Huskers Rally to Win Season Opener at UNI

NEBRASKA  7 4  Northern iowa Box Score

Inning-by-Inning
Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	EX	R	H	E
Nebraska	0	0	0	0	1	0	3	3	7	15	1
Northern Iowa	0	0	3	0	1	0	0	0	4	5	1

Pitching
	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO
W - McClure (1-0)	3.0	1	0	0	1	0
L - Lange (0-1)	1.2	4	4	3	2	0
S - None	0.0	0	0	0	0	0

Individual Leaders
	AB	R	H	RBI	HR	BB
MJ Knighten	5	1	3	4	1	0
Cassie McClure	4	1	3	0	0	1

Game Notes

Nebraska improved to 25-15 all-time in season openers, including a 16-8 mark under Rhonda Revelle...the Huskers have won their season opener in each of the last four seasons, the program's longest streak since winning nine consecutive season openers from 1983-1991...Nebraska won when trailing after six innings for the first time since March 8, 2014 vs. Washington...MJ Knighten had four RBIs, and the second was the 99th RBI of her career....Cassie McClure had two hits and her first hit was the 100th of her career...Mattie Fowler had two hits while making her 100th start at first base...15 of Nebraska's 19 players saw action in the victory, including 15 of the Huskers' 17 offensive players.

Cedar Falls, Iowa - Down to its final out, the Nebraska softball team scored three times in the seventh inning to send the game to extra innings, then added three more two-out runs in the top of the eighth inning to rally for a 7-4 victory over Northern Iowa in the season opener for both teams Friday inside the UNI-Dome.

The Huskers experienced six innings of offensive frustration before the dramatic rally. Nebraska trailed 4-1 entering the seventh inning, despite out-hitting Northern Iowa, 8-5. The frustration came to an abrupt end when Nebraska produced clutch hit after clutch hit over the final two innings.

Trailing 4-1, senior Kiki Stokes and sophomore Laura Barrow reached on back-to-back singles to begin the top of the seventh. With the tying run at the plate, senior Alicia Armstrong lifted a one-out fly ball to center that was caught at the fence for the second out. Junior Cassie McClure then drew a walk to load the bases, before Nebraska flirted with another home run. Sophomore Kaylan Jablonski lined a ball to deep left field that appeared to go through the temporary fence, although Jablonski rounded the bases for a temporary go-ahead grand slam. But after an umpire meeting, the ball was ruled a ground-rule double that cut the gap to 4-3.

Sophomore Austen Urness, who missed the entire 2015 season due to injury, then grounded a ball to deep short for an infield single that scored McClure with the tying run.

Nebraska held Northern Iowa scoreless in the bottom of the seventh, and sophomore pinch runner Taylor Otte began the top of the eighth inning on second base, in accordance with the tiebreaker rule. The first two Huskers failed to move Otte, as she was still on second base with two outs. Sophomore Laura Barrow then reached on an infield single for her third hit of the day.

That set the stage for junior MJ Knighten, who hit a deep three-run homer to center field that gave Nebraska a 7-4 advantage. That was more than enough for McClure, who retired the side in order to wrap up the come-from-behind victory.

McClure (1-0) earned the win with 3.0 innings of scoreless, one-hit relief. Jablonski earned the start and pitched well, allowing four runs on only four hits in 5.0 innings of work.

Offensively, Knighten provided the game's big blast to cap a 3-for-5 day that included four RBIs. Barrow and McClure also added three hits, as Nebraska out-hit Northern Iowa, 15-5. Jablonski added two RBIs, while Urness was the only other Husker to drive in a run, as she was responsible for sending the game into extra innings with her seventh-inning, RBI single.

Nebraska moved to 1-0 on the season with the win, while Northern Iowa fell to 0-1. Bailey Lange took the loss in relief for the Panthers, allowing four runs (three earned) on four hits in 1.2 innings.

Neither team mounted much offense until Northern Iowa scored three times in the bottom of the third inning. The rally was started with a one-out single from Alyssa Buchanan, the Panthers' first hit of the game. A walk then put runners on first and second before Brittney Krodinger sent an RBI double to the gap in left center to score the game's first run. Micalla Rettinger followed with a two-run single to stretch UNI's lead to 3-0.

