Huskers Open Home Baseball Season Today

This Week: The Nebraska baseball program has a busy week ahead, as it welcomes the University of North Dakota for the home opener at Hawks Field Wednesday afternoon at 1:35 p.m. before leaving for four games in Huntsville, Texas, over the weekend. The Huskers will take on Missouri Valley Conference preseason favorite Missouri State twice (Friday and Sunday) as well facing NCAA Regional qualifier and tournament host Sam Houston State (Saturday at 5 p.m.) and St. Mary’s (Saturday at 1:30 p.m.).

On the Radio: Fans across Nebraska can listen to Greg Sharpe, Lane Grindle and Adrian Fiala call all of the action on the Husker Sports Network - including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln and KRVN 880 AM in Lexington - and on the Internet at Huskers.com. Every game this season will be carried on Huskers.com and available to Husker Sports Network stations. Saturday’s game against Sam Houston State will be an internet-only broadcast because of the men’s basketball game at Kansas State scheduled for 7 p.m.

On the Huskers: The Huskers put together a solid opening weekend, going 2-1-1 at Louisiana-Lafayette. One thing we learned about the Huskers is they like playing close games, as all four games were decided by one run or less, including a pair of extra-inning contests. Senior Jeff Tezak and sophomore Ben Kline paced the Huskers in Louisiana. Tezak hit .400 with three runs scored in his first action since undergoing knee surgery last March, while Kline hit .375 on the weekend and drove in a team-high five runs, including a career high three RBIs in Sunday’s series finale. A pair of Huskers provided the offensive power as newcomers Adam Bailey and Khiry Cooper accounted for the Huskers’ two homers in Lafayette.

3 Things to Watch
1.  Husker hitters were hit by 10 pitches over the  weekend, including six in Saturday’s 9-8 win.

2. The Huskers will be taking on Sam Houston State and Missouri State for the first time since 2003. The Huskers matchups with the Bears on Friday and Sunday is the first time the teams have met since the 2003 NCAALincoln Regional.

3. The Huskers have won their last 30 home openers dating back to the 1979 season, and NU has won nearly 80 percent of its games at Hawks Field since the ballpark opened in 2002.

Wednesday's Starter -- #11 - Matt Freeman ? So. ? RHP ? 6-1 ? 183 ? Omaha, Neb. (Elkhorn)
Sophomore right-hander who will make his first collegiate start on Wednesday afternoon against North Dakota, but will make his team-high fourth appearance of the year ? Is 0-0 with a 3.00 ERA in three games, allowing one hit and fanning six over three innings of work ? Pitched effectively in the series finale at Louisiana-Lafayette on Sunday, fanning four of the five hitters he faced over 1.2 perfect innings ? Threw an inning in Saturday’s nightcap against the Ragin’ Cajuns, allowing one run on a hit ? Pitched for Wilmington (N.C.) in the Coastal Plains League over the summer, leading the team in starts (10) and ranking second in both innings (62.1) and strikeouts (44) ? Worked out of the bullpen in long and middle relief as a true freshman in 2008, posting a 0-0 mark and a 4.66 ERA in nine contests, highlighted by five consecutive scoreless outings to begin his career ? Made two long relief appearances in Big 12 action, pitching at No. 12 Missouri and No. 21 Oklahoma State ? Compiled a 5-1 record, three saves and a 0.76 ERA as a senior to lead Elkhorn High School to a 27-5 record and a Class A state title in 2007 en route to being named the state’s player of the year ? Struck out 55 in 37 innings of work while opponents hit .154 against him as a senior ? Went 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in the state tournament, as he did not allow a run in 17 innings of work, highlighted by a complete-game three-hitter with 12 strikeouts in a 1-0 win over top-seeded Grand Island in the semifinals before earning the save in the state title game with both games taking place at Hawks Field.

Scouting North Dakota
North Dakota makes its baseball debut at the Division I level in 2009, as the Fighting Sioux visit Lincoln for the Huskers’ home opener Wednesday afternoon. North Dakota returns 16 lettermen, including eight everyday starters, from a team that went 14-23 in 2008.

