Huskers can't hold big lead, lose to Sam Houston State 11-10

On a soggy diamond in Frisco, the Huskers and Bearkats went blow for blow against each other down to the very last pitch. In the end, though, Sam Houston State came out on top in Game 2 of the weekend for the Huskers, edging out Nebraska 11-10.

Sam Houston State took the early lead in the second inning off of an RBI single from Jordan Cannon and they would hold that lead until Nebraska tied the game up in the top of the fourth, when Aaron Palensky scored on a wild pitch. The Bearkats were able to reclaim the lead with a run of their own in the bottom half of the inning on an RBI single to center field.

The big storyline of the day came from a wild fifth inning. The Huskers were able to plate a total of eight runs in the fifth, highlighted by a bases-clearing three-RBI triple by Carter Cross to put Nebraska up 8-2. After Cross scored on a passed ball, the Bearkats finally stopped the bleeding and were down 9-2 heading into the bottom half of the fifth.

However, the inning was far from over at that point. Sophomore pitcher Connor Curry came on in relief for the Huskers but allowed the Bearkats to get right back into the game where they scored six runs on only three hits and two errors. Mike Waldron replaced Curry on the bump and was able to retire the next two batters with the Huskers clinging to a 9-8 lead.

After a two-run home run from right-fielder Colton Cowser put Sam Houston State ahead 10-9, the Huskers were able to tie the game up in the ninth on a sacrifice fly from Carter Cross. The Huskers couldn't put Sam Houston away, however, and the Bearkats won on an RBI single by Darien Simms in the bottom of the ninth.

Sam Houston State's Darien Simms came into Saturday without a hit on the year, but the senior couldn't have come through in a more crucial time for the Bearkats. The game was knotted up at ten runs apiece heading into the bottom of the ninth and the Huskers looked poised to force extra innings after Ben Klenke struck out Jaxxon Grisham for the second out of the inning. With a runner in scoring position, Simms took the first pitch he saw into right field, scoring Moos on second and securing the win for the Bearkats.

On an offense-heavy day, the one who shined through for the Huskers came from sophomore Carter Cross. The left-fielder came into the day batting 5-for-9 on the year and had one of his more productive days at the plate. After replacing sophomore Mike Addante in the fifth inning, Cross was able to hit a bases-clearing triple into right field to extend the Husker lead 8-2.

On top of that, with the game on the line in the top of the ninth, Cross hit a sacrifice fly into center-field, scoring Mojo Hagge and tying the game up to give the Huskers a fighting chance. Cross finished the day 1-2 with four total RBIs and a run scored.

It was a rough day for the Husker pitchers on the mound but none more so than sophomore Connor Curry. In just 0.1 innings of action, Curry recorded an ERA of 10.80, allowing six total runs on three hits with no strikeouts. Curry's infield didn't do him any favors, either, as two costly errors led to three Bearkat runs in a thrilling fifth inning.

Senior Mike Waldron came on in relief of Curry and provided a quality 2.2 innings, but a 2-run home run to give Sam Houston State the lead spoiled a would-be solid performance.

The Huskers return to action tomorrow at 11:00 AM as they take on No. 12 Mississippi State to finish out the Frisco Classic where the Huskers are slated to be the away team. The game will be available again on FLOLive.TV with a subscription while also being broadcasted on the Husker Sports Network (Omaha 590 AM, Lincoln 1400 AM)