NU Wins Nightcap to Sweep Doubleheader

Lincoln - A pair of home runs from the Edwards twins and a one-hitter from Emily Lockman helped the 19th-ranked Nebraska softball team complete a doubleheader sweep of Iowa with a 9-1 six-inning victory in the nightcap in front of 672 fans at Bowlin Stadium.

Lockman was outstanding in the circle, retiring 18 of the 20 batters she faced, allowing only a walk and a solo home runs. She added four strikeouts to improve to 14-4 on the season.

At the plate, Taylor Edwards was 1-for-3 with a grand slam and three runs scored, while Tatum Edwards was 1-for-3 with a three run homer. Tatum had a pair of three-run homers in the doubleheader, including a walk-off homer in the bottom of the seventh. Freshman MJ Knighten and sophomore Dawna Tyson added a pair of hits for the Huskers, while sophomore Hailey Decker also recorded two hits and drove in two.

With the win, Nebraska clinched its third consecutive Big Ten series win, improving to 29-13 overall and 7-4 in league play. Iowa fell to 10-22 overall and 5-8 in conference action with its fourth straight loss. Shayla Starkenburg (3-7) took the loss, allowing eight runs (seven earned) on eight hits in 3.0 innings.

Neither team had a hit until freshman Kat Woolman led off the bottom of the third with a single up the middle. Tyson followed with a sharp single to right before a fielder's choice marked the first out of the inning. Decker then delivered an RBI single to right to score Woolman with the game's first run. Tatum Edwards followed with a towering three-run home run down the left field line to give Nebraska a 4-0 lead.

Iowa then recorded its only hit in the top of the fourth on a two-out, solo home run from Kayla Massey.

Nebraska answered with four more runs in the bottom of the fourth. Singles from Muir and Tyson, coupled with a Hawkeye error, loaded the bases with none out. Taylor Edwards then doubled the Huskers' run total with a grand slam to left center. The homer was  Edwards' 12th of the season and her third career grand slam.

The Huskers wrapped up the their seventh run-rule victory of the season two batters into the bottom of the sixth. Taylor Edwards was hit by a pitch to begin the frame before scoring on an RBI double from Decker.

The Huskers and Hawkeyes wrap up their three-game series on Saturday at 4 p.m. Fans with a ticket to the Red-White Spring Game will receive free admission into the softball game.

Box Score

 

2014 Nebraska Softball Iowa at #19 Nebraska (Game 2) Apr 11, 2014 at Lincoln, Neb. (Bowlin Stadium)

Iowa 1 (10-22,5-8 Big Ten)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Luna, Brianna lf......... 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 Fritsch, Claire 2b....... 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 Blank, Megan ss.......... 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 Massey, Kayla dp......... 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Hoffman, Holly c......... 2 0 0 0 0 1 6 0 0 Erickson, Erin cf........ 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Navarro, Alyssa rf....... 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 Mullarkey, Kaitlyn 1b.... 2 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 Zoeller, Michelle 3b..... 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 Starkenburg, Shayla p.... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Whitney, Micaela p...... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals................... 19 1 1 1 1 4 15 3 1

Nebraska 9 (29-13,7-4 Big Ten)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Edwards, Taylor c........ 3 3 1 4 0 0 4 0 0 Decker, Hailey 2b........ 4 1 2 2 0 1 1 2 0 Edwards, Tatum dp........ 3 1 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 Armstrong, Alicia ss..... 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 0 Knighten, MJ 3b.......... 2 0 2 0 1 0 0 2 0 Stokes, Kiki cf.......... 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Muir, Kylee rf........... 2 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 Woolman, Kat lf.......... 3 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 Tyson, Dawna 1b.......... 3 1 2 0 0 0 11 0 2 Lockman, Emily p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Totals................... 26 9 10 9 2 4 18 8 4

Score by Innings R H E --------------------------------------- Iowa................ 000 100 - 1 1 1 Nebraska............ 004 401 - 9 10 0 ---------------------------------------

E - Blank(10). LOB - Hawkeyes 1; Huskers 4. 2B - Decker(14); Knighten(7). HR - Massey(5); Edwards, Tay(12); Edwards, Tat(7). HBP - Edwards, Tay. SB - Stokes(8).

Iowa IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Starkenburg, Shayla. 3.0 8 8 7 1 2 18 19 73 Whitney, Micaela.... 2.0 2 1 1 1 2 8 10 39

Nebraska IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Lockman, Emily...... 6.0 1 1 1 1 4 19 20 68

Win - Lockman (14-4). Loss - Starkenburg (3-7). Save - None. HBP - by Whitney (Edwards, Tay). Pitches/strikes: Starkenburg 73/40; Whitney 39/22; Lockman 68/42. Umpires - HP: Cathy Creighton 1B: Jim Connors 3B: Robert Shelton Start: 6:30 pm Time: 1:33 Attendance: 672 Game: livegame