Huskers Head to Kentucky This Weekend

The Nebraska softball team ventures into the Bluegrass State for the first time in the 33-year history of the program this weekend, as the Huskers travel to Louisville, Ky., for a revised Cardinal Classic.

Originally scheduled as a four-team, round-robin format tournament, the schedule has been altered and will feature only Nebraska and Mississippi, along with host Louisville. Northern Illinois was also scheduled to compete, but the Huskies will instead stay home as part of a campus-wide "Week of Healing" to help the university community deal with the tragic shooting that claimed the lives of five people on Feb. 14.

Forecasted bad weather also forced the cancellation of Friday’s games, as the revamped schedule has Nebraska playing both Louisville and Ole Miss on both Saturday and Sunday for a total of four games on the weekend. Live stats will be available for all games this weekend, while live, pay video will be available when the Huskers play Louisville through uoflsports.com.

NU hopes its first trip to Kentucky brings better results than last weekend, when the Huskers finished with a 1-4 record. Despite the record, a young and injured Nebraska squad was able to take some positives from a grueling schedule that included two games against teams ranked in the top six of the USA Today/NFCA Coaches poll.

Nebraska opened the tournament with a 6-1 loss to traditional power Cal, although the Huskers were down just 2-1 before the Bears pulled away late. Nebraska then used three early runs and a clutch pinch-hit, two-run single from junior Amanda Duran to post a 5-3 victory over Idaho State. Freshman right-hander Tori Tyson earned the victory in her first career start, while sophomore right-hander Alex Hupp picked up her first career save.

The next day would prove more difficult for the Huskers, as they were run-ruled for the first time in 235 games in a 9-0 loss at fifth-ranked Arizona State. Nebraska then fell behind early in a 7-3 loss to Memphis before rebounding with a terrific effort against unbeaten and sixth-ranked Northwestern on Sunday.

Against the Wildcats, Tyson had a solid outing, allowing just three earned runs against a team that entered the game averaging 10 runs per game. The Husker offense also began to find its stride, as juniors Crystal Carwile and Haley Long hit a pair of two-run homers in the seventh inning to erase a 4-2 deficit and put Nebraska in front 6-4.

Northwestern immediately rallied for four runs in the bottom of the sixth to earn an 8-6 victory, but NU’s effort in that contest showed glimpses of the Huskers’ potential.

Nebraska was without two players last weekend, while junior Brittany Pascale saw limited duty while continuing to recover from offseason shoulder surgery. The Huskers get ace right-hander Molly Hill back in a limited capacity this weekend and sophomore infielder Whitney Barrett is nearing her return as well.

Scouting the Mississippi Rebels
Mississippi is 6-5 this season after dropping a 3-2 extra-inning decision to Hofstra on Monday to complete a 1-4 showing last weekend at the South Florida Best Western Tournament. The Rebels had won five of their first six games before struggling last weekend.

Ole Miss has made a habit out of dominating the early innings this season. Over the first four innings, the Rebels have outscored their opponents 62-19, but Ole Miss has been outscored 10-5 over the final four innings, including being outscored 2-0 in extra innings. Overall, Mississippi is winning by an average of more than three runs per game, although those numbers are inflated by a doubleheader sweep of Alcorn State, when the Rebels won by a combined score of 39-3.

Offensively, Ole Miss is hitting .285 as team, led by Alise Doubt who is hitting .444 with a team-high .565 on-base percentage and four stolen bases. Lauren Rowe is the primary power hitter, as she leads the team with two home runs, nine RBIs and a .500 slugging percentage.

In the circle, three Rebels have combined for a solid 1.82 staff ERA. Lindsey Perry has been especially good, posting a 2-1 record with a 0.72 ERA. In 29.0 innings of work, Perry has allowed only seven runs (three earned) while striking out 31 and holding opposing hitters to a .194 average. Tara Willitt has also fared well, despite a 2-3 record. Willitt boasts a 1.31 ERA and has only allowed 32 batters to reach safely in 26.2 innings. Becky Nye (2-1, 4.85 ERA in 17.1 innings) rounds out the Ole Miss staff.

This weekend’s games will mark the first-ever meeting between Nebraska and Mississippi.

Scouting the Louisville Cardinals
Louisville opens its home schedule this weekend by hosting the Cardinal Classic. Louisville is 4-4 on the season after losing three of four games in Alabama last weekend, including a pair of setbacks to North Florida. The Cardinals went 14-8 at home last season and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Louisville has been balanced so far this season, with solid pitching and a solid offense. The Cardinals are averaging 3.5 runs per game, while allowing just under three runs per contest. Melissa Roth (.440) and Chelsea Bemis (.423) are both hitting above .400, while U of L is batting .252 as a team. Kristi Cunningham has been the top power threat, as she has hit two of Louisville’s four home runs while hitting .310.