Nebraska found the scoreboard in the top of the fifth. Senior Mattie Fowler began the frame with a leadoff single. Following back-to-back strikeouts, Barrow reached on an infield single to put Huskers on first and second. Knighten then grounded a single through the right side that scored junior pinch runner Lotte Sjulin with Nebraska's first run.

Northern Iowa answered right back with a run in the bottom of the frame when Ross helped herself with a two-out, RBI single up the middle. Ross then shut down the Nebraska offense until the seventh, when she left the game with the tying runner in the on deck circle.

Nebraska returns to action on Saturday at the UNI-Dome Classic, facing Western Illinois at 8 a.m. and Drake immediately following the first game.

 

2016 Nebraska Softball Nebraska at Northern Iowa Feb 12, 2016 at Cedar Falls, Iowa (UNI-Dome)

Nebraska 7 (1-0)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Stokes, Kiki cf.......... 4 1 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 Barrow, Laura 2b......... 5 2 3 0 0 0 2 1 1 Knighten, MJ 3b.......... 5 1 3 4 0 0 3 0 0 Armstrong, Alicia ss..... 4 0 1 0 1 1 2 3 2 Kadavy, Taylor pr....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 McClure, Cassie dp....... 4 1 3 0 1 1 0 1 0 Jablonski, Kaylan p...... 5 0 1 2 0 1 0 2 2 Urness, Austen rf........ 4 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 3 Fowler, Mattie 1b........ 4 0 2 0 0 0 6 0 2 Sjulin, Lotte pr........ 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Otte, Taylor pr......... 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Unzicker, Madi c......... 2 0 0 0 0 2 4 0 2 Tyson, Dawna ph......... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Metzler, Gina lf......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 Cassidy, Bri c.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals................... 38 7 15 7 2 6 24 8 12

Northern Iowa 4 (0-1)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Krodinger,Brittney 3b.... 4 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 Rettinger,Micalla cf..... 4 0 1 2 0 1 2 0 1 Ross,Chelsea p........... 4 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 Wnek,Caitlin ss.......... 4 0 1 0 0 0 3 1 1 Lock,Kristin lf.......... 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 Bailey,Kennedy 1b........ 2 0 0 0 1 0 5 0 0 Krodinger,Courtney 2b.... 3 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 1 Buchanan,Alyssa dp....... 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 Lange,Bailey p.......... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Belz,Samantha p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Olson,Samantha rf........ 0 2 0 0 3 0 2 0 0 Varriano,Anna c.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 1 0 Totals................... 28 4 5 4 4 4 24 5 5

Score by Innings R H E ------------------------------------------ Nebraska............ 000 010 33 - 7 15 1 Northern Iowa....... 003 010 00 - 4 5 1 ------------------------------------------

E - Stokes(1); Wnek(1). LOB - Huskers 12; Panthers 5. 2B - Jablonski(1); Krodinger,B(1). HR - Knighten(1). HBP - Stokes; Unzicker. SB - Rettinger(1); Olson 2(2). CS - Stokes(1).

Nebraska IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Jablonski, Kaylan... 5.0 4 4 4 3 4 18 21 83 McClure, Cassie..... 3.0 1 0 0 1 0 10 11 41

Northern Iowa IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Ross,Chelsea........ 6.0 10 3 3 0 5 27 29 93 Lange,Bailey........ 1.2 4 4 3 2 0 9 11 37 Belz,Samantha....... 0.1 1 0 0 0 1 2 2 9

Win - McClure (1-0). Loss - Lange (0-1). Save - None. WP - Jablonski(1); Belz(1). HBP - by Ross (Stokes); by Ross (Unzicker). PB - Unzicker(1). Pitches/strikes: Jablonski 83/53; McClure 41/29; Ross 93/60; Lange 37/18; Belz 9/6. Umpires - Start: 3:31 pm Time: 2:44 Attendance: Game: livegame