Carey, Blachowicz Lead Huskers to 12-2 Rout

Dylan Carey homered twice and Gavin Blachowicz struck out a career-high 11 batters to lead Nebraska to a 12-2 run-rule win in seven innings against Michigan State in front of 5,762 fans on Sunday afternoon at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park.

Nebraska (10-5, 3-0 Big Ten) scored 12 runs on 11 hits, while Michigan State (3-11, 0-3) totaled two runs, three hits and five errors.

Carey finished 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI to pace the Big Red offense. Case Sanderson went 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI, and Preston Freeman homered and drove in two runs. Drew Grego was 2-for-4 with an RBI, while Mac Moyer doubled and drove in a run.

Blachowicz improved to 2-1 on the season, striking out a career-high 11 batters across seven innings while allowing two runs on three hits to earn the complete-game victory.

Nebraska wasted no time taking control, plating five runs in the bottom of the first after a solo homer from the Spartans in the top of the first inning. Moyer walked and Overbeek singled through the left side before Carey dropped down a bunt single to load the bases with no outs.

Sanderson cleared the bases with a three-RBI double to center field, giving the Huskers a 3-1 advantage. Freeman followed with a two-run homer down the left-field line to make it 5-1 through the first inning.

The Huskers added two more in the second when Carey homered down the left-field line with Overbeek aboard to push the lead to 7-1, while Moyer’s RBI double in the third made it an 8-1 game after three innings.

Grego’s RBI single in the fourth scored Sanderson to extend the lead to 9-1, and Carey put an exclamation point on the afternoon with a two-run homer to left-center field in the bottom of the fifth to grow the lead to 11-1.

Michigan State took advantage of a leadoff double to begin the sixth inning, as an RBI groundout back to the pitcher plated the Spartans’ second run of the afternoon.

Nebraska responded immediately with a run of their own in the bottom of the sixth to build the lead back to 10. Jett Buck reached on an error and came around to score on MSU’s second error of the inning to give the Huskers a 12-2 lead going into the seventh inning.

Blachowicz worked around a one-out single in the top of the seventh to keep the Spartans off the board and give the Huskers a 12-2 victory in seven innings on Sunday afternoon.

Nebraska returns to play this week, as the Huskers welcome North Dakota State for a midweek matchup on Wednesday, March 11 at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park.