In the circle, Kristen Wadwell and Kassie Stanfill have split the majority of the innings. Wadwell (2-2) leads the team with a 1.20 ERA in 23.1 innings pitched. Only four of the eight runs she has allowed have been earned and she has tossed one shutout while combining with Stanfill on another. Stanfill (1-1) boasts a 2.70 ERA. In 23.1 innings, Stanfill has allowed nine runs (all earned) while striking out 29.

Nebraska and Louisville have met only two times, as the series is tied 1-1. The Huskers won a 2-0 decision in the last meeting in 2000, while Louisville took a 3-0 victory in the first meeting just three days earlier.

Quick Hitters
The information below provides a quick glimpse of a few statistics and brief notes of interest to keep in mind as Nebraska travels to Louisville this weekend for the Cardinal Classic:

• Nebraska is 110-62 (.640) all-time in the month of February, including a 7-5 mark last season and a 101-59 (.631) record under Head Coach Rhonda Revelle. Revelle has posted a winning month of February 11 times in 14 seasons, including six straight years dating back to 2001. Prior to Revelle’s arrival, the Huskers had played only 12 all-time games in the month (9-3 record) and in Revelle’s first season in 1993, NU did not play a single game in February.
• Nebraska is unfamiliar with the Bluegrass state, as NU will be playing its first-ever games in the state of Kentucky this weekend, while the Huskers have never had a letterwinner from the state. In addition to the new surroundings, Nebraska will be facing Mississippi for the first time in school history.
• The Huskers hit two home runs last Sunday against then-No. 6 Northwestern and have two homers through the first five games this season after homering just twice through the first 15 games of 2007.
• Nebraska is 258-4 since 2000 when leading after six innings of play. The Huskers had won 106 consecutive games when taking a lead into the seventh inning before losing a 9-6 lead at No. 4 Oklahoma last April.
• Crystal Carwile is Nebraska’s active leader in career doubles (24), triples (1), home runs (16) and RBIs (73). In fact, Carwile’s career total is higher than the combined total of every other Husker in all four categories.

Hill Potentially Ready For Limited Duty
Junior right-hander Molly Hill, the reigning Big 12 ERA champion, is expected to be available on a limited basis this weekend after missing all five of Nebraska’s games at last weekend’s Kajikawa Classic. If Hill is available, she is expected to only pitch in one game. Hill continues to recover from knee surgery she underwent in the final week of January. Hill hopes to nearly be back to full strength in time for the NFCA Leadoff Classic next weekend.

Slow Start a Good Sign?
Nebraska finished with just a 1-4 record last weekend, marking the first time since 2004 that the Huskers finished their first weekend of competition with a losing record. Since the Big 12 Conference was formed in 1996, NU has finished with a .500 or worse record in its first weekend out five times, including this season.

Each of the four previous seasons, Nebraska rebounded from the slow start and went on to a successful season. In 2004, the Huskers opened 2-3 before sweeping the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles while falling just short of the Women’s College World Series. In 2001, Nebraska began 2-2 before posting a 51-15 record and winning the regular-season Big 12 championship.

Year

Opening Weekend

Final Record

   Big 12 Record (Finish)

2008

1-4

???

   ???

2004

2-3

45-17

   14-3 (1st)

2001

2-2

51-15

   16-2 (1st)

2000

1-5

52-21

   15-2 (2nd)

1997

1-5

29-24

   10-6 (4th)

Run-Rule String Snapped
When Nebraska suffered a 9-1 five-inning loss at No. 5 Arizona State last Saturday, it marked the first time since the opening game of the 2004 season that Nebraska had been handed a run-rule defeat. The Huskers went 235 games before being run-ruled, easily the longest active streak in the Big 12 Conference and the third-longest streak among all BCS programs. With NU’s loss, only nine BCS programs have streaks dating back to before 2007.

Revelle Nears 600th Wins
Head Coach Rhonda Revelle boasts a career record of 599-315, including a 591-299 mark at Nebraska. Already the first women’s coach of any sport in school history with 500 career wins, Revelle ranks third all-time among all coaches in NU history with her 591 wins at Nebraska.

Winning Debuts
Freshman right-hander Tori Tyson earned a victory in her first career start against Idaho State last Friday. With the win, Tyson became the fourth straight Husker pitcher to be victorious in her first career decision, joining teammates Molly Hill and Alex Hupp, along with former Husker Jordan Keen.

