.08 ERA, including wins over nationally ranked Texas A&M and Oklahoma State. The stretch began with a 10-inning performance against Missouri where he allowed one unearned run and struck out seven in a no-decision en route to earning Big 12 Pitcher-of-the-Week accolades. In his last start, he tossed a complete game against OSU, striking out a career-high 12 hitters without a walk.

Watson’s performance against Oklahoma State marked just the sixth time in the last nine years where a Husker pitcher had at least 12 strikeouts without issuing a walk

Dorn Climbs Husker Win List
With his win against No. 13 Oklahoma State on April 7, Johnny Dorn moved one spot closer to second place on NU’s career wins list. The junior right-hander is 26-7 in his career and passed Mike Zajeski (1988-92) for third place on NU’s all-time wins list against Missouri on March 25. Of Dorn’s 26 wins, nine have been in Big 12 series clinchers over the past three seasons, including five as a freshmen when he went 12-2 en route to All-America honors.  The wins chart is one of three top-10 lists that Dorn is on, as he ranks eighth on NU’s career starts list (35) and ninth all-time in innings pitched (233.1)

Foust Has Been a Find
One of the biggest surpises for the Husker staff has been the emergence of junior Matt Foust. The right-hander had pitched only 12.2 innings prior to this seasons, but has become one of the Huskers’ most reliable arms this season. He is 1-0 with a 2.73 ERA and two saves in 13 games, ranking fifth in the league in ERA and sixth in opposing batting average (.211) over 33 innings.  In Big 12 play, Foust is second among Big 12 pitchers in ERA (2.08) while holding opponents to a league-low .163 average. He earned his first save of the year with three scoreless innings of work against OSU on April 7. He has appeared in each of NU’s last four games, recording the final two outs to preserve NU’s 7-6 win over Iowa on April 10 before following up with 1.1 innings of shutout ball at No. 11 Wichita State on Wednesday.

Doubling Up with Brown
Senior Andrew Brown found his way into the Husker record books on March 25, belting three doubles in NU’s win over Missouri. He became the 15th Husker to hit three doubles in a game, as he snapped an 0-for-7 slump with doubles in his first three at-bats. The Husker first baseman then capped his first career four-hit day with a homer as part of NU’s 12-run inning against the Tigers.

Morris Returns to Hawks Field
The Huskers welcomed a special guest back to the ballpark on March 25, as former All-American Jed Morris returned to watch the series finale between the Huskers and Missouri. Morris, who had not seen the Huskers play at Hawks Field since the 2002 Super Regional against Richmond, was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia last summer and underwent treatment throughout the fall. The condition is currently in remission, and Morris heads to Arizona this week to begin extended spring training in the Oakland Athletics organization.
Last fall, the Husker coaches and players raised money for Morris’ medical bills, culminating with a full day of batting practice for fans at Hawks Field. The event raised more than $11,000.

Watson Garners Big 12 Honor
Nebraska pitcher Tony Watson was selected as the Big 12’s Pitcher of the Week by the conference office on March 26. It was the first career honor for Watson.

He earned the honor after allowing one unearned run over 10 innings of work in the series opener against Missouri. Watson allowed just three hits and struck out a season-high seven Tigers, while retiring 14 of the final 15 hitters he faced.
His 10 innings against the Tigers was not only a career-long performance, but also the longest outing by a Husker pitcher since the Big 12 was formed in 1996.