In a series they couldn’t afford not to sweep, Nebraska left no doubt, sending a stadium-record seven homeruns into the jet stream and winning 18-5 over Northwestern to sweep the three-game set.
NU’s offense has displayed plenty of muscle this season, so Sunday’s power surge was not entirely wind-aided. But it was windy – really windy – and the Husker bats took full advantage. Nebraska (21-11-1 overall, 7-2 Big Ten) hit more homeruns off Wildcat pitching than they had in any game in 24 seasons.
Junior shortstop Brice Matthews and sophomore left fielder Gabe Swansen smashed two dingers apiece. Junior second baseman Max Anderson, sophomore DH Garrett Anglim, and senior first baseman Charlie Fischer each knocked one out of the park, too.
From the mound, sophomore lefty Will Walsh was a steady presence. Making his second straight Sunday start, Walsh earned the win with five scoreless innings, striking out five, walking just one, and only allowing two 5th-inning hits.
Of Nebraska’s 20 hits on the afternoon, 14 went for extra bases, their most since 2010. Anderson and Swansen started the party in the 1st with doubles, Anderson scoring senior right fielder Casey Burnham and Swansen scoring Anderson and Anglim. Matthews then went deep in the 2nd with junior center fielder Cole Evans aboard. Sophomore catcher Josh Caron drove in Fischer in the 3rd. Then Matthews hit his second big fly of the day, making it 7-0 after four innings.
Fischer smacked his long ball in the 5th, followed by Caron’s RBI-single. The Northwestern (5-26 overall, 3-6 Big Ten) finally scored on a solo shot in the top of the 6th. Nebraska responded with five runs in the home half, including three from Anderson’s bomb over the right center field fence. Anglim and Swansen both jacked solo HRs in the 6th, giving NU a 14-1 lead.
After Griffin Everitt drove in fellow senior Efry Cervantes, Swansen left the yard for the second straight inning, this time with two runners on base. Swansen had a career day, finishing 4-for-5 with two doubles, two homeruns, and six RBIs. The four-run 7th ended the Huskers’ scoring at a season-best 18 runs.
Jake Bunz, Brett Sears, Caleb Clark, and Will Rizzo each contributed an inning in relief of Walsh. Northwestern hit another solo HR in the 8th, and a two-out, three-run double in the 9th for the final 18-5 tally.
Both Matthews (.409) and Anderson (.417) completed the weekend over .400. The two Husker stars continued to lead the way at the top of the lineup, collecting three hits apiece on Sunday and seven total hits each in the three wins over the Wildcats.
Nebraska will host Creighton in the second game of their season series on Tuesday. The in-state matchup is set for a 7:00pm first pitch.