Nebraska at Kansas State game preview

Nebraska baseball is going through some hurt.

The Huskers (10-13, 2-7 Big Ten) lost their third consecutive conference series to begin the year, dropping two of three games on the road at USC over the weekend to pair with a combined 1-5 record against Washington and UCLA.

Despite the struggles in Big Ten play, however, the Huskers have a 6-5 mark over their last 11 games, mainly salvaged by its midweek success.

In non-conference play, the Huskers sport an 8-6 record that includes four consecutive wins via two-game sweeps of Wichita State and Pepperdine.

Now, Nebraska returns from its West Coast swing for tonight’s game at Kansas State (6 p.m. CT) which will be a rematch of the Wildcats’ 9-6 win on March 2 in Texas at the Frisco College Baseball Classic.

The matchup against the Wildcats kicks off a five-game stretch against three opponents that are currently at least seven games above the .500 mark:

>> Tonight – Kansas State (15-8)

>> Friday-Saturday – Oregon State (18-4)

>> Tuesday, April 1 – Creighton (13-6)

As the Huskers get this run started, here is a look at Round 2 against Kansas State.

Time: 6:05 p.m. CT

Pitching: RHP Carson Jasa (2-1, 5.52 ERA) vs. RHP Donte Lewis (2-0, 2.31 ERA)

TV/Streaming: ESPN+

Radio: Huskers Radio Network, Huskers.com, Huskers App

Stadium: Tointon Family Stadium (Manhattan, Kan.)

>> Tuesday night’s midweek matchup can be seen on ESPN+, with Matt Walters and Mike Clark on the call.

>> Fans can also listen to Ben McLaughlin and David Gustafson call the action Tuesday night on the Huskers Radio 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.

>> Nebraska and Kansas State have met 292 times on the diamond, with the Huskers holding a 174-118 advantage in the all-time series over the Wildcats.

>> K-State picked up a 9-6 win over the Big Red at the Frisco Classic earlier this season.

>> Redshirt freshman Carson Jasa is set to make his third career start for the Huskers on Tuesday night.

>> As a starter, the right-hander is 2-0 and holds a 1.80 ERA with 15 punchouts and an opposing batting average of .118 across 10 innings this season.

>> The Thornton, Colo., native has recorded a pair of five-inning outings with two hits allowed in starts against Wichita State and Pepperdine.

>> On the season, Jasa has appeared in seven games, including two starts, and has compiled a 5.52 ERA with 20 strikeouts in 14.2 innings of work.

>> Nebraska is 113-23 under head coach Will Bolt when scoring at least six runs.

>> The Big Red have scored six-plus runs in nine of the 10 victories this season, defeating No. 16 Vanderbilt (6-4), San Diego State (13-0), Louisiana (6-1), Washington (6-2), Wichita State (10-1), Pepperdine (9-6, 11-4) and USC (6-5).

>> The Husker offense reached the six-run mark 34 times last season, compiling a 28-6 record.

>> Nebraska scored six-plus runs in 33 contests (26-7) in 2023 after tallying at least six runs 23 times (19-4) in 2022, 28 times (26-2) in 2021 and seven times (5-2) in 2020.

>> With an 11-4 win at Pepperdine last week, the Husker offense posted its first strikeout-free game since a 5-3 win vs. UNLV on March 30, 2014.

>> The Huskers scored 11 runs on 11-of-35 hitting (.314) with a double, three homers and 10 RBI. The NU hitters drew seven walks and were plunked two times.

>> Devin Nunez is slashing .343/.397/.478 with three homers, 14 RBI and 11 runs scored in 119 games, including 15 starts this season.

>> Dylan Carey is hitting .279 on the season and leads the Huskers with seven doubles, four homers, 21 RBI and a .500 slugging percentage.

>> Cayden Brumbaugh has scored a team-high 17 runs and is batting .286 with a team-high seven multi-hit contests this season.

>> Robby Bolin has appeared in 17 games, including 10 starts, and is second on the team with a .314 batting average, while Tyler Stone has five doubles, two home runs and eight RBI in 15 games this season.

>> Case Sanderson leads the NU offense with a .429 on-base percentage and 13 walks in 20 games played, and Riley Silva is second on the team with a .409 OBP and has scored eight times in 19 games.

>> Will Jesske has three doubles, a triple, four RBI and eight runs scored while splitting time behind the dish with Hogan Helligso.

>> Joshua Overbeek has tallied five extra-base hits with four RBI and nine runs scored, while Cael Frost has driven in eight runs, homered twice and is tied with a team-high 13 walks.

>> Luke Broderick has totaled four saves in seven appearances for the NU bullpen and picked up his first win after dealing a career-high 2.1 innings at USC last weekend.

>> Drew Christo and Caleb Clark have appeared in a team-high nine relief appearances on the season.

>> Casey Daiss has tossed 5.1 scoreless frames across four appearances against Kansas State, Washington, Pepperdine and USC.

>> Jalen Worthley is third on the team with eight appearances and has posted a 1-0 record, while TJ Coats has made four appearances, including two starts, in his debut season with the Huskers.

>> Freshmen Pryce Bender, Colin Nowaczyk, Gavin Blachowicz and Blake Encarnacion have combined to pitch 26 innings in their debut season at Nebraska.

>> Grant Cleavinger and Ryan Harrahill have each taken the mound five times for the NU pitching staff this season, combining for nine strikeouts in 8.1 innings.

>> Riley Silva has been hit by pitch 30 times in his two seasons as a Husker, which is one shy of 10th all-time in program history.

>> Silva is one away from tying Jed Dalton (1992-95) in second and four shy of Dave Crain (1994-95) in ninth.

All stats & info provided by Nebraska Athletics