Huskers Fall 8-5 on Opening Day

The Nebraska baseball team fell 8-5 in the season opener at Sam Houston on Friday night at Don Sanders Stadium in Huntsville, Texas.

The Huskers had nine hits and an error in the defeat, while Sam Houston totaled nine hits and a pair of errors.

Colby Gomes and Max Anderson led the Big Red at the plate. Gomes went three-for-four with a double and two runs and Anderson had a three-for-five night with a single, double and triple. Luke Sartori tallied two hits and an RBI, while Brice Matthews and Core Jackson had one RBI apiece.

Kyle Perry lasted 1.1 innings in the start, allowing five runs on two hits with five walks and two strikeouts. Koty Frank had the longest outing of his Husker career, pitching 4.2 scoreless innings with a career-high six strikeouts. Emmett Olson dropped to 0-1 on the year after pitching one inning and surrendering three unearned runs on three hits with two strikeouts. Quinn Mason and Tyler Martin combined to throw the final inning in relief for the Big Red.

The Bearkats threatened in the first frame after Clayton Chadwick and Justin Wishkoski drew full-count walks and Tyler Davis was hit by the pitch to load the bases with two outs. Perry struck out Christian Smith to escape the bases-loaded jam.

Nebraska jumped on Sam Houston in the second, hanging three runs on three hits and an error on the Bearkats. Matthews began the inning with a walk, followed by back-to-back singles from Griffin Everitt and Gomes to load the bases with no outs. Matthews raced home on a passed ball to open the scoring before Jackson reached on a throwing error by the charging shortstop to plate Everitt and Gomes to give the Huskers a 3-0 lead in Jackson’s first collegiate at-bat.

The Bearkats responded with five runs of their own in the bottom half of the second to grab a 5-3 lead. Chadwick’s two-RBI single through the right side with the bases loaded began the scoring for Sam Houston, followed by Wishkoski’s RBI single through the left side to tie the game at three. The Bearkats took the two-run lead after Davis’ two-RBI single to right field.

After consecutive scoreless innings, the Big Red looked to narrow the deficit after Leighton Banjoff drew a walk and Anderson’s single through the left side put runners on first and third with two outs, but the Huskers couldn’t cut into the deficit.

Nebraska trimmed the Bearkat lead in half in the sixth after Sartori’s RBI single brought home Gomes. Gomes reached on a one-out double and Josh Caron was hit by the pitch before Sartori lifted the RBI single to right field.

Anderson ripped a triple to center field and later raced home on an RBI groundout by Matthews to tie the game at five in the top of the seventh.

Sam Houston answered with a three-run rally in the bottom of the seventh to take the lead back at 8-5. Easton Loyd’s RBI single with the bases loaded gave the Bearkats a 6-5 advantage before Wishkoski blooped a two-RBI double in shallow right field to build the lead to three.

The Huskers and Bearkats continue the weekend series with a doubleheader tomorrow beginning at 2 p.m. The first game of the twin bill is a seven-inning game, followed by a nine-inning contest approximately 30 minutes after game one. Saturday’s doubleheader will be carried on KLIN (1440 AM, 99.3 FM) in Lincoln, KXSP (590 AM) in Omaha and KRVN (880 AM) in Lexington.