UND went 0-3 over the weekend at New Mexico State, losing 15-4 on Friday before getting swept (16-2 and 12-6) in a twinbill on Saturday. North Dakota begins a three-game stretch against Big 12 opposition, as they will travel to Kansas for a two-game series on March 3-4. UND plays its first 36 games this season on the road.

The Fighting Sioux are led by senior third baseman Andrew Gudmunson, who hit .270 and led North Dakota in both homers (five) and RBIs (33) last season. He went 2-for-8 against the Aggies last weekend. Gudmunson began his college career at Nebraska in 2006, where he redshirted that season. He is joined in the lineup by shortstop Jabby Bakhit (.340-0-14) and outfielder Andrew Marek (.304-3-26) as the other returnees who hit over .300 last season. Junior outfielder Aaron Cook paced North Dakota’s offensive attack over the weekend, going 5-for-10 with three doubles in the three contests.

On the mound, North Dakota welcomes back seven returning pitchers, including senior right-hander Mike Lueck, who went 4-4 with a 4.24 ERA in 12 appearances last season, tossing six complete games in eight starts. In addition, closer Jameson Benson led UND with three saves in 2008.

Wednesday’s matchup is the first-ever between the two programs on the diamond.

Leading Off
?-Nebraska improved to 6-1 in season openers under Head Coach Mike Anderson with Friday’s 15-inning win over UL-Lafayette. It marked the first time the Huskers have played an extra-inning game in a season opener since a 13-inning win over New Mexico in 2002.
?-It was also the fifth time the Huskers have played at least 14 innings under Mike Anderson. NU went 16 innings against Texas A&M (2008) and Texas (2005) and 14 innings against Baylor (2003) and UL-Lafayette (2008).
?-Prior to this season, the last time NU opened a season with three consecutive one-run games was in 2002. The only other time in the program’s 100-plus year history was in back in 1970.
?-Dating back to last season, the Huskers and Louisiana-Lafayette played five consecutive one-run games prior to Sunday’s tie. In fact, the last six meetings between the teams have been decided by a total of five runs, with NU out-scoring the Ragin’ Cajuns by a combined score of 22-19.
?-Nebraska set a school and Big 12 record in the opener against UL-Lafayette, as five Husker pitchers combined for 22 strikeouts, breaking the school and conference mark of 21 set at Iowa State on April 18, 1999. Three of the top five strikeout performances have been under pitching Eric Newman over the past two seasons.
?-Wednesday’s home opener marks the second straight year the Huskers will look to squeeze in a game in February. It is the earliest scheduled home opener since 1998. The Huskers are a perfect 29-0 at home during the month of February, including 1-0 at Hawks Field.
?-A trio of Huskers are quickly climbing the Huskers’ career hit by pitch list. DJ Belfonte (31), Nick Sulllivan (28) and Jake Mort (28) now comprise half of the Huskers’ top-five list in career hit by pitches.
?-The Huskers improved to 19-6-1 in season-opening trips under Mike Anderson, as NU has opened each of the last seven years on the road. The Huskers have started seasons in six states (Texas, New Mexico, Hawaii, South Carolina and California) over the last six years.
?-A total of 12 players saw their first action as Huskers during the weekend series. The hitting contingent was led by freshmen Khiry Cooper (.375-1-2) and Cody Asche (.375-0-0) and junior college transfer Adam Bailey (.308-1-1). On the mound, sophomore Eric Rose went 1-0 with a save and a 1.93 ERA in three outings, while Jordan Roualdes (0-0, 4.76) earned the start in the series finale. Bailey (1-0, 3.38 ERA), Joe Broekemeier (0-0, 0.00) and Kash Kalkowski (0-0, 6.75 ERA) also saw action out of the bullpen for the Big Red.
On Sunday, the Huskers trotted out a lineup with six newcomers in the lineup, as Cooper, Asche and Burleson combined for seven of the Huskers’ 10 hits in the 5-5 tie.
?-After posting 21 come-from-behind wins in 2008, the Huskers recorded comeback wins in both of its wins over the weekend. Under Mike Anderson, the Huskers now have 101 come-from-behind wins since 2003.
?-Sunday’s tie marked the second straight year that the Huskers have had a tie game after not having one since 1996.
?-With a pair of extra-inning games under its belt, the Huskers are now 15-8-2 (.640) in extra-inning contests since 2003. Last year, the Huskers went 3-1-1 in extra-inning games.
?-Since the NCAA went to the 64-team format in 1999, Nebraska has made nine NCAA Tournament appearances, which ties for seventh nationally in that time period. The only teams to earn more bids than Nebraska in that span are Cal State Fullerton, Florida State, Miami, Oral Roberts, Rice and Texas.
?-Nebraska has won 120 of its last 121 games when taking a lead into the ninth inning and is 120-0-1 in that stretch dating back to the 2005 season. NU is 215-3-1 (.984) when leading after eight innings under Mike Anderson.

