Huskers Host Terps for Three-Game Series

Friday, April 9 (6:30 PM)
Pitching: LHP Cade Povich (2-1) vs. RHP Sean Burke (1-1)
TV/Streaming: BTN+
Radio: Husker Sports Network
 
Saturday, April 10 (2 PM)
Pitching: RHP Chance Hroch (2-0) vs. RHP Nick Dean (0-0)
TV/Streaming: NET & BTN+
Radio: Husker Sports Network

Sunday, April 11 (Noon)

Pitching: RHP Shay Schanaman (2-0) vs. RHP Jason Savacool (4-0)

TV/Streaming: BTN+

Radio: Husker Sports Network

 

The Nebraska baseball team (13-5) returns to Hawks Field this weekend for its second home series of the 2021 season, as the Huskers welcome the Maryland Terrapins (9-10) to Lincoln. The Huskers are 4-0 at home this season, while the Terrapins are 4-7 away from Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium, including a 3-2 record in true road games.

The series is scheduled to open on Friday night at 6:30 PM. The game was originally scheduled for 2 PM, but once it was announced that fans could attend home games the Nebraska Athletic Department moved back Friday home games to accommodate fan attendance. 

Saturday’s game is scheduled for 2 PM and will be carried statewide on NET. Fans outside the state of Nebraska will be able to watch on BTN+. Sunday’s series finale is slated for Noon.

The Huskers are coming of a series win at Illinois and have won eight of their last nine games. Nebraska sits at the top of the Big Ten standings with a 13-5 record, holing a 1/2 game lead over the Michigan Wolverines (13-6).

The Terrapins hosted both Northwestern and Michigan last weekend for the College Park Pod, playing two games against both teams. The Terrapins came away with a 3-1 record, including a sweep of the Wildcats on Friday and Saturday. Michigan took the first game between the two clubs on Sunday, 6-5, but Maryland responded on Monday with a dominant 17-7 victory. After dropping the first three games at the Columbus Pod two weeks ago, Maryland has now won four of its last five games.

Saturday’s game will be carried statewide on NET. All three games this weekend will be carried on BTN+, a online streaming service through the Big Ten Network. 

Fans can listen to Greg Sharpe and Ben McLaughlin call the action this weekend on the Learfield/IMG College Husker Sports Network. Every game this season can be heard for free on Huskers.com and the Official Nebraska Huskers App for both iOS and android devices.

Last Time Out

The Huskers are coming off a series win at Illinois. The team’s split the first two games before the Huskers won the rubber match on Sunday, 12-7. Illinois had won the last two series between the two teams and it was Nebraska’s first series win in Champaign since 2013.

4/2: Nebraska 8 – Illinois 6

4/3: Illinois 10 – Nebraska 8

4/4: Nebraska 12 – Illinois 7

Next Up

Nebraska heads east for a three-game series at Penn State next weekend. The series opener is set for 5 PM (CT) on Friday, April 16.

4/16: Nebraska at Penn State (5 PM)

4/17: Nebraska at Penn State (Noon)

4/18: Nebraska at Penn State (10 AM)

Leading Off

• Dating back to a win at Iowa on Sunday March 21, the Huskers have won eight of their last nine games entering Friday’s series opener.

• Nebraska had its seven-game winning streak snapped last Saturday at Illinois. It was the longest winning streak since 2016 when the Huskers won eight straight, including wins over Wichita State (2), Indiana State (2), Purdue (3) and Creighton (1).  – Nebraska had an nine-game unbeaten streak in 2017. The Huskers won five straight, tied Indiana, and then won three straight following the tie.

• Through April 5, Nebraska is tied for third nationally with a .984 fielding percentage. NU has committed 10 errors in 18 games. The next closest Big Ten program is Ohio State, who is tied for 36th nationally (.976). The national top five includes:

  1. Notre Dame (.989)

  2. Oregon State (.987)

  3. Navy (.984)

     Charlotte (.984)

     Nebraska (.984)

• Along with a top-three rankings in fielding percentage, the Huskers rank in the top-30 nationally in multiple categories:

  HRs Per Game – 1.61 (8th)

  Slugging Percentage – .487 (12th)

  Sacrifice Bunts – 18 (16th)

  Scoring – 7.5 (20th)    

  On-Base Percentage – .397 (27th)

  Batting Avg. – .292 (28th)

  

• NU ranks in the top three in the Big Ten in multiple offensive categories including: 

  Runs Scored – 135 (1st)

  Sacrifice Bunts – 19 (1st)

  RBIs – 118 (T1st with Maryland)