Overall, six of Nebraska’s last seven pitchers won their first career decision (and start), with the lone exception being three-time All-Big 12 hurler Ashley DeBuhr, who surrendered four late runs in a 6-4 loss to Notre Dame in 2004. Prior to DeBuhr, the last Husker to lose her first career decision (and start) was Penny Cope in 2000, although Cope was a junior college transfer. The last freshman to lose her first career decision prior to DeBuhr was Lori Tschannen in 1998.

Long Goes Long
Junior Haley Long hit her first career home run in last Sunday’s 8-6 loss to then-No. 6 Northwestern. Long’s homer, an opposite field shot, broke a 4-4 tie and gave Nebraska a temporary 6-4 lead before the Wildcats rallied with four runs in their half of the inning.

Not only was it Long’s first career home run at Nebraska, it was the first home run she has ever hit at any level. The homer came in her 158th career at bat at Nebraska.

Carwile Finishes on Hot Streak
Junior Crystal Carwile struggled during the opening part of last weekend, beginning her season just 1-of-10 with four strikeouts. That all began to change with her final at bat against Memphis when she recorded an RBI single. Shen then followed that up with a 2-for-3 day with a home run and a season-high three RBIs against No. 6 Northwestern. In her final four at bats of the weekend, Carwile went 3-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs.

Rutherford Enjoys Solid Weekend
Junior Darcy Rutherford hit .333 last weekend to lead all Nebraska hitters. She tied her career high with three hits against Idaho State and also drew a walk against the Bengals to reach base a career-best four times. Rutherford also provided some clutch hits, recording a pair of RBI singles. Rutherford’s two RBIs in her 15 at bats last weekend nearly matched her career total of three RBIs in 70 at bats entering the weekend.

Looking for Better Starts
Nebraska fell behind in the first inning in three of its losses last weekend, while the opponent scored first in all four setbacks. Not surprisingly, in the Huskers’ lone win, Nebraska scored first and had a three-run lead after an inning and a half.

Overall, Nebraska was outscored 6-2 in the first inning last weekend and 18-4 over the first four innings.

Newcomers Complement Veterans While Recording Career Firsts
All eight Nebraska newcomers saw action last weekend, while seven earned at least one start. In fact, the Huskers started at least four newcomers in all five games last weekend, while starting six in two contests. Along the way, the rookies set a flurry of career firsts.

All seven newcomers who received an at bat not only recorded their first career hit, but did so on the first day of the season, highlighted by freshman Heidi Foland, who singled in her first career at bats. Fellow freshman Ashley Guile recorded the Huskers’ first hit, extra base hit and RBI of the season. Freshman Tori Tyson also contributed in the circle, making three starts and picking up NU’s lone victory last weekend.

Walk This Way
Nebraska drew 18 walks in five games last weekend, an average of nearly four per game. The Huskers posted two games with five or more walks, including a season-high eight against sixth-ranked Northwestern. The eight walks tied for the most by a Nebraska team since the Huskers drew nine walk against Cal State Fullerton on March 19, 2005.

The freshmen paved the way, led by a team-high four walks from Julie Brechtel, three from Ashley Guile and two from Heidi Foland. Overall, four freshmen accounted for 10 walks last weekend after the three 2007 freshmen walked just 20 times all season.

Freshmen First
The 2008 freshman class is already making a name for itself, as the seven-player class is the largest group of freshmen ever assembled under Head Coach Rhonda Revelle. Not only are they strong in numbers, the freshmen also figure to have a strong presence in the lineup right from the season’s first pitch.

Nebraska’s lineup has featured at least three freshmen starters in every game this season. Julie Brechtel, Ashley Guile and Heidi Foland have each started all five games, while Abby Hughes and Tori Tyson have earned three starts and Kelli Linke has made two starts. Twice already this season, Nebraska has penciled six freshmen into the starting lineup.

Three freshmen (Guile, Brechtel and Foland) were in the opening-day lineup this season, one year after all three members of NU’s 2007 freshman class earned a start in the season-opener against No. 24 Auburn. Prior to last season, Nebraska had not started more than two freshmen in a season opener since 2002.

Carwile Records 100th Career Hit
Junior Crystal Carwile singled in her first at bat against Idaho State on Feb. 15 to mark the 100th hit of her career. The only current Husker with 100 career hits, Carwile currently has 103 career hits. She is bidding to become only the eighth player in school history to record 200 career hits and the first since All-American Anne Steffan, who finished with 217 hits from 2002 to 2005.