Last Time Out: NU-UL-Lafayette Series Recap
Friday:  Nebraska’s pitching staff established a school record with 22 strikeouts, while Tyler Farst scored the go-ahead run in the 15th as the Huskers posted a 4-3 win. Five Huskers pitchers combined to fan 22 UL Lafayette hitters, breaking the school mark of 21 set against Iowa State in 1999. Three Huskers ? Michael Mariot (8), Casey Hauptman (7) and Erik Anderson (4) all set career bests, while Eric Rose fanned three over 1.2 innings to earn the win in his first college appearance. Ben Kline and Jeff Tezak had three hits apiece in the victory for the Big Red.

Saturday (Game 1):  Mike Nesseth turned in a strong effort, but ULL starter Michael Cook limited Nebraska to just three hits in a 2-1 setback. Nesseth was the hard-luck loser, allowing two hits over six innings while striking out seven in his first start. The Ragin’ Cajuns (1-1) had just two hits ? both coming in the fifth inning - in taking a 2-0 lead. Cook allowed three hits over 6.2 innings to earn the win, while Luke Wagley tossed a perfect 2.1 innings for the save. Jeff Tezak drove in the Huskers’ only run with a seventh-inning RBI single.

Saturday (Game 2): Cody Neer went 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored, while his eighth-inning pickoff proved to be the decisive defensive play in a 9-8 victory. With runners on first and second and no outs and the Huskers clinging to an 8-7 lead, Neer picked off Scott Hawkins at second base before NU reliever Eric Rose got Les Smith to line out to Tyler Farst at first for an inning-ending double play to wipe out the rally. DJ Belfonte, Ben Kline and Jeff Tezak had two hits apiece in the win, as the Huskers overcame an early 4-1 deficit by scoring eight runs over the final six frame to collect its second one-run win of the weekend. Adam Bailey belted a homer and collected the win, throwing 2.2 innings of relief.

Sunday: Khiry Cooper had three hits, including his first career homer, while Ben Kline matched his career high with three RBIs, as NU and Louisiana Lafayette wrapped up its four-game series with a 5-5 deadlock in 10 innings. Cooper went 3-for-5 including a solo homer while Kline drove in three runs in a fifth-inning double to help the Huskers erase an early 2-0 deficit.  For Nebraska, eight of the Huskers’ 10 hits were by freshmen and sophomores, including two hits apiece from freshmen Cody Asche and Cory Burleson.

What’s New at the Ballpark
Two significant changed have happened for Husker baseball fans over the last season - one which affect ballpark traffic and another that will be less noticeable to fans. The Harris Overpass re-opened on Oct. 10, 2008, making it easier to get to the ballpark from downtown Lincoln. The bridge was closed for extensive repairs since the fall of 2007.

During the off-season, the playing surface of the ballpark was replaced, allowing for improved drainage especially on the warning tracks. The Huskers spent the fall at Sherman Field while the project took place and have been able to work at Hawks Field since starting practice earlier this month.

