NU Takes Four-Game Winning Streak to Lawrence

The 19th-ranked Nebraska softball team, fresh off a doubleheader sweep of No. 17 Oklahoma on Saturday, returns to the diamond on Tuesday when the Huskers travel to Lawrence, Kan., for a 3 p.m. contest with the Kansas Jayhawks.

Nebraska and Kansas have already met once this season, with the Jayhawks earning a 4-0 non-conference win over the Huskers at the Best Western Airport Festival in Tulsa, Okla., on March 4.

NU takes a four-game winning streak into Tuesday's game after posting a perfect 4-0 record last week. The Huskers traveled to Omaha and defeated in-state rival Creighton, 3-1, on Tuesday and topped Northern Iowa, 4-2, on Thursday at Bowlin Stadium.

The highlight of the week, however, was a two-game sweep of 17th-ranked Oklahoma on Saturday by a combined score of 12-1, including a 9-1 run-rule victory in the series opener.

Nebraska remains on the road this weekend, as NU travels to Stillwater, Okla., for a two-game series with the Oklahoma State Cowgirls. The three-game schedule this week comes before Nebraska opens a five-day, six-game homestand that begins on Tuesday, Aprill 11 against South Dakota State. The Huskers will then face the Jackrabbits in a doubleheader on Wednesday beginning at 2 p.m., a change from the original schedule that had NU and SDSU playing a lone game on Wednesday.

Another change in the schedule has added a single game with Drake on Thursday, April 13 at 7 p.m. Following that contest, NU will host 21st-ranked Baylor on Friday, April 14 and Saturday, April 15.

Fans can follow the Huskers' busy schedule next week in a variety of ways. Wednesday's first game with South Dakota State will air live on the Pinnacle Sports Network (1400 AM in Lincoln) and Friday's game will be televised by NET-2 and will air nationally on a tape-delayed basis on CSTV.

NU Posts Perfect 4-0 Mark Last Week
Following its first consecutive losses of the season, Nebraska rebounded last week with a perfect 4-0 record, including a two-game sweep of 17th-ranked Oklahoma over the weekend.

The Huskers opened the week with a 3-1 victory at Creighton on Tuesday. Nebraska recorded just one hit in the win, but plated a single run in three different innings. The Huskers drew five walks, had two hit batters and made the most of four wild pitches, as two directly resulted in runs for NU.

Freshman right-hander Molly Hill tossed a complete-game three-hitter in the circle to earn her 12th victory of the season. She also struck out 10 Bluejays, the fourth double-digit strikeout performance of her rookie campaign.

The Huskers beat the weather and returned to Bowlin Stadium two days later to host Northern Iowa, a team NU had already beaten 11-2 in five innings earlier this season.

Nebraska fell behind 1-0 after a half inning of play, but quickly responded with three runs in the bottom of the first, highlighted by a two-out, two-run single from senior KoKo Tacha.

Northern Iowa closed the gap to 3-2 with another run in the second inning and the game remained a one-run contest until junior Carmen Kier belted her fourth home run of the season with one out in the bottom of the fourth to account for the final margin of victory.

Junior right-hander Ashley DeBuhr earned the victory in relief of Hill, tossing four shutout innings and allowing just two hits while striking out six.

While Nebraska's offense struggled somewhat in the mid-week victories, it came alive on the weekend in the wins over Oklahoma.

In the first game, three different Huskers homered as NU routed the Sooners, 9-1, in a six-inning game. Nebraska then hit two home runs in the second game to post a 3-0 victory.

Two constants from game one to game two were first-inning offensive production and brilliant pitching.

Nebraska scored four runs in the first inning of game one and back-to-back homers from freshman Crystal Carwile and senior Trisha Tannahill spotted NU a 3-0 lead in the first inning of the second game.

Perhaps even more impressive than the Huskers' offensive outburst, was the performance of NU's pitchers. DeBuhr and Hill combined to allow just one run on seven hits. Oklahoma entered the weekend with a league-high .325 average, .025 better than the second-place Huskers.

The Sooners were also averaging more than six runs per game, and had scored 229 runs on the season, 59 more than the second-highest total among Big 12 schools.

DeBuhr set the tone with a complete-game victory in the opener. She allowed just one run on four hits while striking out 11. Hill then tossed 4.1 shutout innings to open game two, before DeBuhr earned the save, tossing 2.2 innings of hitless relief with four strikeouts.

Scouting Kansas (18-17, 1-3 Big 12)
Kansas is 18-17 overall and 1-3 in the Big 12 Conference after splitting a doubleheader with Oklahoma State on Saturday. The Jayhawks were swept at 15th-ranked Texas A&M to open league play, although the Aggies won both games by just one run in their final at bat.