  Home Runs – 29 (2nd)  –  (Northwestern, 36)

  Batting Avg. – .292 (2nd)  –  (Illinois, .294)  

  Walks – 89 (2nd)  –  (Michigan, 95)

  Hits – 172 (3rd)  –  (Illinois, 187)

• Nebraska’s pitching staff also ranks near the top of the conference in multiple categories including:

  Shutouts – 3 (T1st with Michigan State)

  Fewest Runs Allowed – 75 (2nd)  –  (Indiana, 57)

  Fewest Walks Allowed – 59 (2nd) –  (Rutgers, 42)

• Spencer Schwellenbach ranks second in the Big Ten with 21 runs scored and is tied for third in doubles with seven. Northwestern’s Anthony Calarco leads the league in both categories with 22 runs and nine doubles. Schwellenbach is also tied for fourth in the conference in saves with four, while TJ Brock leads the way with 10 saves.

• Jaxon Hallmark and Max Anderson are tied for third in the Big Ten with 26 hits, while Anthony Claraco has a league-high 29.

• Joe Acker is tied with Michigan State’s Trent Farquhar and Purdue’s Skyler Hunter for the Big Ten lead in walks with 15 each.

• Luke Roskam ranks fourth in the Big Ten with a .500 on-base percentage. Minnesota’s Zack Raabe has a Big Ten-best .529 on-base percentage. 

 

• 12 players have made their Husker debuts this season, including true freshmen  infielders Max Anderson, Brice Matthews and Jack Steil, as well as freshman pitcher Emmett Olson. 

Scouting the Terrapins

• The Terrapins are coming off a weekend where they took two games from Northwestern and split a pair of games with Michigan.

• Maryland has a 3-2 record in true road games, including a 2-1 series win at Penn State. The Terps also split a pair of game against Ohio State at the Columbus Pod.

• The Terrapins have three regular starters hitting over .300 on season, including a team-best .370 from Benjamin Cowles. 

• Cowles also leads the Big Ten with nine home runs and 25 RBIs.

• Chris Alleyne is tied for the conference lead in triples with three and is one of two Terps ranked in the top 10 in steals. Alleyne is tied for fourth with six steals, while Randy Bednar leads the league with eight.

• Friday starter Sean Burke has racked up strikeouts with year with 47, which ranks second in the Big Ten. The 6-6 right hander is averaging 9.4 strikeouts per start.

• As a team the Terrapin pitching staff ranks second in the conference with 182 strikeouts, while issuing 72 walks.

• Sunday starter Jason Savacool is a perfect 4-0 on the year. He and Northwestern’s Quinn Lavelle are the only two pitchers in the league with four wins.

• Rob Vaughn is in his fourth season as Maryland’s head coach after being named to the post in June of 2017. Vaughn is the eighth head coach in school history and is in his ninth season overall at Maryland after five years as an assistant, most recently as associate head coach.

• Vaughn is the youngest head coach in all of “Power Five” baseball and the eighth-youngest amongst Division I baseball.

• Vaughn enters the weekend with a career record of 72-74.

The All-Time Series with Maryland

• Maryland holds a 6-4 advantage in 10 previous games between the two teams. All 10 games have come with both teams as members of the Big Ten Conference. 

• The first game between the two teams took place on April 4, 2015, in College Park, Md., and the Terrapins won, 8-2.

• Nebraska enters Friday on a two-game winning streak in the all-time series.

• The teams have met for a Big Ten Conference series three times and this weekend will mark the third straight series in Lincoln. Maryland won the first series with a home sweep in 2015, while the Huskers have won the past two series.

2018 – Nebraska won, 2-1 (Lincoln)

2017 – Nebraska won, 2-1 (Lincoln)

2015 – Maryland won, 3-0 (College Park)

• The teams have met once during the postseason, with Maryland winning, 8-5, in Bloomington, Ind., at the 2017 Big Ten Tournament.

Leading Man

Joe Acker moved to the lead-off spot in the Husker lineup for the series opener at Iowa. Over the last 10 games…

• Acker has reached base in his first at-bat of the game six times, including five walks.

• Acker leads the team in walks with 13, the next closest Husker has six.

• Acker has posted a .489 on-base percentage and ranks third on the team with 13 runs scored.  

Schwellenbach Named to Olerud Watch List

The College Baseball Foundation released its watch list on Tuesday, April 6, for the 2021 John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award and Spencer Schwellenbach was one of 17 players selected. A shortstop and relief pitcher for the Huskers, Schwellenbach earned a weekly award from the organization on March 30 after his stellar play in a four-game sweep of Minnesota.