NU Drops Second Game to Top-10 Foe

Cathedral City, Calif. - The 22nd-ranked Nebraska softball team closed its stay at the Cathedral City Classic with a hard-fought 6-3 loss to No. 5 Washington on Sunday afternoon.

With the loss, Nebraska (9-7) finished with a 1-4 weekend record against a tough schedule that had the Huskers facing four teams ranked above them in the polls, including a pair of top-10 teams back-to-back on Sunday.

Senior right-hander Ashley Hagemann (5-5) took the loss in another gutsy performance. Pitching her third complete game against a top-15 opponent in less than 24 hours, Hagemann fought through her fatigue to post a solid outing. She allowed six runs (five earned) including a pair in the seventh inning as the fatigue really set in. Hagemann walked eight and struck out three.

Overall on Sunday, Hagemann threw nearly 300 pitches in a complete-game, three-hitter against No. 8 Texas and her five-hitter against No. 5 Washington.

Washington's Kaitlin Inglesby (8-0) earned her second victory over Nebraska this season, as she tossed a two-hit shutout against the Huskers in the season opener. On Sunday, Inglesby fired a four-hitter and allowed three runs, including a pair of unearned runs. Washington improved to 14-1 with the win.

It was deja vu for Nebraska in the top of the first inning against Washington. After No. 8 Texas used only one hit to produce a three-run inning in a 3-0 victory over the Huskers earlier Sunday, Washington scored three times in its first at bat against Nebraska in game two, despite recording only one hit, a two-run single. A pair of walks and a Husker error contributed to the 3-0 deficit.

In the bottom of the first, senior Nikki Haget reached on an error to begin the inning before junior Gabby Banda followed with an infield single. A fielder's choice put Huskers at first and third and Guile drove in Haget with a single to left to trim the lead to 3-1. A second Washington error allowed sophomore Taylor Edwards to score from third to make it a 3-2 game.

Washington added to its lead in the top of the fourth. The first two batters were retired quickly before a walk, a bunt single and an RBI, bloop single pushed the lead to 4-2.

While the Huskies were adding to their lead, Inglesby retired the Huskers in order in the second, third and fourth innings.

Junior Courtney Breault snapped a string of 11 consecutive hitters retired by Inglesby with a leadoff single in the bottom of the fifth. Breault moved up to second on a sacrifice bunt from freshman Mattie Fowler, but the Huskers were unable to advance her any further.

Banda did put the Huskers back on the board when she blasted a solo home run to left center to lead off the bottom of the sixth. Taylor Edwards then drew a four-pitch walk to put the tying run on base, but a fly out, a line-drive fielder's choice off the pitcher and a strikeout ended the threat.

Washington answered back and added two insurance runs in the top of the seventh. A pair of walks and a single loaded the bases with one out. Pinch hitter Jenna Clifton then blooped an RBI single into shallow left field before a bases-loaded walk forced in another run and made it 6-3.

Inglesby then retired the Huskers in order in the seventh to earn her eighth victory of the season.

Nebraska returns to action next weekend with five games in three days at the Aggie Invitational in College Station, Texas.

Box Score

2012 Nebraska Softball #5 Washington vs #22 Nebraska Feb 26, 2012 at Cathedral City, CA (Big League Dreams)

Washington 6 (14-1)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Hayward, Victoria rf..... 3 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 Souza, Kimberlee ss...... 3 0 1 1 0 1 1 3 1 Inglesby, Kaitlin p...... 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 1 5 Suguro, Kelli pr........ 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Williams, Nikia lf....... 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Fa'asua, Jerrin lf...... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Smith, Taylor dp......... 4 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 Lahners, Kylee 2b........ 2 0 0 0 2 1 2 2 0 Fagaly, Hooch 1b......... 2 0 0 0 0 0 9 0 1 Clifton, Jenna 1b....... 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Wright, Shawna c......... 3 0 0 1 0 1 6 0 0 Jones, Whitney cf........ 0 1 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 Gano, Courtney 3b........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 Totals................... 24 6 5 5 8 3 21 8 8

Nebraska 3 (9-7)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Haget, Nikki cf.......... 3 1 0 0 0 1 3 0 1 Banda, Gabby 3b.......... 3 1 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 Edwards, Taylor c........ 2 1 0 0 1 0 5 0 0 Guile, Ashley 1b......... 3 0 1 1 0 0 3 0 0 Edwards, Tatum dp........ 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Thomason, Brooke rf...... 3 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 2 Breault, Courtney 2b..... 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 Fowler, Mattie ss........ 2 0 0 0 0 0 5 1 0 Bettiol, Jordan lf....... 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 Drake, Madison lf....... 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 Hagemann, Ashley p....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals................... 25 3 4 2 1 6 21 5 3

Score by Innings R H E ----------------------------------------- Washington.......... 300 100 2 - 6 5 2 Nebraska............ 200 001 0 - 3 4 1 -----------------------------------------

E - Lahners, K.; Gano, C.; Fowler(5). DP - Huskers 2. LOB - Huskies 8; Huskers 3. HR - Banda(2). HBP - Souza, K.; Fagaly, H.. SH - Fowler(2). SF - Wright, S..

Washington IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Inglesby, Kaitlin... 7.0 4 3 1 1 6 25 27 85

Nebraska IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Hagemann, Ashley.... 7.0 5 6 5 8 3 24 35 164

Win - Inglesby, K. (8-0). Loss - Hagemann (5-5). Save - None. WP - Inglesby, K.; Hagemann 3(5). HBP - by Hagemann (Fagaly, H.); by Hagemann (Souza, K.). Pitches/strikes: Inglesby, K. 85/55; Hagemann 164/93. Umpires - HP: James Beretuzzi III 1B: Randy Goudy 3B: Rob Hough Start: 1:34 pm Time: 2:18 Attendance: 400 Game: NEB16