Huskers Return Home to Face KSU

On Tap: The Huskers return to the confines of Hawks Field at Haymarket Park this weekend to take on the Kansas State Wildcats. Because of the weather, the two teams will play a doubleheader on Friday with start times set for 2:05 p.m. and 6:05 p.m. The series is scheduled to conclude on Saturday with a 2:05 p.m. start, although the start time could be pushed ahead or back or even Sunday because of weather. The Kansas State series begins a season-long eight-game homestand for the Big Red, who have played 11 of their first 28 games at home. The schedule changes dramatically for NU, as Nebraska has 19 home games among its final 27 games and leaves the state just twice in that span.

Nebraska (16-11-1, 4-5 Big 12)
Vs. Kansas State (21-8, 2-4 Big 12)

Friday, April 3 ? 2:05 p.m.
Friday, April 3 ? 6:05 p.m.
Saturday, April 4 ? 2:05 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 on Friday and Saturday

Probable Starting Pitchers
Fri. (Game 1) 
NU- Jordan Roualdes, Jr., LHP (4-1, 4.54 ERA)
KSU-Lance Hoge, Sr., LHP (3-2, 4.00 ERA)

Fri. (Game 2)  
NU-Sean Yost, RFr., RHP (1-2, 8.05 ERA)
KSU-A.J. Morris, Jr., RHP (7-0, 0.39 ERA)

Sat
NU-Casey Hauptman, So., RHP (2-1, 5.58 ERA)
KSU-TBA

The Huskers (16-11-1, 4-5 Big 12) look to snap a two-game losing streak after falling to Wichita State, 9-7, on Tuesday night. In that game, the Huskers got solid middle relief work from Nate Kerkhoff, Erik Bird and Michael Mariot after allowing five runs in the first. Kyle Bubak had two hits, while Jake Mort and Jed Hanson both homered for the Huskers. KSU (21-8, 2-4 Big 12) also looks to snap a losing streak as the Wildcats have dropped their last three contests, including a 5-1 setback at Creighton on Wednesday night. The weekend match-up features two of the league’s top hitting teams, as KSU is second in the league with a .332 average, while the Huskers are fifth with a .302 team average.

Tickets: Single-game general admission tickets for all three games are $7 (adults) and $5 (youth and seniors) apiece and can be purchased at Hawks Field beginning 90 minutes before first pitch. UNL students are free with a valid N-Card.

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 Omaha and on Huskers.com. Friday’s first game is on WOW 105.3 FM in Lincoln.

Ticket Information for the NU-KSU Series
Here is a guide for fans to help with ticket issues regarding this weekend’s series with Kansas State.
Friday: Use Game 11 Ticket in season-ticket packet for both games of Friday’s doubleheader.

Saturday: Use Game 12 Ticket in season ticket packet.   If Saturday’s game is pushed to Sunday, fans should still use the Saturday Ticket (Ticket 12) for admission or use that ticket for GA seats to another regular-season game.

For fans who had purchased tickets for Sunday’s game and season-ticket holders: The Sunday ticket (Game 13 in the season ticket packet) will now be good for GA seating at any remaining regular-season game, including Friday’s doubleheader and Saturday’s game.

Last Time Out
Tuesday (Wichita State 9, Nebraska 7) - Clinton McKeever’s two-run single in the bottom of the eighth inning broke a 7-all tie, as Wichita State pulled out a 9-7 victory over Nebraska Tuesday night at Eck Stadium.  McKeever, who went 3-for-4 with four RBIs, sent an 0-1 pitch from Mike Nesseth through the hole between third and short, scoring Mitch Caster and Tyler Grimes with the winning runs for the Shockers.  Caster opened the eighth with a single and got to third with two outs before a controversial play kept the inning alive. On a 3-2 pitch, Nesseth threw a pitch that was originally ruled a fall ball, but was changed by home plate umpire Terry Harrison after discussions with Wichita State coach Gene Stephenson, putting Grimes on base. After a hit batter, McKeever’s single gave the Shockers the victory in a game that saw five lead changes on the evening. Jed Hanson and Jake Mort both homered for Nebraska, while Kyle Bubak had two hits and scored twice in a losing effort for the Huskers.