Double Duty for Bailey
Junior college transfer Adam Bailey did something that no other Husker had done in 14 season in Saturday’s game against UL Lafayette. He became the first Husker player to earn a victory and hit a homer in the same game since Alvie Shepherd accomplished the feat against Kansas on April 5, 1995.  Bailey entered the game as a reliever in the top of the fourth and fanned three over 2.2 innings of two-hit relief. He  moved to right field for the final three innings, going 1-for-2 with a ninth-inning homer that was the final margin of victory in a 9-8 win.

Many Happy Returns
A trio of Huskers who ended the 2008 season on the shelf made strong opening weekend impressions. Jeff Tezak, who played in just seven games last year before knee surgery on a torn left ACL, put together a strong performance, hitting  a team-high .400 with a pair of RBIs in four games, while also showing very good range at second base.
Left-hander Eric Rose, who missed all of last season with a shoulder injury, was impressive in his first collegiate action, going 1-0 with a save and a 1.93 ERA. He appeared in three of the four games, earning the win in the opener and then coming back a day later to throw the final two innings to preserve a 9-8 win.  Joe Broekemeier, who missed the last two years with injuries, made his Husker debut in Saturday’s 2-1 loss. He tossed two perfect innings with a strikeout.

New Rotation...Same Effectiveness
One of the questions entering the 2009 season was how effective the Husker starting rotation would be. NU had all four weekend starters drafted in the first 20 rounds of last year’s Major League Baseball Draft. After one weekend, the results looked promising, as Michael Mariot, Mike Nesseth and Jordan Roulades all turned in solid performances in their first Division I starts. Mariot went a career-high 5.2 innings, fanning a career-high eight hitters and allowing a pair of earned runs in Friday’s season opener. Nesseth, the only starter to be involved in a decision, went six innings, allowing one earned run on two hits and fanning seven in a 2-1 setback.  Roualdes capped the weekend by going 5.2 innings and allowing three runs on five hits in Sunday’s 5-5 tie.

Kline Steps Up in Louisiana
Ben Kline was one of the Huskers’ offensive standouts on the trip to Louisiana over the weekend. The Omaha Central product hit .375 on the weekend and drove in a team-high five RBIs.  In the season opener, Kline tied a career high with three hits in NU’s 15-inning win. After his second multi-hit game on Saturday night, Kline moved into the No. 2 spot in the lineup for the first time in his career. He responded by driving in by matching his career high with three RBIs in a 5-all tie with ULL the series finale.

Huskers to Be Tested Again in 2009
A total of 19 games against NCAA Tournament teams and 30 home games at Hawks Field highlight the 2009 Nebraska baseball schedule. The Huskers will be tested by a schedule that sees the Huskers play 17 of their 55 regular-season games against teams ranked in Baseball America’s top-25 preseason poll. The list includes Big 12 weekend series at No. 1 Texas A&M and against No. 4 Texas, No. 8 Baylor and No. 10 Missouri at Hawks Field.

With 30 home games, including five Big 12 series, Head Coach Mike Anderson said that the Huskers’ home schedule will be very appealing. Nebraska opens the home portion of its schedule on Wednesday, Feb. 25, against North Dakota, and plays 12 of its final 13 regular-season games at Hawks Field, where NU ranked 10th nationally in average attendance in 2008.

Nesseth Ranked Among Top Prospects
Sophomore right-hander Mike Nesseth is rated by Baseball America as one of the top 100 prospects for this June’s Major League Baseball Draft. Nesseth, who went 4-1 with four saves and a 3.58 ERA last season, is rated as the No. 29 college prospect and No. 63 overall prospect by the publication. Nesseth was also ranked as the No. 2 prospect in the Northwoods League over the summer by Baseball America. He was also ranked as the No. 19 sophomore in the country in the most recent edition of Baseball America.

Huskers Tabbed for Seventh in Big 12
The Nebraska baseball team was picked to finish seventh in the Big 12 Conference preseason poll by a vote of the league coaches released on Feb. 17.

