“Special” is one of those words in sports that gets use perhaps too often. But Friday night in an elimination game where Nebraska needed to save arms for a potential trio of weekend games ahead, Will Walsh was special.
The redshirt sophomore pitcher tossed a complete game shutout to lead Nebraska to a 4-0 win over Michigan State. That ends the season for the Spartans and sends the Huskers to the league semifinals.
Walsh’s performance was just the 11th complete game shutout in Big Ten Tournament history.
Ben Columbus gave Nebraska a 1-0 lead with his single in the fourth inning. He then added a second RBI in the seventh inning, right before Casey Burnham ripped a 2-run triple down the right field line.
Not showing up in the scoring, despite a solid day, is Max Anderson. The second baseman notched four hits in five at bats while becoming the first player in the nation to reach 100 hits on the season.
Nebraska will face Maryland at 1 p.m. CDT Saturday. A Husker win would force the if necessary game to be played that night with the winner advancing to Sunday’s championship game.