Courtesy of Husker Athletics
Senior Gabe Swansen came through in the clutch, hitting a walk-off three-run double in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Huskers a 7-6 win vs. Kansas State on Tuesday night at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park.
Nebraska (22-23) scored seven runs on nine hits and three errors, while Kansas State (26-19) totaled six runs, six hits and two errors.
Dylan Carey led the Huskers at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a pair of runs scored. Robby Bolin was 2-for-4 with a run, and Swansen was 1-for-3 with a double and three RBI. Case Sanderson drove in two runs with one hit, while Max Buettenback and Hogan Helligso tallied one hit each.
Tucker Timmerman tossed 2.2 innings and allowed an unearned run on two hits with a pair of strikeouts in Tuesday’s start. Colin Nowaczyk dealt 1.2 scoreless frames with a trio of punchouts. Pryce Bender and Grant Cleavingercombined to pitch one inning, followed by Drew Christo and Casey Daiss recording a pair of outs.
Luke Broderick surrendered a run on one hit and four strikeouts in 2.1 innings, before Gavin Blachowicz tallied the final two outs to improve 3-0 on the season.
Kansas State broke the scoreless tie in the top of the third with a one-out double and a two-base fielding error to give the Wildcats a 1-0 advantage.
The Huskers responded with a run of their own in the bottom of the third to lock the game at one. Carey led off with a single to left and moved to second on Helligso’s sacrifice bunt. Bolin’s bunt single, joined with a throwing error, allowed Carey to score from second base and made it a 1-1 game through three innings.
The Wildcats loaded the bases with two outs in the sixth on a pair of walks and an intentional walk. A fourth free pass in the inning allowed K-State to take a 2-1 lead, before the Huskers plated three runs on four hits to grab a 4-2 advantage through six innings.
Buettenback’s leadoff single and a walk to Swansen put runners on first and second, while Tyler Stone was plunked on the first pitch to load the bases. Sanderson laced a two-RBI single through the left side to give NU its first lead of the night at 3-2.
Helligso doubled the lead to 4-2 with a first-pitch RBI single to center, scoring Stone and sending the Huskers into the seventh inning with a two-run advantage.
Kansas State answered with three runs on four hits and an error in the top of the seventh to take the lead back at 5-4. A leadoff double down the left-field line, followed by an RBI single through the right side trimmed the NU lead in half. An errant pickoff throw at second base moved runners to second and third, setting the table for a go-ahead two-RBI single through the right side.
A wild pitch on strike three in the top of the ninth allowed the leadoff hitter to reach for the Wildcats. A stolen base and a second wild pitch in the inning advanced the runner to third, before a throwing error doubled the Wildcats’ lead to 6-4 going into the bottom of the ninth.
Carey opened the bottom of the ninth with a leadoff single to left field, and Bolin reached on a one-out single through the left side to put runners on first and second with one out.
Brumbaugh was plunked on a 3-2 count to load the bases, setting the table for Swansen’s walk-off double. The senior ripped a 1-0 pitch down the left-field line for the walk-off three-RBI double to clinch Nebraska’s 7-6 win on Tuesday night.
Nebraska welcomes Minnesota to Lincoln this weekend for a three-game series. Friday’s series opener at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park is set for 6:02 p.m. on B1G+.