Scouting Kansas State
The Wildcats comes to Lincoln looking to snap a three-game losing streak after falling to Creighton on Wednesday night. KSU is off to a 21-8 start, including a win against Arizona State, but dropped its first two Big 12 series to nationally ranked Oklahoma and Baylor.
Kansas State is second in the Big 12 with a .332 team average and leads the Big 12 with 77 stolen bases in 29 contests. Carter Jurica paces the Wildcat attack with a team-best .414 average to rank second in the league with four homers and 20 RBIs. Drew Biery is third in the league with a .407 average, while adding team-bests in homers (5) and RBIs (31). In all, KSU has six starters hitting over .300 on the season.
On the mound, right-hander A.J. Morris has been one of the Big 12’s biggest surprises. He is 7-0 with a league-low 0.39 ERA, fanning 49 over 46.1 innings and holding opponents to a .163 average. Morris has gotten both of KSU’s victories in league play. James Allen has been the Wildcats’ closer, going 1-0 with three saves and a 3.00 ERA in 11 appearances. 

Series History: The Huskers lead the all-time series, 160-99 following a four-game sweep last season. Nebraska swept the regular-season series in Manhattan  (2-1, 11-4, 5-3 in 10 inn.) and took a 5-2 victory in the Big 12 Championship in Oklahoma City.  In all, NU has won 17 of the last 20 match-ups dating back to the 2003 season.

Leading Off
?-Catcher Jed Hanson continued his homer spree against Wichita State on Tuesday, belting his third homer in as many starts. Hanson is slugging a team-best 1.444 in nine at-bats.  The last Husker to homer in three straight games was Luke Gorsett in 2006, while the only other Husker to accomplish the feat under Mike Anderson was Daniel Bruce in 2004. In fact, the last Husker to homer in four consecutive games was Jed Morris, who had a streak of five straight games with a homer in 2002.

?-With his homer against Northern Colorado on March 25, Jed Hanson became the first Husker to homer in his first career at-bat in over a decade.  Hanson had not appeared in NU’s first 23 games before homered on the first pitch he saw as a Husker.

?-Jeff Tezak’s two-homer day at Oklahoma on March 29 marked the first by a Husker this season and the first since Jake Opitz had two homers against Eastern Illinois in the 2008 NCAA Lincoln Regional.

?-Nebraska’s five homers in the series opener at No. 11 Oklahoma on Sunday was NU’s highest single-game total since belting out five against Nebraska-Kearney on April 19, 2006, and the most by the Huskers in a Big 12 game since hitting five homers against Texas A&M on April 22, 2000.

?-When Cody Asche and Jed Hanson belted back-to-back homers in the nightcap against No. 11 Oklahoma on Sunday, it marked the first time it had happed for the Huskers since Andy Gerch and Jake Opitz accomplished the feat on May 12, 2007.

?-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 .363 with a homer, 11 RBIs and 26 runs scored. The Husker offense has also made significant improvement in that span, averaging nearly nine runs per game over the last 18 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 half 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.

?-The second and eighth innings have been the keys to the Huskers’ success this year. NU is out-scoring opponents 36-14 in the second inning and have plated 41 runs in the eighth inning, compared to just 23 for opponents.

?-Nebraska 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 over Northern Colorado on March 24. NU also scored six times in the bottom of the eighth in a 14-12 win over Missouri State on Feb. 27 and five times in the bottom of the eighth in a 10-6 win over North Dakota on Feb. 25.

?-Nebraska already has 10 come-from-behind wins among its 16 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 109 come-from-behind wins under Mike Anderson since 2003.

?-Nebraska hitters have taken a beating, as the Huskers have been hit by 45 pitches through the first 27 games. At the current pace, NU hitters are on pace to get hit 88 times during the 55-game regular-season schedule. DJ Belfonte has now been hit 38 times to move into sole possession of second place on NU’s career list. He is also joined by Nick Sullivan (34, fourth) and Jake Mort (32, sixth).

?-The Huskers have reached double figures in runs 10 times this season and are fast approaching the team’s entire 2008 total of 12.

?-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.  

?-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 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 131 of its last 132 games when taking a lead into the ninth inning and is 131-0-1 in that stretch dating back to the 2005 season. NU is 226-3-1 (.985) when leading after eight innings under Mike Anderson.

?-The Huskers are 47-1 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 92-1 under Mike Anderson when reaching double figures in runs, including 64-0 since the start of the 2005 season.

?-NU is 16-4-1 when getting at least 10 hits this season, but winless in the seven games without reaching double figures in hits.

?-Adam Stern represented Team Canada in the 2009 World Baseball Classic last 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).

?-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 102-68-1 in Big 12 games, became the fastest Husker manager to reach that plateau.