This Week in Husker Baseball

Season Record (18-5, 2-1 Big 12)
National Rankings (20/19/17/20 - as of March 22)
Fri. (April 2) vs. --/--/--/30 Kansas State (19-7, 2-1 Big 12) Tointon Stadium 7 p.m.
Sat. (April 3) vs. Kansas State Tointon Stadium 2 p.m.
Sun. (April 4) vs. Kansas State Tointon Stadium 1 p.m.

Note: All rankings are listed as follows: Collegiate Baseball/Baseball America/Sports Weekly-ESPN Coaches/NCBWA

Pitching Matchups
Fri. - NU (Zach Kroenke, So., LHP, 4-0, 2.56 ERA) vs. KSU (Brett Bagley, Sr., LHP, 4-2, 5.01 ERA)
Sat. - NU (Phil Shirek, Jr., RHP, 4-0, 2.10 ERA) vs. KSU (Carlos Torres, Sr., RHP, 5-0, 3.54 ERA)
Sun. - NU (Justin Pekarek, Sr., LHP, 4-0, 4.55 ERA) vs. KSU (Jim Ripley, Sr., RHP, 3-1, 3.75 ERA)

Media Information
Radio: Pinnacle Sports Network (Fri.-Sun.)
TV: None
Live Stats: Huskers.com

Internet Video Streaming: All three weekend games will be video streamed live on HuskersNside, which is a subscription-based service of the Nebraska Athletic Department. Nearly every 2004 Husker baseball game will be shown live on HuskersNside. For more information on how to subscribe, log on to Huskers.com.

Red-Hot Huskers Travel to Kansas State this Weekend
Nebraska hits the road for the first time in conference play, as the Huskers travel to Kansas State this weekend. The three-game series at Tointon Stadium commences Friday at 7 p.m. with afternoon tilts set for both Saturday (2 p.m.) and Sunday (1 p.m.).

All three games will be carried on the Pinnacle Sports Network, while video-streaming will be available on HuskersNside on a subscription basis. Live stats will also be available on Huskers,com all weekend.

The Huskers closed March on a roll, winning 11 of their last 12 games, capped by a mid-week sweep over Wisconsin-Milwaukee (10-0; 9-0). The Huskers enter the weekend with an 18-5 mark and are ranked between 17th and 20th in this week’s national polls. NU is 2-1 in conference play after taking 2-of-3 from Kansas last weekend.

Kansas State also comes into the weekend with some momentum of its own after taking 2-of-3 at Missouri last weekend. The Wildcats, who only won once on the road in Big 12 play last season, doubled their total during the opening weekend, and now join NU, Texas and Oklahoma atop the Big 12 standings with identical .667 winning percentages. The Wildcats have been tough to beat at home early on, winning 11 of 13 home game entering April. NU dropped 2-of-3 to the Wildcats in their most recent visit to Manhattan in 2002.

Leading Off
• - After a pair of shutouts vs. UW-Milwaukee this week (10-0; 9-0), the Huskers will be looking to post their third consecutive shutout on Friday. The last time that Husker pitchers tossed three consecutive shutouts was 16 years ago, when NU blanked Wayne State (7-0) and Fort Hays State (10-0; 12-0) on April 20-21 of 1988.

• - This weekend’s trip to Kansas marks the first time the Huskers have left the state since mid-March. NU has played its last 11 games inside the state, including 10 at Hawks Field, after opening the season with a 12-game road trip.

• - Nebraska has been nearly flawless in the field, committing three errors over the last 12 games for a .991 fielding percentage. Nebraska’s current .977 fielding percentage is on pace to shatter the school record of .971 set in 1994 and matched in 1995. Nebraska saw its streak of 63.0 innings of errorless ball end on Jake Mullinax’s fifth inning miscue on Sunday against KU. It was NU’s first error since March 17 and ended the Huskers’ longest stretch without an error in over 20 years.

• - The Huskers have been perched in the national polls for the past 75 weeks, dating back to April of 2000. To put that in perspective, the only current Husker to have been on a team that was unranked in their career is fifth-year senior Justin Pekarek, who was redshirting in 2000.

