The Nebraska baseball (11-4) team completed a four-game sweep of Minnesota (3-12) after a 10-2 win in game four of the series.
Shay Schanaman was the starter on Sunday and he was lights out for the Huskers. The junior struck out nine batters in his 7.1 innings pitched. Schanaman only gave up three hits the entire day, and two came in his final inning pitched. The only other recorded hit off of Schanaman was the first batter of the game. The two Golden Gophers who hit off Schanaman in the eighth inning later scored, so he allowed two runs in his outing.
On the offensive side, the Big Red continued the early scoring, getting one run in the first inning. A leadoff walk from Joe Acker and a base hit in the next at-bat from Jaxon Hallmark setup for a sacrifice bunt to get both runners in scoring position. Cam Chick then hit a ground ball to second base that scored Acker and gave NU another first inning lead.
The third inning was another big inning for Nebraska as they put together four hits that scored four runs and they were helped by an error from Minnesota. Cam Chick’s base hit scored the first run of the inning, and Luke Roskam drove in two more with a single up the middle with loaded bases. The final run of the inning was scored when Mojo Hagge was hit by a pitch with loaded bases, and the Huskers took a 5-0 lead.
Minnesota continued to struggle from the mound, and in the seventh inning the Big Red loaded the bases and the Golden Gopher pitchers walked in two more runs. Logan Foster then got hit by a pitch, and that earned NU their third free run of the inning.
Max Schreiber came in to relieve Schanaman in the eighth inning and he gave up the base hit that scored the only two Minnesota runs. Following that, he forced a double play out of the Golden Gophers to retire the side. In to close for Nebraska in the ninth inning was Caleb Feekin. The sophomore walked the first two batters he faced, but he was able to recover and finish the inning with no further damage.
On both sides, offense and defense, the Huskers started off very well. To start the game, Schanaman gave up a hit, but following that he locked it down. The junior retired 13 straight batters, and only gave up two more hits in the game. For the first seven innings, Shay Schanaman shut down Minnesota with some help from the Big Red defense.
The offensive start was just as solid, and in the first inning NU was already on the board. The leadoff batter, Joe Acker, worked a walk and Jaxon Hallmark hit a single into left field to get the Husker fans going. Cam Chick was able to drive in a run, and that gave Nebraska the start they wanted. A big third inning with four runs on four hits put the Big Red even further ahead, and they continued that momentum through the rest of the game.
NU saw Minnesota give them a couple of gifts in this game. In the sixth inning, Griffin Everitt doubled off the left field wall. Following this, Joe Acker hit a line drive to left field that, if caught, would have ended the inning. The left fielder for Minnesota dropped the ball and the error scored Everitt.
The seventh inning is where a lot of the mistakes happened for the Golden Gophers. With two outs and one runner on first, Minnesota pitchers loaded the bases with a walk and a hit batter. After this, two more walks gave Nebraska two free runs and another hit batter walked in another run. The Huskers were able to stay patient at the plate and let the Gophers make mistakes that made this game much more one sided.
The Big Red will head to Champaign, Illinois next weekend to play in a three-game series against the Fighting Illini. The series will kick off on Friday at 4:00 p.m. with another game on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. and the final game on Sunday at 12:00 p.m.
All three games can be streamed on BTN+ and heard on Husker Sports Network.
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