Huskers Win 6-2, Sweep Cougars

Lincoln – The Nebraska baseball team (9-8, 0-0 Big Ten) finished its first weekend sweep of the season on Sunday with a 6-2 victory over the College of Charleston Cougars (8-12, 0-0 CAA) at Hawks Field. The Huskers played well in all three facets of the game this weekend, as NU’s pitching staff allowed four total runs over the three-game series, the Husker defense committed one error and the offense totaled 22 runs 29 hits.

In his fourth start of the year junior Jake Meyers continued to stifle opposing hitters, as the left hander notched his third straight start without giving up a run. After tossing a complete-game shutout of Western Carolina last Sunday, Meyers produced 6.0 shutout innings against the Cougars, allowing four hits and one walk, while striking out three.

Dating back to the end of his first start of the year against Oregon State, Meyers hasn’t allowed a run over his last 21.2 innings.

The Huskers offense got production throughout the lineup, as six different players recorded a hit. Five of NU’s six runs were scored by the bottom five hitters in the lineup, while Nebraska’s first two hitters, Mojo Hagge and Angelo Altavilla, each recorded a pair of RBIs.

After going down in order in the first, the Cougars mounted a threat in the second when they had the bases loaded with one out following consecutive singles to start the frame and a one-out walk. Meyers got out of the jam with help from his defense as Luke Morgan hit a line drive to Jake Schleppenbach who quickly fired to Altavilla at second to double up Logan McRae for an inning-ending double play.

Meyers worked around a leadoff walk in the top of the third and then NU’s offense broke the scoreless tie with a run in the bottom of the inning. Schleppenbach led off with his second double of the series and then took third when Charleston starter Griffin McLarty uncorked a wild pitch. McLarty got Brady Childs to pop out for the first out of the inning, then he walked Mojo Hagge and got a fly ball off the bat of Altavilla, but it was easily deep enough to score Schleppenbach from third.

Working with a 1-0 lead, Meyers faced the minimum in the fourth to quickly get his offense back to the plate. All nine Huskers came to bat in the bottom of the frame, with NU scoring four runs on three hits and three walks. McLarty struck out Scott Schreiber to start the frame but then gave up consecutive walks and the Cougars went to reliever Carter Love. Alex Raburn welcomed him with a single, loading the bases with one down. After getting a shallow fly out, Love worked a full count to Childs, but couldn’t deliver one last strike and a bases-loaded walk plated Ben Miller. The Huskers then got back-to-back two-out singles from Hagge and Altavilla, pushing NU’s lead to 5-0.

Meyers didn’t come out for the seventh and the Cougars were able to break up the shutout with a run. Tommy Richter recorded his second double of the game with one out and later scored on a two-out RBI single by pinch-hitter Joey Mundy. The Husker offense got the run back in the bottom of the frame though, as Altavilla scored on a passed ball that pushed NU’s lead to 6-1.

For the first time all weekend the Cougars scored multiple runs in a game, as they plated their second run of Sunday’s game in the eighth when they cashed in a leadoff single with a sacrifice fly.

Luis Alvarado took the mound in the ninth and gave up a leadoff walk, but responded with a 3-6-1 double play and a pop out to end the game.

The Huskers will now head to California, where they will play five games while school is out on campus for spring break. The Huskers play at CSU Bakersfield on Tuesday before playing four games in three days at Cal Poly starting on Thursday.