• Box score • LJS • OWH: 1, 2 • HuskerOnline • BBS Photos • Huskers.com Video • Huskers.com NU's tourney games • Game 1, 2, 3 | |
Buckeyes eliminate Huskers, 6-2
 Kalkowski |  Scheffert |  Sanguinetti |
The Huskers (35-23, 14-10 Big Ten) out-hit the Buckeyes, 9-8, but NU stranded 10 runners on the afternoon and committed three errors in the field. Josh Scheffert, Kash Kalkowski and Rich Sanguinetti each had two hits, while Kalkowski, Richard Stock and Cory Burleson each notched a double.
Nebraska starter Dexter Spitsnogle cruised through the first inning by facing just three Buckeyes, as Burleson caught Tim Wetzel stealing after he reached on a leadoff walk. Spitsnogle was unable to make it through the second, though, as OSU took a 2-0 lead on three hits. After Spitsnogle walked in the second run of the inning, Head Coach Darin Erstad brought in Dylan Vogt, who promptly struck out Ryan Cypret to end threat.
The Huskers' first scoring threat came in the top of the fourth when Kalkowski hit a ground-rule double down the right-field line and moved to third when Sanguinetti followed with an infield single. Kale Kiser was unable to add a third straight two-out hit off OSU starter Brian King to drive in NU's first run.
Ohio State struck again in the bottom of the fourth with a leadoff triple from Kirby Pellant that was followed by a single from Greg Solomon to put OSU up 3-0. Vogt came right back with a strikeout and a 4-6-3 double play to keep OSU from adding anything else to its lead.
Nebraska was in position to score again in the top of the fifth with runners on the corners and one down following a pair of Buckeye errors, but King got Chad Christensen to ground into an inning-ending 6-4-3 double play.
The hits finally came at the right time for the Huskers in the top of the sixth as NU cut OSU's lead to 3-2. Scheffert led off with a walk and scored from first on Stock's 20th double of the season. Stock then crossed the plate on a single up the middle by Kalkowski. NU's threat quickly came to a halt when Sanguinetti popped up a bunt, Kiser lined out on a rocket to the shortstop and Burleson struck out.
OSU got one run back in the seventh on the Huskers' third error. Wetzel led off the inning with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Cypret. Vogt then got a ground ball to Scheffert, but the NU third baseman threw the ball short to Stock at first, allowing Wetzel to score and Brad Hallberg to move to second. Freshman Aaron Bummer entered the game for NU and got the Huskers out of the inning without any other damage done.
The Huskers had the tying run on base in the top of the eighth following a leadoff single from Scheffert and a two-out infield single from Sanguinetti, but once again OSU got an out when it needed it with a fly out by Kiser for the third out.
The Buckeyes added two insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth on two hits. David Corna led off with a single and scored on Pellant's second triple of the game. OSU's shortstop then scored on a sacrifice fly by Solomon.
Burleson led off the ninth for the Huskers with a double into the left-center field gap off closer Josh Dezse, but NU could not get anything else going, as Dezse got consecutive fly outs and a strikeout to secure the win.
R H E ------------------------------------------- Nebraska ........... 000 002 000 - 2 9 3 Ohio State ......... 020 100 12X - 6 8 2 -------------------------------------------