KU has played one of the toughest schedules in the nation, as 13 of its 35 games have come against top-25 foes. The Jayhawaks are just 2-11 against ranked opponents, although one of those wins came against the Huskers.

Kansas boasts the most powerful lineup in the league. The Jayhawks have homered a league-high 38 times, while surrendering just eight long balls. Serena Settlemier leads the Big 12 and ranks among the national leaders with a whopping 15 home runs. KU also boasts the second-best home run hitter in the league in Destiny Frankenstein, who has nine homers.

Settlemier also leads the team with a .343 average, 42 RBIs and an .882 slugging percentage. Frankenstein ranks second with a .326 average.

In the circle, Settlemier has tossed three shutouts en route to posting a 1.39 ERA and an 11-4 record that includes a shutout victory over Nebraska. Kassie Humphreys is 7-11 with a 1.60 ERA, but is holding opposing hitters to a meager .163 average and has struck out a team-high 121 batters in 109.1 innings.

Last Time We Met
Nebraska and Kansas have already met once this season, with the Jayhawks earning a 4-0 victory over the Huskers on March 4 at the Best Western Airport Festival in Tulsa, Okla.

In that meeting, freshman right-hander Molly Hill suffered the first loss of her career. The loss also stands as the only loss of her career, as Hill is 13-1 in her rookie season. Hill allowed four runs (three earned) on five hits in a complete-game effort that included eight strikeouts.

Offensively, Serena Settlemier held NU to a then-season-low three hits. Senior Jessica Yoachim (1-for-3) and freshman Brittany Pascale (2-for-3) were the only Huskers to record a hit in the loss. Pascale earned the start at catcher in place of junior Jamie Waldecker, the normal starting catcher, who missed the game due to an illness.

Nebraska and Kansas split a pair of games last season, with the Huskers winning in Lawrence and the Jayhawks winning in Lincoln. In fact, the road team has won the last five meetings between the schools.

Kansas leads the all-time series, 50-44, including an 18-13 mark in Lawrence. The Jayhawks have won three of the last four meetings and KU is one of only three Big 12 schools to boast a winning all-time record against Nebraska.

Quick Hits....

• NU recorded 20 wins in only 24 games to become the fastest team in school history to record 20 wins
• Nebraska is 20-1 when out-hitting the opponent
• Nebraska is averaging more than five runs per game
• NU is 23-2 when holding the opponent to two runs or less
• Five Huskers are hitting .300 or better as NU is hitting .299 as a team
• Six Huskers have homered this season - six players hit a home run the entire 2005 campaign
• Nebraska has 25 home runs as a team, six more than the entire 2005 total (19) over 59 games
• Nebraska is 54-of-59 in stolen base attempts, including a perfect 3-of-3 in Saturday's DH sweep
• Lizzy Aumua tied an NU single-game record with a 5-for-5 effort against Illinois
• Devin Porter has produced both a 5-RBI and 6-RBI game this season
• Jamie Waldecker produced a career-high 6 RBIs vs. Illinois, including her first career grand slam
• Crystal Carwile also has a 5-RBI game this season
• KoKo Tacha has already set single-season career highs in hits, doubles, triples, home runs and RBIs
• Right-hander Ashley DeBuhr has thrown four shutouts in her last six starts
• In those shutouts, DeBuhr has tossed a pair of one-hitters, a two-hitter and a three-hitter
• Right-hander Molly Hill is 13-1 with a 1.35 ERA in her Husker career
• Nebraska has already bettered its save total (2) from the entire 2005 season
• NU has already hit twice as many triples in 2006 (6) than it did in the entire 2005 season (3)

Home Run Barrage
Nebraska hit five home runs in a doubleheader sweep of 17th-ranked Oklahoma on Saturday. The Huskers hit three dingers in a 9-1 run-rule victory in game one and added back-to-back homers in the first inning of the second game.

The Huskers have now hit a home run in three straight games and have totaled six homers over that stretch. Before the current long ball barrage, Nebraska had hit just three home runs over its previous 13 games.

Yoachim Nears Sacrifice Record
Senior Jessica Yoachim recorded her ninth sacrifice of the season in game one of the Huskers' doubleheader sweep of 17th-ranked Oklahoma on Saturday. She now has 39 in her career, which is tied for third on the NU career chart. She needs just two more sacrifices to tie Gloria Von Rentzell's all-time school mark of 41.

If she reaches the mark, it would be the second school record for Yoachim. A two-time first-team All-Big 12 selection, Yoachim set a school record with five hits in a single game last season, a feat that was matched by senior Lizzy Aumua this season.

