Huskers Head to No. 11 Oklahoma

This Weekend: For the second straight weekend, the Huskers are taking on a the No. 11 team in the country, as the Nebraska baseball team travels to Norman, Okla., for a three-game series at L. Dale Mitchell Park against Oklahoma. Friday’s series opener has been moved to Saturday at 2 p.m. because of the weather. Sunday’s game time is still at 1 p.m. with Monday’s first pitch now slated for 3 p.m.  The Huskers, who are beginning a four-game road swing, enter the weekend with a 15-8-1 record after splitting two games with Northern Colorado, while Oklahoma is 21-5 following a 12-6 win over Central Arkansas on Tuesday evening. Both teams come off conference series wins last week, as NU took 2-of-3 against No. 11 Oklahoma State, while the Sooners won 2-of-3 at Kansas State.

On the Radio: Fans across Nebraska can listen to Greg Sharpe and Lane Grindle call the action on selected Husker Sports Network stations, including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln, KRVN 880 AM in Lexington and KFAB 1110 AM. In addition, 55 regular-season games in 2009 will be carried on Huskers.com.

Nebraska at Oklahoma

Game Times
Sat. ? 2 p.m.; Sun. ? 1 p.m.; Mon. ? 3 p.m.

Media Info
Live Radio: IMG Husker Sports Network and for free on the Internet at Huskers.com
Live Stats:  Huskers.com 
Live Video: HuskersNside (subscription required)

Probable Starters
Sat. 
NU-Casey Hauptman, So., RHP (2-0, 4.21 ERA)
OU-Andrew Doyle, Jr., RHP (2-2, 4.55 ERA)
Sun. 
NU-Jordan Roualdes, Jr., LHP (3-1, 3.86 ERA) 
OU-Michael Rocha, So., RHP (3-1, 4.35 ERA)
Mon. 
Both teams are TBA

On the Huskers: Offensively, the Huskers are fifth in the Big 12 with a .294 team batting average, as Tyler Farst (.354, 18th) and Adam Bailey (.344, 20th) both rank among the league leaders in hitting. Bailey is tied for the Big 12 lead in both homers (nine) and RBIs (33), while Farst ranks second on the squad with 20 RBIs. In all, nine players have at least 10 RBIs, while NU’s 21 homers are split among 11 different players.  On the mound, the Huskers have been led by junior left-hander Jordan Roualdes, who is 3-1 with a 3.86 ERA in five starts. Right-hander Mike Nesseth has been solid as both a reliever and starter, going 3-1 with a save and 38 strikeouts over 32.1 innings. He has handled the closer’s role over the last eight contests.

Scouting Oklahoma
The Sooners welcome Nebraska to town this weekend riding a three-game win streak and are ranked as high as 11th in the three major polls. Oklahoma is 21-5 on the season, including a perfect 13-0 at home, and 2-1 in conference action after defeating Kansas State twice in Manhattan.

Oklahoma brings a potent offense to the table, as the Sooners lead the Big 12 in batting average (.348) and homers (42). Bryant Hernandez paces the Sooner attack with a .422 average with five homers and a team-high 30 RBIs. Jamie Johnson has been one of the league’s top leadoff hitters, hitting .394 with a team-high nine homers and 25 RBIs while also going 10-of-10 in stolen bases. In all, six starters are hitting over .300 for the Sooners.

On the mound, Oklahoma has been led by right-handers Andrew Doyle and Michael Rocha. Doyle, who will start on Saturday, is 2-2 with a 4.55 ERA in five starts, while Rocha is 3-1 with a 4.35 ERA in five starts. Ryan Duke is the Sooners’ closer, going 2-0 with four saves in 19 appearances, while eight pitchers have at least two wins.

Series History: The Sooners hold a 137-96-2 lead in the all-time series, although Nebraska has won the season series in each of the past two years. NU went 2-0-1 against OU last year in Lincoln and won 2-of-3 against the Sooners in Norman in 2007.

Last Time Out
Tuesday (Nebraska 14, Northern Colorado 13): DJ Belfonte’s two-run triple in the bottom of the eighth capped a four-run rally, as Nebraska overcame a seven-run deficit to stun Northern Colorado, 14-13, Tuesday afternoon. The Huskers (15-7-1) overcame deficits of 10-3 and 13-9, scoring five unanswered runs in the seventh and eighth innings to record their ninth come-from-behind win of the season. The seven-run deficit NU overcame was its largest since the 2003 season.  In the eighth, Nebraska trailed 13-10 before two-out RBI singles from Nick Sullivan and Kale Kiser pulled the Huskers within a run. Belfonte then ripped a triple into the gap, clearing the bases and giving the Huskers the lead.  Tyler Farst was one of the catalysts for the Huskers all afternoon with a career-high five RBIs, going 2-for-3 with a grand slam and three runs scored. Boomer Collins went 3-for-4 and scored three times, while Belfonte, Kyle Bubak and Sullivan drove in two runs apiece. Nebraska pounded out 16 hits and reached double figures in runs for the ninth time this season.

