In what was an evenly matched contest from the get-go, it was the little things that made a difference In Nebraska’s 4-2 loss to Louisville. Ty Horn and Ethan Eberle faced off, both of them coming up with huge pitches when they needed them. Both of them have pitched better than they did today, but what was on display was their toughness, which is fun to watch.
Horn was probably the sharper as he made big pitch after big pitch with runners on base throughout his five innings. The defense came up big as well with timely double plays and picking runners off base. With his pitch count running up, Horn came out for the 6th inning, but surrendered a lead-off double to cleanup batter Kade Elam. Coach Childress decided that his day was done and Horn walked off to a standing ovation from both fan bases.
Nebraska did not have a problem putting runners on base. They did not go three up, three down until the final inning. They had a chance to break it open in the top of the second as they loaded the bases with one out and Mac Moyer smoked one down the third base line. Bayram Hot, playing the hot corner for the Cardinals, made a diving grab on the grounder, hustled to his feet to step on third and fired it across the diamond just a split second before Moyer’s foot hit the bag.
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The Big Red did strike first in the third with two outs and Joshua Overbeek and Dylan Carey hitting back-to-back singles. Designated hitter Cole Ktchens then got a single of his own to put the first run of the game up on the scoreboard.
The strikeout was Horn’s best friend today as twice he struck out Cardinals batters with two runners on base to end an inning. The double he gave up to Elam was his 80th pitch, which is plenty this time of the season.
Dylan “No More Mister Nice Guy” Carey added to the Cornhusker lead in the fifth with a home run the opposite way over the right-center field wall. Casey also singled in the third and doubled in the seventh.
With Horn out of the game, lefty Caleb Clark came in to hold the fort. Clark pitched well last weekend, and frankly, he didn’t pitch horrible today. However, the Baseball Gods have once again used Clark as their voodoo doll.
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He walked the first batter he faced, but the base was open, so no harm no foul. Up came Jax Hisle, who hit a sharp hopper right back at Clark. Double play baby! No, that’s not what happened. The ball got to Clark really fast yet he rushed the throw to second base, sailing it to the left field side way out of reach of Carey. Lucas Moore, scored and there were two runners on and no outs.
The bullpen jumped into action and the Cornhuskers tried to buy time with visits to the mound. Clark gave up a single and the bases were loaded. This was make or break time for the veteran lefthander from Canada. He induced a pop up to Overbeek to get the first out and then Coach Childress opted to go right on right, bringing in Ryan Harrahill, who also pitched well las weekend. He got his first batter to pop up to third and Cornhusker fans rose to their feel to help him get the third out. It was not to be. The number nine batter in the lineup, Griffin Crain, ripped a double to put Louisville ahead 3-2.
The Cardinals added a run in the bottom of the seventh on a solo home run by Tague Davis, and that was basically all she wrote. Both teams went three up, three down the rest of the way and Louisville added a 4-2 victory in their win column.
Louisville is a strong baseball program, and most definitely the best team Nebraska has faced this season so far. Nebraska fans that are also College World Series fans are familiar with the Louisville Cardinals as they have made a number of appearances under Head Coach Dan McDonnell, who is in his 20th season leading the boys from Derby City. In fact, they played in one of the semifinals last year at The Chuck.
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The Cornhuskers will be back at it tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. against the Kansas State Wildcats. There were a lot of purple fans piling in after the game but the bet is more Nebraska fans will show up tomorrow.
Notes:
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I bagged on Jeter Worthley last weekend regarding the fact that teams were able to steal second base relatively easy. Lucas Moore swiped on in the first inning, but Worthley evened the score in the third inning, nailing him with a throw overturned on review. Actually, the throw was there in plenty of time. The tag was higher than one would like to see.
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The DJ, or whatever you call the guy responsible for the music in a ballpark, at Globe Life Field was incredible. Good tunes throughout, and the right song at the right time. Aaron and I chuckled when Dylan Carey came to the plate and his walkup song was the 70’s Alice Cooper rocker No More Mister Nice Guy. Usually, media people send walkup songs and other music to these tournaments, so if Carey really did choose this song, my hat is tipped to him. Why? Because he has been too nice of a guy! We actually saw a little emotion out of him today as well.
