Huskers Open Final Big 12 Season at No. 7 Oklahoma

The 14th-ranked Nebraska softball team wraps up a school-record eight-game road trip this weekend, when the Huskers open their final season of Big 12 Conference play with a two-game series at seventh-ranked Oklahoma.

Fans can follow NU's conference-opening series in a variety of ways online. Huskers.com will have a free audio broadcast of both games, with Nate Rohr calling all of the action. Both games are also being televised by the Sooner Sports Network, and fans can watch both contests by visiting SoonerSports.com and purchasing a one-month subscription to Sooner All-Access. First pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 2 p.m., with Sunday's finale set for Noon.

The Huskers practiced in Lincoln on Thursday after being on the road for seven straight days. Nebraska is 5-1 on its current eight-game road trip to push its season record to 26-3. The Huskers are off to the best start in school history and have already clinched the best 30-game record in program history regardless of Saturday's outcome. Earlier this season, Nebraska tied the best 10-game start in school history (9-1) and set the best 20-game mark ever (18-2).

Nebraska has excelled on the road and against top competition. The Huskers are 6-1 in true road games this season, after posting a 4-13 road record last season. Nebraska is also 4-1 against ranked teams this year and takes a four-game winning streak against ranked opponents into play this weekend. The Huskers' past two meetings with a ranked team both came against top-10 foes, with NU defeating then-No. 10 Hawaii, 3-0, on Feb. 25, before upsetting then-No. 1 Florida, 1-0, on March 12.

Junior right-hander Ashley Hagemann won both of those starts, tossing a one-hit shutout against Hawaii and a two-hit shutout against Florida. Hagemann's dominance in the circle is a big reason for NU's success this season.

Hagemann has had a hand in 20 of Nebraska's 26 victories, posting an 18-2 record with two saves. She ranks third nationally in victories and has added 160 strikeouts in 119.2 innings while recording five shutouts.

While Hagemann has done her part in the circle, Nebraska's offense has exploded over the past two weeks to emerge as one of the league's top units. The Huskers are averaging 6.6 runs per game this season, while ranking seventh nationally in batting average, 22nd in scoring and 27th in slugging percentage.

Freshman Taylor Edwards has been a big addition to the lineup, as she is hitting .437 with 12 home runs and 43 RBIs. She ranks seventh nationally in RBIs and 11th in homers. NU also boasts three returning hitters looking for repeat All-Big 12 honors in juniors Nikki Haget (.400, 1 HR, 35 runs scored) and Ashley Guile (.353, 1 HR, 14 RBIs) and sophomore Brooke Thomason (.388, 2 HR, 19 RBIs).

Scouting the No. 7 Oklahoma Sooners (26-8, 0-0 Big 12)
Oklahoma enters Big 12 Conference play with a 26-8 overall record and a No. 7 national ranking in the USA Softball/ESPN.com poll. The Sooners are coming off a mid-week loss at in-state rival Tulsa on Wednesday (1-0), but OU has won 15 of its last 18 games, including three victories over ranked teams. Nebraska and Oklahoma share four common opponents this season in Arizona, Hawaii, New Mexico State and North Texas. The Huskers posted a 5-2 record against those teams, losing to Arizona and going 3-1 against NMSU. The Sooners went 5-1 against the same group, losing only to Hawaii.

OU again boasts one of the best offenses in the Big 12 Conference. The Sooners are hitting .316 as a team and have hit 42 home runs to average 6.6 runs per game. Jessica Shults is OU's top hitter, as she boasts a .370 average and leads the Big 12 with 16 home runs and 51 RBIs. Oklahoma's lineup has also been bolstered by the addition of freshmen Destinee Martinez and Brittany Williams. Martinez leads the team with a .387 average and leads the league with 48 hits. Williams is batting .373 and has been a tough out, as she has walked a league-high 34 times to rank second in the Big 12 with a .574 on-base percentage. Overall, seven Sooner starters are hitting above .300.

In the circle, Oklahoma is allowing an average of only 1.8 runs per game, while ranking fourth in the league with a 1.54 team ERA. The staff is led by left-hander Keilani Ricketts, who earned All-America honors as a freshman in 2010. In her sophomore season, Ricketts is 14-4 with a 0.95 ERA and 200 strikeouts in 118.0 innings. She has thrown seven shutouts in her 17 starts and opponents are hitting only .170 against her. Michelle Gascoigne has seen the most action behind Ricketts, posting a 7-3 record with a 2.75 ERA in 56.0 innings. Allee Allen (2-1, 1.50 ERA in 23.1 IP) and Kirsten Allen (3-0, 2.23 ERA in 15.2 IP) round out the Sooner staff.

