No. 19 Nebraska baseball had the go-ahead run on base in the top of the ninth, but No. 21 Oregon held on to win, 7-6, Friday night in Eugene, Ore.
The Cornhuskers trailed by five going to the top of the eighth. But in the eighth, Dylan Carey clubbed a two-run home run to left, cutting the Ducks’ lead to 7-4. A Jett Buck RBI single to left drove in a run to cut the deficit to two. A Rhett Stokes ground out to shortstop cut the Oregon advantage to 7-6, but Nebraska would draw no closer.
Carey put the Huskers in front in the first inning after an RBI single to left. Naulivou Lauaki put the Ducks in the lead with a two-run double to left in the bottom of the fourth. Mac Moyer tied the game at two with a solo homer to left in the top of the fifth. But in the bottom of the fifth, a two-run homer by Drew Smith put Oregon ahead, 4-2. Then in the bottom of the sixth, Brayden Jaska’s two-run homer to left pushed the lead to 6-2. Ryan Cooney followed with a solo homer to left to build the lead to five.
Carey led the NU offense, hitting 3-for-4 with three RBI including a home run. Tucker Timmermann (2-1) took the loss, allowing two earned runs in 1.1 innings pitched out of the bullpen.
The series continues Saturday at 2 p.m. in Eugene, Ore., with pregame coverage beginning at 1:30 p.m. on KLIN.