Home Sweet Home
Nebraska is a perfect 9-0 at home this season, the best home start in the five-year history of Bowlin Stadium. The previous best start was 6-0 by the 2002 squad in the first year of the new stadium. In addition to the stellar start, the Huskers' nine-game home winning streak is also the longest in the history of Bowlin Stadium.

The nine-game home winning streak is also the second-longest since the 2000 season. In 2000, Nebraska went a perfect 20-0 in the second-to-last year of the Nebraska Softball Complex.

Powerful Performances
Juniors Carmen Kier (four home runs) and Devin Porter (five home runs) have each hit more home runs this season than their career total entering the year. Through 30 games this season, the pair have combined to hit nine home runs after combining to hit just three home runs in their first two seasons.

Kier homered last Thursday against Northern Iowa and she has now doubled her career total entering this season. Kier belted two home runs in her redshirt freshman season of 2004 and did not hit a homer last season.

Porter, who hit a solo homer against 17th-ranked Oklahoma on Saturday, has five home runs this season after hitting her first career home run at the end of last season.

Timely Hitting
Nebraska has been prone to producing two-out RBIs this season. In their last game, all three of the Huskers' runs in a 3-0 victory over No. 17 Oklahoma came with two outs. This season, NU has produced 135 RBIs and 53 of those have come with two outs (39 percent). Eight players have produced at least two two-out RBIs this season, while freshman Crystal Carwile leads the team with 12 two-out RBIs.

What a Relief
Junior right-hander Ashley DeBuhr made her third relief appearance of the season and earned her first relief win of the year in Nebraska's 4-2 win over Northern Iowa last Thursday. She then earned a save by tossing 2.2 innings of no-hit relief in the Huskers' 3-0 series-clinching victory over No. 17 Oklahoma on Saturday. In four relief appearances this season, DeBuhr is 1-1 with two saves.

In her career, DeBuhr has made 14 relief appearances. In those relief appearances, DeBuhr is 4-2 with three saves. Prior to Thursday's relief victory, DeBuhr's last win in relief came at Wichita State on March 13, 2005, when she pitched five shutout innings. DeBuhr's save against No. 17 Oklahoma on Saturday was her second of the season, doubling her career total.

The Winner's Circle
Junior right-hander Ashley DeBuhr earned her 10th and 11th victories of the season last week. After defeating Northern Iowa last Thursday, DeBuhr joined freshman right-hander Molly Hill (13-1) in double-digit win totals. Both have already posted double-digit win totals in only the first 30 games. Prior to this season, a Nebraska team had not had two 10-game winners on the same squad since Peaches James (23) and Summer Tobias (15) in 2003.

Chasing .400
Seniors Lizzy Aumua and Jessica Yoachim - the 1-2 hitters in the Husker order - are both chasing a mark that hasn't been reached at Nebraska in eight years. The mark is a .400 season batting average and both Aumua (.437) and Yoachim (.404) have a chance to reach it this season.

Three-time All-American Ali Viola was the last Husker to hit .400 in a season. Viola hit .400 or better three times in her career, including a .424 mark in 1998, which is the last time a Husker hit .400 or better. All-American Anne Steffan chased the .400 plateau last season, finishing with a .388 average, the sixth-best single-season mark in school history and the highest average since Viola's .424 average in 1998.

Nebraska is also chasing a team batting average of .300 for only the third time in program history and the first time since the 1996 squad hit .303.

NU currently boasts a .299 team average. Nebraska had been at or above the .300 mark all season until the second game of Saturday's doubleheader with No. 17 Oklahoma.

Scoring Clip
A 3-0 win over Florida A&M on March 11 gave the Huskers 100 runs scored in 17 games, making this year's team the fastest squad in school history to score 100 runs. A 9-1 run-rule victory over No. 17 Oklahoma in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader gave NU 150 runs scored in only 29 games.

It took NU just seven games to total 50 runs as the 2006 Huskers also tied the school record for the fewest number of games before reaching the 50-run plateau.

This season marks only the fourth year in school history that NU scored 100 runs in fewer than 20 games. It also marks only the second time in school history that Nebraska has scored 150 runs in fewer than 30 games.

Fastest Start in School History
The Huskers owned a 20-4 record through the first 24 games of the 2006 season. That record marked the best start in school history, as it took the team only 24 games to record 20 victories. The previous record was 25 games by the 2002 squad that finished fifth at the WCWS.

Currently, NU's 24-6 record is the second-best 30-game record in school history. The 2002 squad was 25-5 after the first 30 games and was in the middle of school-record 23-game winning streak.

