Huskers Win at Creighton, 4-3

Omaha - The Nebraska softball team earned its first true road win of the season on a chilly Wednesday night in Omaha, as the Huskers jumped out to a four-run lead and held off a late Creighton rally for a 4-3 victory at the CU Sports Complex.

The win snapped a 12-game road losing streak for the Huskers dating back to last season. Nebraska also moved five games above .500 for the first time this season with a 22-17 record.

Junior right-hander Robin Mackin (9-9) earned the win, allowing three unearned runs on only two hits in six innings. Mackin did not allow a hit until the sixth and struck out 10 batters while walking only one. Her ninth strikeout of the game was the 900th of her career, including her two seasons at Fresno State. Sophomore right-hander Ashley Hagemann picked up the save, working around a leadoff single in the bottom of the seventh.

Junior Julie Brechtel went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and two RBIs to lead the Huskers' offensive attack. Brechtel's three hits tied her career high - and marked her fifth multi-hit effort in her last six games - while her two doubles were a new career high. Brechtel also tied another career high by stretching her errorless streak to 32 straight games.

Creighton All-American Tara Oltman (13-8) took the loss, allowing four runs on five hits. She struck out eight but walked five for the Bluejays (16-17).

Junior Heidi Foland began the game with her fifth leadoff homer of the season, when she lined a 2-0 pitch over the wall in center. Sophomore Ashley Guile then worked a one-out walk before a bloop single from Brechtel and and error put runners at first and third with only one out. Oltman then made a nice stop on a hard-hit grounder off the bat of freshman Brooke Thomason before a two-out walk to freshman Gabby Banda loaded the bases.

Senior Alex Hupp then fouled of a pair of 2-2 pitches and won an eight-pitch at bat by drawing a bases-loaded walk that brought Guile home and stretched the lead to 2-0. With the bases still loaded, Oltman fell behind junior Tori Tyson 3-0 before coming back to strike Tyson out and prevent further damage.

Neither team mounted much offense again until the top of the fifth. Sophomore Nikki Haget led off with a single before Guile walked for the second time. Brechtel then lined a 1-2 pitch down the left field line for a two-run double that pushed the lead to 4-0.

Mackin then saw her no-hit bid end in the bottom of the sixth, when Ashley Frutos hit a chopper back to the circle that Mackin deflected for an infield single. The next batter reached on an error before Mackin retired the next two hitters. But the error would come back to haunt Nebraska as it allowed Amy Baker to get an at bat, and Baker delivered with a three-run homer to right.

Nebraska was then retired in order in the seventh and Lauren Larson led off the bottom of the frame with a single off Hagemann. Pinch-runner Jessi Jadlowski, representing the tying run, moved up to second on a sacrifice bunt before Hagemann retired the next two batters to pick up her second save.

Nebraska continues its five-game road trip this weekend, when the Huskers travel to Lubbock, Texas, for a two-game series with the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Box Score 2010 Nebraska Softball Nebraska at Creighton Apr 07, 2010 at Omaha, Neb. (CU Sports Complex)

Nebraska 4 (22-17)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Foland, Heidi 1b......... 4 1 1 1 0 2 9 1 1 Haget, Nikki lf.......... 4 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 Guile, Ashley c.......... 2 1 0 0 2 0 10 1 0 Drake, Madison pr....... 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Brechtel, Julie 2b....... 4 0 3 2 0 0 1 1 0 Thomason, Brooke rf...... 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 Banda, Gabby 3b.......... 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 Hupp, Alex dp............ 2 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 Tyson, Tori cf........... 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 3 Southworth, Megan ph.... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Barrett, Whitney ss...... 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 Mackin, Robin p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Hagemann, Ashley p...... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals................... 26 4 5 3 5 8 21 8 6

Creighton 3 (16-17)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Koch, Michelle ss........ 3 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 Sinkler, Renae 1b........ 3 1 0 0 0 1 9 0 0 Baker, Amy dp............ 3 1 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 Graner, Michelle 3b...... 3 0 0 0 0 2 2 4 0 Larson, Lauren c......... 3 0 1 0 0 2 8 1 0 Jadlowski, Jessi pr..... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Loeffelholz, Sara lf..... 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Ruf, Christa cf.......... 3 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 Frutos, Ashley 2b........ 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 2 1 Sakamoto, Kari pr....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Martin, Danai rf......... 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Oltman, Tara p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 Totals................... 24 3 3 3 1 11 21 10 2

Score by Innings R H E ----------------------------------------- Nebraska............ 200 020 0 - 4 5 1 Creighton........... 000 003 0 - 3 3 2 -----------------------------------------

E - Banda(12); Ruf(2); Frutos(1). LOB - Huskers 6; Bluejays 2. 2B - Brechtel 2(6). HR - Foland(12); Baker(7). SH - Loeffelholz(2).

Nebraska IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Mackin, Robin....... 6.0 2 3 0 1 10 21 22 95 Hagemann, Ashley.... 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 3 4 19

Creighton IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Oltman, Tara........ 7.0 5 4 4 5 8 26 31 133

Win - Mackin (9-9). Loss - Oltman (13-8). Save - Hagemann (2). Pitches/strikes: Mackin 95/64; Hagemann 19/15; Oltman 133/78. Umpires - HP: Renee Williams 1B: Matt Titkemeier 3B: David Poppe Start: 5:59 pm Time: 1:58 Attendance: 554 Game: NU39