Wednesday (Northern Colorado 10, Nebraska 7): Jake Mort went 1-for-2 and scored three runs, but Northern Colorado scored three times in both the sixth and seventh innings to overcome a 5-3 deficit and take the finale of the two-game series, 10-7, on Wednesday. Mort and Kyle Bubak combined to score five of the Huskers’ seven runs, but Nebraska was held to just six hits on the afternoon. Freshman Boomer Collins was the only NU player to record more than one hit, going 2-for-4 with an RBI. Jarod Berggren paced the Bears’ 14-hit attack, going 3-for-4 and driving in four runs, while Phil Santucci had three hits and scored twice.

Leading Off
?-With his homer against Northern Colorado on Wednesday, Jed Hanson became the first Husker to homer in his first career at-bat in over a decade. Hanson, who had not appeared in NU’s first 23 games, was used as a defensive replacement in Tuesday’s win before making his first start on Wednesday.
?-NU Head Coach Mike Anderson became the third Husker skipper to reach 100 conference wins with his victory over No. 11 Oklahoma State on March 20.  Anderson, who is now 101-66-1 in Big 12 games, became the fastest Husker manager to reach that plateau.
?-Junior college transfer Kyle Bubak has made the most of his opportunities at the top of the Husker lineup. Since moving into the leadoff spot on March 4, Bubak is hitting .348 with a homer, 11 RBIs and 23 runs scored. The Husker offense has also made significant improvement in that span, averaging nearly nine runs per game over the last 15 contests. Prior to Bubak’s move to the top of the lineup, NU’s leadoff hitters were hitting a combined .154 in the first nine contests.
?-Nebraska has shown the ability to score runs in bunches. The Huskers have already plated five runs in an inning 10 times through the first 24 games of the season, eclipsing the team’s entire 2008 total of seven in 59 contests. Here is a look at the Huskers’ biggest innings this spring.
?-Nebraska already has nine come-from-behind wins among its 15 victories, including six wins where the Huskers had to overcome at least a three-run deficit. The seven-run comeback against Northern Colorado on March 24 equaled the Huskers’ largest comeback since the 2000 season, when NU overcame a 10-0 defict against Iowa State. NU now has 108 come-from-behind wins under Mike Anderson since 2003.
?-The Huskers have reached double figures in runs nine times this season - all coming in the last 20 contests - and are fast approaching the team’s entire 2008 total of 12.
?-The second and eighth innings have been the keys to the Huskers’ success this year. NU is out-scoring opponents 29-11 in the second inning and have plated 38 runs in the eighth inning, compared to just 15 for opponents.
?-NU has shown a flare for the dramatic in 2009, winning five games in its last at-bat, including four runs in the bottom of the eighth in a 14-13 win.
?-Nebraska hitters have taken a beating, as the Huskers have been hit by 40 pitches through the first 24 games. At the current pace, NU hitters are on pace to get hit 92 times during the 55-game regular-season schedule, making a strong charge for the school record of 103 set in 2003.  A trio of Huskers are quickly climbing the Huskers’ career hit-by-pitch list. DJ Belfonte (37), Nick Sulllivan (32) and Jake Mort (31) are now in the top six all time with Belfonte, who has been hit seven times, matching Alex Gordon for second place on March 22 against Oklahoma State.
?-NU has enjoyed a youth movement in 2009, as 15 players have seen their first action as Huskers this season.  The group includes eight freshmen, five junior college transfers and a pair of sophomores who did not play because of injuries the past two years.  
The group has been effective for the Big Red. They have accounted for a .306 average with 15 homers and 76 RBIs, while going 8-4 with two saves on the mound.
?-Nebraska is 1-1-1 this year in extra frames and 15-9-2 (.615) in extra-inning contests since 2003. The highest amount of extra-inning games in a season this decade is five, set in 2001, 2005, 2006 and 2008.
?-Nebraska’s 15-inning season opener at Louisiana-Lafayette marked the fifth time since the start of the 2003 season that the Huskers have reached the 14th inning of a game. In addition, it is the Huskers’ longest road game since a 16-inning game at Iowa State in 1999.
?-Prior to this year, 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 back in 1970.
?-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 coach Eric Newman over the past two seasons.
?-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 is the only Big 12 program to win at least 40 games in eight of the past 10 years, including three 50-win seasons.
?-With his 12-strikeout effort against Sam Houston State on Feb. 28 Michael Nesseth joined an exclusive list of Husker pitchers. The only NU hurlers to fan more hitters in a game this decade are Shane Komine (5 times), Joba Chamberlain (twice), Johnny Dorn and Zach Kroenke (one time each).
?-Nebraska has won 130 of its last 131 games when taking a lead into the ninth inning and is 130-0-1 in that stretch dating back to the 2005 season. NU is 225-3-1 (.985) when leading after eight innings under Mike Anderson.
?-The Huskers are 46-1 dating back to last season when they out-hit an opponent. The only time over the last two years NU has lost when out-hitting an opponent was on Feb. 21, when the Huskers out-hit UL-Lafayette, 3-2, but lost 2-1.
?-The Huskers are now 91-1 under Mike Anderson when reaching double figures in runs, including 63-0 since the start of the 2005 season.
?-NU is 15-2-1 when getting at least 10 hits this season, but winless in the six games without reaching double figures in hits.
?-Adam Stern represented Team Canada in the 2009 World Baseball Classic earlier this month. Stern, who played at Nebraska from 1999 until 2001, went hitless in two pinch-hit appearances, as Canada fell to the U.S. (6-5) and Italy (6-2).