Starting Strong
Nebraska has shown a penchant for taking command of its games in the early innings this season. The Huskers have scored in the first inning in 17 of their 30 games (53 percent), including each of the last four. NU is 15-2 this season when plating a run in the first frame. Last week, Nebraska scored a single run in the first inning of both mid-week games and scored four first-inning runs in game one against Oklahoma and three more in the first inning of game two.

In addition to the first-inning success, Nebraska has dominated its opponents in the first four innings, as the Huskers have outscored their opponents 122-23 on the year. In innings five, six, seven and eight (NU has played one extra-inning game this season), however, Nebraska has only outscored its opponent by a 35-29 margin.

Husker Power
After hitting five home runs in two games against 17th-ranked Oklahoma in a doubleheader on Saturday, Nebraska's season home run total stands at 25 home runs in 30 games, eclipsing the entire 2005 season total (19 homers in 59 games) in nearly half as many games.

Freshman Crystal Carwile leads the way with eight home runs, including two against the Sooners. She also has a two-home run game, becoming the first Husker since Peaches James in 2004 to record a multi-homer game. Junior Devin Porter ranks second with a career-high five home runs, while fellow juniors Carmen Kier and Jamie Waldecker each have four homers. Senior Trisha Tannahill has three homers and fellow senior KoKo Tacha has also added one roundtripper.

NU had 12 home runs through seven games to open 2006, after taking 32 games in 2004 and 33 games in 2005 to reach the mark. The Huskers enjoy a 25-to-10 advantage in home runs over their opponents. After the first weekend, NU enjoyed a 6-to-5 advantage, marking the first time since April 18, 2004, that Nebraska had more home runs than its opponents at any point during the season.

Nebraska homered in seven straight games to open the season, the longest stretch since NU homered in 10 consecutive games March 10 through March 17, 2002. The Huskers also have produced six multi-home run games in 2006, after posting just one in 2005 and three in 2004.

Strikeouts Way Down
Nebraska has seen a dramatic decline in its offensive strikeout numbers this season, a product of hard work and increased emphasis on discipline at the plate.

Nebraska hitters have struck out 138 times through the first 30 games. In contrast, NU had struck out 172 times through the first 30 games of the 2005 season, when the Huskers finished with 364 strikeouts in 59 games. So far this year, Nebraska has cut its strikeout total by more than one strikeout per game.

The Huskers' 138 strikeouts are the lowest in the Big 12 Conference. NU is averaging just 4.60 strikeouts per game. The only other league school average less than five strikeouts per game is defending regular-season champion Texas A&M (4.89).

NU vs. Ranked Teams
Nebraska is 3-4 against ranked teams this season after sweeping 17th-ranked Oklahoma over the weekend. Although the Huskers are sub-.500 against ranked teams, four of the seven games have come against top-10 foes and five of the seven games have been on the road or at a neutral site.

NU opened the season with a 7-3 loss to then-No. 7 Stanford. The Huskers quickly rebounded with an 8-2 victory over then-No. 15 Oregon State immediately following the loss to the Cardinal.

Stanford has since moved into the top five of the poll with a 24-4 record, while Oregon State has moved up to seventh. The Beavers won 28 straight games after losing to the Huskers, before falling to No. 9 Arizona State last weekend. OSU is currently 28-3 on the season.

NU did not face another ranked opponent after opening day until a three-run home run in lifted then-No. 25 North Carolina to a 3-1 come-from-behind victory over the Huskers on March 10.

Nebraska lost a pair of close games to then-No. 3 and currently top-ranked Texas to open Big 12 play the weekend of March 25. The Huskers' first four league games have come against ranked teams.

Program Records 1,000th Victory
Husker softball became the first women's sport at the University of Nebraska to reach the 1,000-win plateau with a 1-0 victory over Kent State on March 12 at the Florida State Invitational.

Nebraska became the fifth Big 12 school to reach the milestone. Kansas was the fourth league school to win 1,000 games during the 2005 season. NU narrowly became the fifth school as Missouri, sitting on 999 all-time victories, suffered a loss on the same day Nebraska recorded the mark. The Tigers have since reached the plateau to become the sixth league school to reach the milestone.

The victory was even more special to NU Head Coach Rhonda Revelle and Associate Head Coach Lori Sippel. Both coaches also played at Nebraska and together they have combined to be a part of 840 of NU's 1,008 victories (83 percent).

Monumental Weekend
The weekend of March 10-12 proved to be a monumental three days for the 2006 Nebraska softball team and the history of the Husker program.

