No. 5 Texas Rallies Past 11th-Ranked Huskers

Lincoln - The 11th-ranked Nebraska softball team lost a heartbreaker to fifth-ranked Texas for the second straight day, falling 4-3 in eight innings in front of 927 fans at Bowlin Stadium on Sunday.

Nebraska led 3-1 and was one out away from handing Texas its first Big 12 loss, before Taylor Hoagland blasted a game-tying, two-run homer. After losing 1-0 on Saturday when Nebraska deflected a ball over the fence for a home run, the Huskers again lost an unconventional play on Sunday.

The winning run scored when Amy Hooks stole home with one out in the top of the eighth. Hooks was caught off third base when Raygan Feight missed a squeeze bunt. Nebraska freshman catcher Taylor Edwards threw back to third and Hooks immediately took off for home and beat the throw to the plate in a bang-bang play to score the winning run for the second straight game.

The rally pushed Texas' win streak to 18 straight games, as the Longhorns improved to 34-3 on the season and remained unbeaten in Big 12 play at 7-0. Nebraska lost consecutive games for the first time this season and fell to 30-6 overall and 3-3 in conference action.

Blaire Luna (20-2) earned the win in relief for the Longhorns, tossing 5.2 innings of shutout ball, allowing only two hits and striking out seven. Junior right-hander Ashley Hagemann (22-5) took the loss, allowing four runs on eight hits in a career-high-tying 8.0 innings. Hagemann struck out eight and allowed more than one run for the first time in her five conference starts.

Offensively, Taylor Edwards and sophomore Brooke Thomason belted back-to-back home runs in the third inning, as Nebraska scored three times in the frame to take a 3-0 lead. The home run was Edwards' 15th of the season and marked her 50th RBI, as she joined three-time All-American Ali Viola as the only Huskers to ever hit 15 home runs and drive in 50 runs in the same season. Edwards finished 1-for-2 with a pair of walks, while senior Julie Brechtel was also 1-for-2 with a double and two walks.

The game was scoreless until the bottom of the third inning, when Taylor Edwards launched a 2-2 pitch into a strong wind and over the fence down the left field line. Three pitches later, Thomason lined a homer just over the fence down the right field line to make it 2-0 Big Red. Brechtel then doubled to chase starter Rachel Fox from the game. Junior Ashley Guile greeted new pitcher Blaire Luna with an infield single, before an error allowed Brechtel to score and give Nebraska a 3-0 lead.

In the top of the fourth, back-to-back singles and a hit batter loaded the bases with Longhorns with only one out. Torie Schmidt then lined a two-strike single into center field to put Texas on the board. A pop out marked the second out of the inning before Karina Scott pinch hit and struck out swinging on three pitches.

Nebraska had a chance to answer the run in the bottom of the frame but couldn't deliver a clutch hit. Junior Nikki Haget singled and Taylor Edwards walked to put runners on first and second with one out. Following a strikeout, Brechtel walked to load the bases, but Luna escaped the jam by coaxing a ground ball to second that ended the inning.

Neither team had a runner advance past first base in the fifth or sixth innings. In the top of the seventh, Mandy Ogle led off with a single to bring the tying run to the plate for Texas. Hagemann bounced back to retire the next two batters before Hoagland, who had struck out in her previous three trips to the plate, lined a 1-0 pitch over the fence in left center for a game-tying two-run homer.

In the bottom of the seventh Brechtel and Guile worked back-to-back one-out walks to put the winning run in scoring position, but a strikeout and a pop out sent the game to extra innings.

Hooks then hit the first pitch of the eighth inning deep to left. The strong wind kept the ball in the park, but it also pushed it away from left fielder Megan Southworth, as the ball fell for a leadoff double. A walk, a strikeout and a hit batter gave Texas the bases loaded with one out, which set the stage for Hooks' steal of home.

In the bottom of the eighth, Nebraska was retired on seven pitches and did not put the ball in fair territory.

The Huskers return to the road next week, traveling to Creighton on Wednesday before heading to 20th-ranked Texas A&M next weekend.

Box Score 2011 Nebraska Softball #5 Texas at #11 Nebraska Apr 10, 2011 at Lincoln, Neb. (Bowlin Stadium) Texas 4 (34-3,7-0 Big 12) Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Hoagland, Taylor rf...... 4 1 1 2 0 3 0 0 1 Washington, Brejae cf.... 3 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 Bennett, Lexy 1b......... 4 1 1 0 0 0 3 0 1 Hooks, Amy c............. 3 1 2 0 1 0 9 0 0 Taylor, Nadia 3b......... 1 0 0 0 2 1 3 1 0 Craig, Courtney pr...... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Schmidt, Torie lf........ 4 0 1 1 0 1 2 0 1 Ogle, Mandy dp........... 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Feight, Raygan 2b........ 3 0 0 0 0 0 4 2 0 Scott, Karina ph........ 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 Thom, Taylor ss.......... 4 0 1 0 0 1 3 0 2 Fox, Rachel p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Luna, Blaire p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals................... 30 4 8 3 4 8 24 3 8 Nebraska 3 (30-6,3-3 Big 12) Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Haget, Nikki cf.......... 5 0 1 0 0 0 2 1 0 Edwards, Taylor c........ 2 1 1 1 2 1 9 1 0 Thomason, Brooke rf...... 4 1 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 Brechtel, Julie 2b....... 2 1 1 0 2 1 0 3 1 Guile, Ashley 1b......... 3 0 1 0 1 0 4 0 3 Wright, Saige pr........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Edwards, Tatum dp........ 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 Foland, Heidi 3b......... 4 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 2 Banda, Gabby ss.......... 4 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 2 Southworth, Megan lf..... 4 0 0 0 0 3 3 0 2 Hagemann, Ashley p....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Totals................... 31 3 6 2 6 8 24 6 10 Score by Innings R H E ------------------------------------------ Texas............... 000 100 21 - 4 8 1 Nebraska............ 003 000 00 - 3 6 0 ------------------------------------------ E - Taylor(3). DP - Huskers 1. LOB - Longhorns 8; Huskers 10. 2B - Hooks(5); Brechtel(7). HR - Hoagland(10); Edwards, Tay(15); Thomason(5). HBP - Taylor; Ogle. SB - Hooks(3). CS - Washington(4). Texas IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Fox, Rachel......... 2.1 4 3 2 2 1 11 13 58 Luna, Blaire........ 5.2 2 0 0 4 7 20 24 93 Nebraska IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Hagemann, Ashley.... 8.0 8 4 4 4 8 30 36 143 Win - Luna (20-2). Loss - Hagemann (22-5). Save - None. HBP - by Hagemann (Taylor); by Hagemann (Ogle). Pitches/strikes: Fox 58/35; Luna 93/53; Hagemann 143/87. Umpires - HP: Matt Titkemeier 1B: Jeff Sloan 3B: Scott Mair Start: 12:02 pm Time: 2:36 Attendance: 927 Game: NU36