Darin Erstad to Throw Out Honorary First Pitch in Red/White Finale

Lincoln – Freshman Johnny Dorn (Grand Island, Neb.) tossed a three-hit shutout, while Alex Gordon (Lincoln, Neb.) and Andy Gerch (Lincoln, Neb.) combined to go 5-for-5, as the Red team posted an 8-0 victory during the Red/White series Thursday afternoon at Hawks Field.

Dorn kept the White squad off balance all afternoon, fanning five and not allowing a walk in hurling a complete-game shutout. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound right-hander retired the first 11 hitters in order and didn’t allow a runner into scoring position.

While Dorn kept the White team at bay, Gordon and Gerch led a 15-hit attack, as the Red squad took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series heading into Friday’s 2:15 p.m. doubleheader. The series was moved up a day because of expected cold weather Saturday morning. Former Husker All-American and two-time American League All-Star Darin Erstad will throw out the honorary first pitch prior to Friday’s doubleheader.

Gerch, who was 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, opened the second with a single and came home two batters later on an RBI single by Daniel Bruce (Omaha, Neb.). Gordon, who went 2-for-2 with a pair of walks, made it 2-0 one inning later with a towering solo homer that cleared the 403-foot sign in left center.

The Reds then put the game out of reach in the fifth, turning a pair of fielding errors into five unearned runs, including a two-run double by junior college transfer Brandon Buckman (Monument, Colo.) and RBI singles by Gerch and freshman Ryan Wehrle (Papillion, Neb.), as the Red team sent 10 men to the plate in the inning.

Left-hander Jon Klausing suffered the loss for the White squad, allowing seven runs – two earned – on 12 hits in five innings of work.

Freshman Bryce Nimmo (Cheyenne, Wyo.), who went 2-for-3 with a triple, accounted for the Red team’s final run in the sixth, driving in Jeff Christy (Lincoln, Neb.), who reached on a two-out double off White reliever Matt Wagner.

Joe Simokaitis (St. Louis, Mo.), Curtis Ledbetter (Lawrence, Kan.) and Jake Opitz (Littleton, Colo.) had one hit apiece to account for the White squad’s offensive production.

The series, along with fall drills, will conclude Friday afternoon with a double-header featuring a pair of five-inning games beginning at 2:15 p.m.