With a 3-0 win over Florida A&M March 10, the 2006 squad became the fastest team to score 100 runs in the 31-year history of NU softball.

In the final game of the tournament on March 12, the Huskers captured the consolation championship of the Gold Bracket with a 1-0 victory over Kent State. That win marked the 1,000 all-time victory in program history, making softball the first women's sport at Nebraska to reach the 1,000-win plateau.

The victory also gave the 2006 Huskers a 16-4 record after 20 games, tying the 2002 squad for the best 20-game start in the history of Nebraska softball.

In the Zone
Nebraska pitchers dominated the Northern Colorado lineup in the Huskers' doubleheader sweep on March 14. Junior right-hander Ashley DeBuhr tossed a one-hit shutout and struck out 13 in a five-inning win in the opener and freshman right-hander Molly Hill struck out 17 while allowing just one run in the nightcap.

In 12 innings, DeBuhr and Hill posted 30 strikeouts, an average of 2.5 strikeouts per inning. Thirty-six outs were recorded in the two games, with 30 of those outs coming via the strikeout (83 percent).

Big Innings
Nebraska, which has been scoring runs at a record pace, has also been prone to producing big innings this season. The Huskers have scored in 72 innings this season and have been shutout just twice through the first 30 games of the season.

In addition to the overall totals, Nebraska has scored three or more runs in 24 different innings. When the Huskers have scored a run in an inning, they have added at least two more runs in the frame in 33 percent of those innings. Even more impressive is the fact that NU has scored five or more runs in an inning on seven occasions and seven or more runs a whopping four times. In 2005, Nebraska produced just one inning of seven or more runs.

Stolen Bases
Nebraska was a perfect 8-of-8 in stolen bases in four games last week. NU has now stolen 13 straight bases without being thrown out. The Huskers had stolen 22 consecutive bases at one point this season and Nebraska has been successfuly on 29 of its last 30 stolen base attempts.

On the season, NU has been successful on 54-of-59 attempts (92 percent). In comparison, opponents have stolen just 11 bases in 19 tries (58 percent).

At the current rate, this year's team has an outside chance to become just the fifth squad in school history to record 100 stolen bases in a season. Last year, the Huskers - who were led by All-American Anne Steffan's single-season school-record 32 stolen bases - tallied 91 stolen bases in 108 attempts (.843). The school record is 128 steals set by the 2002 Huskers.

Carwile Climbing Freshman HR Chart
Freshman Crystal Carwile's three home runs in the first five games of the season were the most home runs by a Husker freshman since Nicole Trimboli hit eight in the entire 2001 campaign. Carwile has since added five more homers - including two against Oklahoma last Saturday - to give her eight on the season and tie Trimboli for the third-highest freshman total in school history. The school freshman record is 13 by Ali Viola in 1995.

Carwile's eight roundtrippers would have led the 2005 NU squad and her total eclipses the home run total of all freshmen from the 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 seasons combined by two.

Aumua Records 100th Hit
Senior Lizzy Aumua, in her second year at Nebraska after transfering from Mt. San Antonio Junior College, collected her 100th hit with an infield single in the bottom of the third inning in the first game of a March 14 doubleheader with Northern Colorado.

It took Aumua just 80 games and 239 at bats to reach the milestone. Aumua is the second-fastest player to reach the milestone in school history. Ali Viola (1995 to 1998) was the fastest.

Aumua joins fellow seniors Jessica Yoachim (155) and Trisha Tannahill (153) as current Huskers with 100 or more career hits. Yoachim and Tannahill each recorded their 150th career hits in the past two games.

Tacha Off to Career-Best Start
Senior KoKo Tacha is having a career year in her final season as a Husker. Tacha has already surpassed some career highs and is approaching her single-season career highs in nearly every offensive category.

Tacha is hitting .308 in a career-high 25 starts this season. She has hit four doubles and one triple and produced 20 hits and 16 RBIs, all of which are new career bests. She also boasts one home run, which ties her single-season career best. Tacha has also stolen two bases while her career high for a season is three and she is just two walks shy of tying her career high. Tacha's .300 average and .446 slugging percentage would also be career bests, while her .357 on-base percentage is just shy of her career high.

DeBuhr in Control
Junior right-hander Ashley DeBuhr has been in control in the circle this season. She has shown great command of the strike zone, registering 144 strikeouts against just 19 walks to post a strikeout-to-walk ratio of nearly 8-to-1.

Triple Your Pleasure
Nebraska hit two triples in the fourth inning in the first game of a doubleheader against Northern Colorado on March 14 to push its season total to six triples. In 2005, the Huskers produced a total of three triples in 59 games.