Husker History vs. Oklahoma
Heading into the final meeting as conference opponents, Nebraska leads the all-time series with Oklahoma, 39-37. The Sooners have won eight of the last nine meetings, including regular-season sweeps in each of the last four years. Nebraska has not defeated Oklahoma in the regular season since sweeping a doubleheader from the Sooners in 2006, and the Huskers have not won in Norman since 2005. Husker Head Coach Rhonda Revelle is 19-25 against Oklahoma and 19-24 against Sooner Head Coach Patty Gasso. Oklahoma owns a 12-11 advantage in Norman, and the Sooners have won five straight meetings at the OU Softball Complex, including one-run victories in three of the last four games.

Nebraska was swept in both meetings last year, getting shut out in both contests. The Huskers lost the first game 5-0 and lost again the next day, 8-0 in six innings. Keilani Ricketts did it all in the game one win, tossing a two-hit shutout with six strikeouts, while homering, walking twice and driving in a pair at the plate. In game two, Allee Allen, Michelle Gascoigne and Kirsten Allen combined on a five-hit shutout. Katie Norris paced the Sooner offense with a 2-for-3 day that included a double and two RBIs.

For the Huskers, Ashley Hagemann earned a relief appearance in game one and tossed a complete-game in game two. Hagemann was 0-1 against the Sooners, allowing 11 runs (nine earned) in 11.2 innings for a 5.40 ERA. Hagemann struck out four and walked seven. Offensively, Nikki Haget went 3-for-5 in the series, while Nebraska was just 7-for-45 (.156) at the plate. Ashley Guile had the Huskers' lone extra-base hit with a double, while Kirby Wright drew three walks in four plate appearances.

Quick Hitters
The information below provides a quick glimpse of a few statistics and brief notes of interest as the Huskers wrap up their school-record eight-game road trip by opening Big 12 play at No. 7 Oklahoma this weekend:

• Nebraska owns an all-time record of 418-241 (.634) in the month of March. The Huskers have posted a winning month of March in each of the last 15 seasons dating back to 1994.
• NU has allowed a total of 58 runs in 29 games this season, an average of 2.0 runs per game. That total could be even lower, as 21 of the 58 runners who have scored (36 percent) reached base via a walk or hit-by-pitch. The Huskers have been better in that department of late, as Nebraska has allowed 18 runs over the last two weeks, but none of those runners reached base via a walk or hit-by-pitch.
• Nebraska has yet to be shut out through the first 29 games this season. Only five times in school history - including this year - has a Husker team not been shut out at least once in the first 20 games of the season. The longest season-opening streaks in school history without a shutout are: 39 games (1996), 34 (2002), 29 (1995 and 2011) and 22 (2003).
• NU has homered in nine straight games, the third-longest streak in school history and one shy of the record.
• Junior Nikki Haget enters the Oklahoma series with 99 career hits.
• Junior right-hander Ashley Hagemann has 39 career wins entering this weekend. With her next victory, Hagemann would become the 12th pitcher in school history to win 40 games. She would also tie Morri Emmons (1982-85) and Angela Blackwood (1995-97) for 10th place on the Nebraska career wins list.
• Junior Ashley Guile has a career-long nine-game hit streak and is looking to become the third Husker to post a 10-game hitting streak this season.

Nebraska in Big 12 Conference Openers
Nebraska is 7-8 all-time in Big 12 Conference opening games, including a 4-8 mark on the road. The Huskers

have not won a league opener since 2004, which is also the last time NU claimed a conference championship.Last year, Nebraska dropped both games at No. 15 Texas, marking the fifth time in six seasons that the Huskers were swept on the opening weekend of conference play. Nebraska hopes to change its luck this weekend against No. 7 Oklahoma, when the Huskers will face a top-20 team to open league play for the fifth time in the past six seasons.

While the league opener is only one game, history shows that the first conference game of the season can provide a boost to Nebraska's finish in the final league standings. When winning their first Big 12 game, the Huskers have never finished lower than fourth, while capturing three league titles and averaging 13 league wins per season. When Nebraska has lost its conference opener, the Huskers have averaged less than nine wins.

Taylor Edwards Nearing Husker Freshman Records
Freshman Taylor Edwards has homered 12 times in only 29 games, including an NCAA-record streak of six consecutive games with a home run in February. Edwards' 12 home runs are already tied for the ninth-highest season total in school history and she is one home run away from tying Ali Viola's freshman record of 13 home runs.

The high home run total has helped Edwards produce 43 RBIs. The 43 RBIs are already the third-highest total ever by a Husker freshman and she is just three RBIs shy of moving into second place on that list. Overall, Edwards' 43 RBIs are the highest total by a Husker since the 2005 season. She is only three RBIs from 10th place on the Nebraska season RBI chart. 