• - Twenty five of Nebraska’s 35 sacrifices have led directly to runs this season, including a perfect 5-for-5 weekend vs. Kansas. Oddly enough, NU did not have a sacrifice bunt in either game against UW-Milwaukee, marking the first time all season that the Huskers failed to record a sacrifice in consecutive games.

• - Nebraska has gotten off to quick starts, scoring at least one run in the first inning of 15 of its first 23 games. In fact, NU is outscoring opponents 33-10 in the opening frame and 87-29 over the first three innings. The Huskers have also been able to close games out, outscoring opponents 56-22 from the seventh inning on.

• - Another key to the Husker attack has been getting the leadoff hitter on base every inning. NU has had its leadoff hitter reach safely 46.5 percent of the time (93-of-200) this season. Jesse Boyer, who has been in the lead-off spot for most of the year, has a team-best .677 percentage in 31 chances.

• - Nebraska’s bullpen has been exceptional over the 10 games, posting a team ERA of 1.83 in 34.1 innings of work. NU has allowed seven runs - all in a 2.1 inning span vs. Kansas last Sunday - and has not allowed a run in nine of its last 10 outings. NU relievers had a string of 21.1 scoreless innings snapped against Kansas, but have rebounded nicely, not allowing a run in the last 11.1 innings of work.

• - Nebraska has scored three or more runs in an inning 25 times in 23 games this season.

Scouting Kansas State
Under first-year Coach Brad Hill, the Wildcats have made great strides in 2004, entering the weekend with a 19-7 overall mark. The Wildcats, who won just 15 games a year ago, have won 16 of their last 19 games, with only losses to No. 10 Wichita State (twice) and Missouri in that span.

Offensively, KSU is led by outfielders Steve Murphy and Josh Dent, who are hitting .384 and .343 respectively. The duo has combined to drive in 51 runs for a lineup that only has three hitters above .300. Like Nebraska, the Wildcats will play small ball, with 27 sacrifices and 39 stolen bases in 50 attempts. On the hill, KSU’s weekend rotation has combined for 12 of the Wildcats’ 19 wins, while Matt Petersen has five of Kansas State’s Big 12 leading 10 saves.

Nebraska holds a 146-96 lead in the series that extends back to 1898, including victories in each of the past four meetings. The Huskers swept KSU last season, but dropped 2-of-3 from the Wildcats in Manhattan the previous season.

Last Time Out
Nebraska tuned up for the weekend series with Kansas State by posting a pair of shutouts over Wisconsin-Milwaukee at Hawks Field (10-0, 9-0). NU pitchers limited a Panther offense that was hitting .332 to just four singles and an .068 average, as UWM was blanked in consecutive games for the first time since 1999.

Tuesday (Nebraska 10, UW-Milwaukee 0) – Justin Pekarek tossed six innings of no-hit ball, as three Husker pitchers combined for a one-hit shutout in a 10-0 win over Wisconsin-Milwaukee Tuesday afternoon at Hawks Field. Pekarek, who improved to 4-0 with the win, struck out a career-high seven Panthers, and allowed only one baserunner in a 67-pitch effort. The senior left-hander retired the last 16 hitters he faced after Matt Alexander reached on a first-inning error. Ben Stanczyk’s two-out, seventh-inning single to right off reliever Tim Schoeninger prevented the first Husker no-hitter since 1993. Schoeninger and Brad Furnish completed the shutout, combining for three innings of relief for NU’s first one-hitter in two years. Chad Steele led the Husker attack, going 2-for-3 with three RBIs, while Braden Keith also had two hits and a pair of RBIs.

Wednesday (NU 9, UWM 0) – Alex Gordon went 2-for-3 with four RBIs, while five Husker pitchers combined for a three-hit shutout, as Nebraska blanked UW-Milwaukee, 9-0, on Wednesday. Gordon drove in four runs to pace the 11-hit Husker attack, while Daniel Bruce went 2-for-3 with a homer and two RBIs, as NU improved to 18-5 on the year. Quinton Robertson earned his first win since Feb. 22, tossing five innings of shutout ball, scattering three hits and striking out four. The right-hander allowed a leadoff single before retiring the next 13 Panthers he faced before four relievers combined for four innings of no-hit ball to preserve the shutout.