Husker Baseball Hammers Maryland 14-3, Win Fourth Straight Series

On what the Nebraska Baseball team calls Championship Sunday, the Huskers erupted in the second inning for five runs and never looked back as they took the rubber match 14-3 to clinch their fourth consecutive series win. Shay Schanaman struck out 11 Terrapins in a strong bounce back outing for Nebraska.

Schanaman had strong top of the first inning as he struck out a pair of Terrapins in a 1-2-3 effort. Jason Savacool answered Schanaman with a 11 pitch 1-2-3 first inning as well.

After Schanaman struck out a pair of hitters in a scoreless top of the second, Nebraska put up a big number in the second inning. Cam Chick started the inning with a solid single into right field. Max Anderson advanced Chick into scoring position. Nebraska would then record six consecutive hits to plate five runs. Luke Roskam singled through the left side to score Chick.

Leighton Banjoff hit a hard grounder to put a pair of runners on. Bryce Matthews doubled to score Roskam, then Griffin Everitt hit a double off the top of the wall in right field to plate two more runs. Will Bolt would come out and argue that Everitt hit his ball over the wall, but the umpires confirmed it was only a double.

Joe Acker made sure that it did not matter as he rocked a single into center field to plate Everitt. Jaxon Hallmark and Acker executed a hit and run to put a pair of runners on for Spencer Schwellenbach. Schwellenbach would flyout but the day was done for Savacool as Nebraska made it into the Terrapins bullpen in the second inning.

Maryland got a single run back on a solo home run from Chris Alleyne down the right field line in the third inning. Schanaman got Randy Bednar to strike out to prevent any further damage.

The Huskers tacked on a pair of runs in the fourth inning. Matthews walked to start the inning before a sacrifice bunt from Everitt put him in scoring position. Acker delivered another single and advanced to second on the throw. Hallmark would then score Acker on a base hit up the middle to make it a 7-1 game.

The score would stay 7-1 until the seventh inning when Maryland “manufactured” a threat. A infield base hit got things started for the Terrapins. Then the next three Maryland batters reached via the hit by pitch. Will Bolt would come out to argue that all of the Maryland hitters were leaning into the pitches. Schanaman was throwing sliders that looked like they would come into the strikezone and all three batters stuck out the leading elbow.

With a 7-2 lead and the bases loaded and no one out, Nebraska called in Jake Bunz from the bullpen. He got a fielder’s choice that scored a run for the first out of the seventh. Bunz then recorded a strikeout before walking Tommy Gardiner to bring up Alleyne as the tying run to the plate. Bunz got a groundball to Anderson at third who stepped on the bag for the final out of the the seventh.

Nebraska went scoreless in their half of the seventh and decided to send Bunz out for another inning of work. Bunz struck out the side to preserve the Husker lead.

The Terrapins continued their revolving bullpen door in the eighth inning. After Everitt struck out, Acker got his third hit of the game. Hallmark was robbed of an extra base hit for the second out of the inning. Schwellenbach got his first hit of the game a triple past Alleyne in centerfield to score Acker for the Huskers eighth run.

Sean Fisher came in as a new pitcher for the Terrapins and he did not record an out. He walked Chick and Anderson. He then threw two wild pitches and walked Roskam to score two more runs for the Huskers. Zach Thompson would take over for Fisher and he walked Banjoff to load the bases. He then groved Matthews a 3-2 pitch which was destroyed for a grand slam to make it 14-3.

Caleb Feekin got the call for the Huskers in the ninth inning. He recorded a 1-2-3 ninth inning to give the Huskers their fourth series win in a row. Nebraska remains a half game ahead of Michigan in the Big Ten standings as the Wolverines win the series against a red hot Ohio State club.

Nebraska now travels to Penn State to take on the Nittany Lions in a three game series next weekend. First pitch is set for 6:05 local time from State College on Friday night.