The Huskers, coming off a season where they went 41-16-1 and advanced to an NCAA Regional for the eighth time in nine seasons, totaled 38 points in voting by the league’s coaches.  In 2008, the Huskers were picked sixth in the preseason poll and finished in third place in the final league standings, staying in contention for the league’s regular-season title until the final weekend of the year. Nebraska has finished fourth or better in five of the last six years under Head Coach Mike Anderson, including regular-season titles in 2003 and 2005.

Texas A&M was the choice of the league’s coaches, garnering 81 points in the preseason voting and nine of the 10 first-pace votes. Runner-up Texas was the second choice, as the Longhorns received 69 points. Baylor and Oklahoma State tied for third with 59 points, while Missouri (51) and Oklahoma (42) placed fifth and sixth. Each of the league’s top six teams has been ranked in the top 20 by at least one national preseason poll. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams. Following Nebraska in the preseason poll were Texas Tech (25), Kansas State (15) and Kansas (11.)

Switching Things Up
One of the things that is evident on the 2009 roster is an abundance of switch hitters. In all, Nebraska has six position players (Kyle Bubak, Cory Burleson, Kale Kiser, Jed Hanson, Jeff Tezak and Cody Neer) listed as switch hitters, which is believed to be the most in school history.
Prior to this year, Nebraska has had only four switch hitters on a roster this decade - and no more than two in any year - since having four on the 1985 roster.

Husker Homes
The 2009 Huskers come from 14 states across the nation. Nebraska natives comprise nearly a third of the 34-man opening-day roster with 11 spots, while Texas, Missouri and Minnesota also claim at least three Huskers apiece.

Among the Nation’s Best
Nebraska Coach Mike Anderson begins the 2009 season in 12th place in winning percentage among all active coaches. He joins Texas’ Augie Garrido and Kansas State’s Brad Hill as the only three Big 12 coaches among the top-15 nationally in winning percentage.

Success in the Classroom
NU enjoyed a strong performance in the classroom by posting a team GPA of 3.089 during the fall semester. The team GPA was the highest in tracking the program’s GPA over the last 20 years. A total  of 18 Huskers were named to the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll for the fall semester, including DJ Belfonte, who posted a perfect 4.0 GPA. In addition, senior outfielder Nick Sullivan has been on the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll at nine semesters at Nebraska.

Join the Husker Home Run Club in Oklahoma
The Husker Home Run Club is sponsoring a bus trip to Norman, Okla., to support the baseball team against Oklahoma on Saturday, March 28, and Sunday, March 29.  The trip includes game tickets for both days, selected meals and hotel accomadations at the Embassy Suites in Norman. The deadline for registration is March 10.  For more information and to download a registration form for the bus trip, please log on to huskerhomerunclub.com or contact Ed Bolejack at 402-617-5913.

Single-Game Tickets Now on Sale
Single-game general admission tickets for Husker baseball home games are now on sale. General admission tickets for all regular-season home games this season are $7 for adults and $5 for youth in high school or younger or for senior citizens ages 60 or older. General admission tickets are free for children ages six and younger along with UNL students (with a valid student ID).
The 2009 schedule includes Big 12 home series against Oklahoma State, Kansas State, Texas, Missouri and Baylor as well as non-conference series against Cal State Northridge and Cal State Bakersfield.

Nebraska-Creighton Tickets on Sale April 1
Single-game tickets for the annual Nebraska-Creighton baseball game at Omaha’s Rosenblatt Stadium on Tuesday, May 12, will go on sale on Wednesday, April 1, at Ticketmaster locations across Nebraska.
Tickets for the annual match-up between the Huskers and Bluejays range from $9-$15 and can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster in Lincoln at (402) 475-1212 or in Omaha at (402) 422-1212 or on the Internet at Ticketmaster.com.

Up Next: Huskers Head to Texas This Weekend
Following Wednesday’s game, the Huskers quickly turn around and head to Huntsville, Texas, for a tournament at Sam Houston State. The Huskers will play Missouri State twice with single games against St. Mary’s and Sam Houston State.  NU returns home to take on South Dakota State on Tuesday, March 3, at 1:35 p.m.