Huskers flatten Boilermakers 17-0 in Game 1

The Huskers (15-9, 5-2 Big Ten) opened up a three-game series against Purdue (10-18, 4-2 Big Ten) on Friday, taking Game 1 by a final score of 17-0.

Nebraska got on the board quick and often against the Boilermakers, scoring six runs on three hits in the bottom of the first. Six of the first seven Husker batters came home in the first with the scoring getting started on a two-RBI single from Carter Cross down the left field line, scoring Aaron Palensky and Joe Acker. Four more runs were scored in the bottom half of the first inning with three of those runs coming from wild pitches from Purdue pitchers.

Nebraska added two more runs in the bottom of the second off of a pair of RBI singles from pinch-hitter Mojo Hagge and Angelo Altavilla to make the score 6-0 heading into the third.

The big offensive explosion for the Huskers came in the fifth inning when seven runs were scored on seven hits. The inning started off hot when Cam Chick roped a ball over the right-field wall for his first career home run. A trio of RBI doubles Gunner Hellstrom, Hagge, and Altavilla helped add to the Husker lead and Nebraska found itself on top 15-0 after five.

The Huskers were able to add two more runs in the eighth inning off of a sacrifice fly from Alex Henwood and an RBI single by Hagge and giving Nebraska the 17-0 win.

The Nebraska bats put on a clinic in Haymarket Park tonight with 17 runners touching home on the back of 19 total hits. Game 1 saw every single starting Husker score a run tonight, with Aaron Palensky leading the way with three. Mojo Hagge was another batter who saw a productive day at the plate, scoring two runs and batting in another four to account for six of the 17.

The extra base-hits came in bunches for the Huskers as well. Five batters recorded a double tonight but the spotlight shines on freshman Cam Chick who hit a solo home run to get the scoring started in the 5th, the first of his young Husker career.

Chick rounded first base and thought the ball would stop just short of the wall, which could explain why the freshman rounded the bases in just over 18 seconds. "When the guy stopped I'm like, 'You've got to be kidding me.' My heart dropped. I thought he was going to catch it and it just kept going. I couldn't be happier."

So far this season, the Huskers have gotten on opponents early to provide a nice cushion for the starting pitchers. On the year, Nebraska has outscored their opponents 26-8 in the first inning and have gotten on the board in the first in 14 of their 24 games on the year.

It's a good bet that, if the Huskers get on the board early, they're going to come away with the win. Nebraska is 6-2 on the year when scoring in the first inning and 11-3 when they are able to get the scoring started. Couple these fast starts with the strong starting pitching that the Huskers are having and it could lead to a big year in the Big Ten conference.

Matt Waldron came into Friday's game as one of Nebraska's hottest pitchers and tonight was no different. In seven innings of action, Waldron recorded nine strikeouts, allowing only four hits and no runs, dropping his ERA to 1.64 on the year.

On top of his stellar day, Waldron struck out the first batter he faced on the day which was his 200th career strikeout. His nine strikeouts moved him to eighth all-time in the Nebraska record books for career K's.

The senior pitcher continued his streak of no free bases, not allowing a single walk on the day. Through 44.0 IP on the year, Waldron has only allowed three walks, the second-lowest mark on the team with at least 10.0 innings of action.

Nebraska returns to action tomorrow in Game 2 against the Boilermakers looking to come away with the series win.

First pitch is set for 2:05 p.m. and it will be LHP Nate Fisher (2.29 ERA, 4-1) set to take on RHP Andrew Bohm (4.91 ERA, 0-3).