Nebraska Baseball Scores 16 Unanswered, Defeats Maryland 17-8

It looked ugly. Luis Alvarado gave up a grand slam in the first inning, and did not make it out of the second. Slowly though, after falling behind 8-1, Nebraska chipped away and gained ground in the Big Ten standings, in their race to qualify for the Big Ten Tournament with a 17-8 win.

Alvarado was not good at all. He gave up six walks, and three hits while allowing six runs. Zach Jankarski hit a grand slam in the first inning to put Maryland up 4-0. After Scott Schreiber homered to get a run back in the first, Maryland put up another four runs in the second.

Alvarado walked the bases loaded before he departed in the second inning. Nate Fisher was summoned out of the bullpen and gave up a pair of hits including a two run scoring double to put the Terrapins up 8-1.

The Huskers got to Maryland starter Hunter Parsons in the second. Gunner Hellstrom led off the inning with a walk. After he was replaced by Angelo Altavilla on a fielder’s choice, Jaxon Hallmark and Alex Henwood singled to load the bases. Ben Klenke singled to score two, and then Mojo Hagge followed with a ground out to make it 8-4. Schreiber struck out to end the threat.

With the Huskers back in the game, Fisher settled down. He got the Terrapins in order in the third and fourth innings, while allowing just one more walk in the fifth.

While Fisher was setting down the Terrapins, the Huskers were doing work on the offense. Jesse Wilkening and Luke Roskam went single-double in the third to get the Huskers within three.

In the fifth, Nebraska got a walk from Schreiber and a single from Wilkening to put the tying run at the plate. Roskam got a sacrifice fly to make it 8-6. Hellstrom singled and then Altavilla doubled to get the Huskers within 8-7.

Reece Eddins came on in relief of Fisher in the sixth and Maryland in order. He worked around a one out single in the seventh to keep Maryland off the scoreboard.

In the seventh, magic struck for the Huskers. Hellstrom singled with just one out. After Altavilla flied out for the second out, Hallmark was up as the go ahead run. On a 0-2 pitch, Hallmark lined a ball down the left field line off the foul poul for a two run home run, putting Nebraska in the lead 9-8. Henwood was hit by a pitch, stole second, and scored when Carter Cross singled.

Nebraska turned to Jake Hohensee in the eighth, and he shut down the bottom of Maryland’s lineup.

With a two run lead, Nebraska scored a touchdown in the eighth. Hagge singled, Schreiber doubled, Wilkening singled, Roskam singled, and Altavilla homered to make it 15-8. Hallmark then singled before Henwood launched a home run to right to make it 17-8.

With a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth, Nebraska picked up their fifth conference win of the season. Nebraska moves to 5-10 in the Big Ten. Currently they are 1.5 games out of the eighth place spot in the Big Ten. With Michigan State dropping the first two games to Penn State, and playing a third tonight, the Huskers could be just one game out of eighth place. Win tomorrow, and they could move to within just a half game out.