Nebraska baseball shatters two home run records in series finale at Purdue
Nebraska baseball broke a duo of home run records on Saturday afternoon. The Huskers set a new program record for home runs in a season and Max Anderson cleared a milestone of his own in a 6-4 victory over Purdue.
Head coach Will Bolt and company finished the regular season at 31-21-1 and 15-9 in the Big Ten. The Huskers are locked into a No. 4 seed as the conference tournament approaches next week.
Nebraska and Purdue combined for three baserunners in the first two innings. Jackson Brockett worked around a two-out double in the first and a leadoff single in the second to hang a pair of zeros. Meanwhile, Jonathan Blackwell surrendered a walk in his first frame and put together a 1-2-3 second to hold the Huskers off the board.
NU broke through in the third. A leadoff walk from Luke Sartori followed by a wild pitch, groundout and RBI single from Cole Evans put the Huskers ahead 1-0. But, Purdue countered in the home half after a two-out error by Dylan Carey. A single and three straight walks from Brockett plated three runs and brought an end to the lefty’s outing.
Brett Sears relieved Brocket in a 3-1 ballgame and promptly secured a popout to end the bases-loaded threat.
The Huskers made history in the fourth. With two away and Josh Caron standing on first after a single, Charlie Fischer blasted Nebraska’s 94th home run of the year over the wall in right. Fischer’s swing dethroned the 1985 Huskers who hit 93 bombs in 69 games.
Another record-breaking blast gave the Huskers the lead two innings later. Max Anderson began the sixth with a bang as he homered for the 15th time in Big Ten play. Not only did that give Nebraska a 4-3 lead, it also set a new Big Ten mark for home runs in conference action.
The Huskers added some insurance in the seventh on a RBI single from Carey that made it 5-3.
Nebraska tacked one more on in the ninth with the aid of a Purdue error. Blake Mozley walked with two outs and scored from first after Evans singled to right. The ball was misplayed allowing Mozley dash around the diamond and put the Huskers ahead 6-3.
Kyle Perry entered to pitch in the final frame and quickly posted a pair of strikeouts. But, the Boilermakers rallied with two singles and a Nebraska error to plate a run. Perry coaxed a groundout to end the Purdue threat and seal the win.
A truly special season at the plate
There’s not much more to write about Nebraska’s long-ball prowess in 2023. But, letting Saturday’s moment pass without some thought to wear this team was a year ago would be ludicrous.
In 2022, the Huskers hit 51 home runs and no batter had more than 10. Only Garrett Anglim had a batting average above .300. Anderson led the team in RBIs with 45 and now three Nebraska bats have more than 50.
Was this year perfect from an offensive perspective? By no means. There are still issues with strikeouts and generating clutch hits.
The only question that remains will be if the Huskers’ performance in the Big Ten Tournament overshadows its historic home run numbers. An early exit next week would leave a much stronger impression than broken records.
Top 10
- 1
LaNorris Sellers
South Carolina QB signs NIL deal to return
- 2New
Justice Haynes
Alabama transfer RB commits
- 3
National Championship odds
Updated odds are in
- 4Trending
Urban Meyer
Coach alarmed by UT fan turnout at OSU
- 5Hot
CFP home games
Steve Spurrier calls for change
Get the On3 Top 10 to your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
The Huskers control their own destiny
It’s no secret that an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament is out of the question. That leaves the Huskers just one path: To win the Big Ten Tournament.
That’s a reality that has been obvious for nearly a month.
“It’s all there for the taking,” Bolt said. “You get a chance to go win a tournament to go continue your season.”
To achieve its goals, Nebraska will need some help from unlikely places.
“You’re going to maybe have some unsung heroes in this tournament,” Bolt said. “That’s what you have to have to go win it. It’s gonna have to particularly be on the mound for some guys to step up and continue to give us a shot.”
The boost on the mound was a group effort in the finale against Purdue. After Brockett allowed three unearned runs, the Huskers brought in four different relievers the rest of the way. None pitched longer than two full innings as they scattered seven hits and struck out five.
Sartori and Mozley also stood out. Neither delivered a hit or RBI but each put together quality at-bats and combined to score three of Nebraska’s six runs. Fischer will be another name to watch next week after his multi-homer weekend. His batting average dropped as low as .256 in the last six weeks and has been hovering above .280 since April 29.
From a health and rest standpoint, it seems like the Huskers are ready to roll. Emmett Olson and Jace Kaminska exit the weekends with minimal pitch counts and Brice Matthews got some much needed days off.
“Brice Matthews’ health is going to be pretty important for us in the tournament,” Bolt said. “I felt like it was pretty important to give him the entire weekend to try to get better. We gotta get him to 100% because we obviously missed his presence on the field and in the box.”
The regular season is in the books. Now, the Huskers hope to win their first Big Ten Tournament.
What’s next for Nebraska baseball?
The postseason has arrived. Nebraska will return to Charles Schwab Field in Omaha for the Big Ten Tournament early next week.
The Huskers will likely face Rutgers on either Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. or Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. and all games of the tournament will be on the Big Ten Network.