Drake Making Most of Playing Time
Junior Madison Drake was the Huskers' opening day starter in left field and has continued to compete for a starting position in left. Drake has made the most of her opportunities during Nebraska's current road trip, appearing in four games, including three starts. Drake has hit safely in each of the four games, batting .545 (6-for-11) with her first career home run, four RBIs, three runs scored and a stolen base. Entering last weekend, Drake had five career hits, two RBIs, two stolen bases and no extra-base hits.

Road Warriors
Nebraska is 5-1 on its current eight-game road trip, and the Huskers are 6-1 overall in true road games this season. Nebraska's six road victories have already surpassed last year's total, when the Huskers were just 4-13 in true road games. Overall, Nebraska has posted six road wins for only the second time in five seasons. With 10 true road games remaining, the Huskers are looking to finish with a winning road record for only the second time in five seasons. Nebraska has not posted a winning road record in Big 12 Conference play since a 5-3 mark in 2006.

Huskers Rank Highly in First NCAA Statistics
The NCAA released its first national statistical report on Tuesday, and Nebraska ranked favorably in several team and individual categories. The Huskers' .349 team batting average ranked seventh nationally, and NU's .889 winning percentage ranked ninth. Nebraska was also among the nation's top 30 teams in slugging percentage (27th, .507), scoring (22nd, 6.19) and fielding percentage (30th, .971).

Individually, freshman Taylor Edwards and junior Ashley Hagemann were the most highly ranked Huskers. Edwards ranked seventh nationally in RBIs per game (1.52), 11th in home runs (11), 12th in home runs per game (0.41), 13th in slugging percentage (.938), 30th in on-base percentage (.541) and 32nd in batting average (.450). Junior Nikki Haget also ranked 13th nationally in runs per game (1.22).

In the circle, Hagemann ranked third nationally in wins (17), 13th in strikeouts (148), 23rd in saves (2), 30th in hits allowed per seven innings (4.31) and 33rd in shutouts (4).

Husker Power
Nebraska has hit a home run in nine consecutive games, the third-longest streak in school history and one shy of tying the 10-game marks set by the 2002 and 2003 Huskers. During its current nine-game streak, Nebraska has totaled 17 home runs to increase its season total to 32 home runs in only 29 games. This year's group is only the second Husker team ever to hit 30 home runs in the first 30 games of a season. With two home runs against Oklahoma on Saturday, NU would tie the school record for most home runs in the first 30 games of a season.

NU has homered more than 20 times through the first 30 games of the year in each of Diane Miller's three seasons as hitting coach. Only once in the four seasons prior to Miller's arrival did Nebraska produce more than 20 home runs in an entire season. In fact, the Huskers' 17 home runs in their last nine games are more home runs than Nebraska hit the entire season in the two years before Miller came to Nebraska.

The home run production has helped Nebraska score 191 runs this season and average 6.6 runs per game, 1.0 run per game better than the best season average in school history (5.6 runs per game in 1978). As was the case with the home run production, the 191 runs scored have already eclipsed the season total from the 2007 and 2008 seasons, before Miller took over as Nebraska's hitting coach. 

Husker Offense Rolling Heading Into Sooner Showdown
The Husker offense has been on fire over the past two weeks. In an eight-game stretch beginning with Nebraska's home-opening doubleheader against South Dakota on March 16, the Huskers have averaged 9.5 runs per game while slugging 16 home runs and batting .410. Nebraska has scored at least six runs in seven of those eight games, including three games where the Huskers scored at least 14 runs. 

Big Red Posting Big Innings
Nebraska is averaging 6.6 runs per game this season and as one may expect, the Huskers have been prone to big innings. The Huskers have come to bat in 180 total innings this season, scoring at least one run in 78 of those innings (43 percent). Of those 78 run-scoring innings, Nebraska has scored at least two runs 49 times, meaning that 63 percent of the time the Huskers score in an inning, they will score more than one run.

The Huskers have scored at least three runs in an inning 30 times this season, while scoring five-or-more runs in an inning nine times. The Huskers' highest run total in an inning this season was a 12-run outburst in the second game of a doubleheader at New Mexico State on March 19, when all 12 runs scored with two outs. In addition to that explosion, the Huskers have posted two seven-run innings, two six-run frames and scored five runs in an inning four times.

The big innings have helped Nebraska outscore its opponents in every inning this season.

Taylor Edwards Putting Together Fine Freshman Season
Freshman catcher Taylor Edwards is putting together arguably the greatest freshman season in Husker history. She is currently batting .437 with 12 home runs, seven doubles, 43 RBIs and a .931 slugging percentage.

Among the highlights of Edwards' freshman season:

• Edwards homered in six straight games beginning with Oregon State on Feb. 13 and ending with a home run in her final at bat against Tennessee Tech on Feb. 20. The streak of six consecutive games with a home run is an NCAA record.
• Edwards' 43 RBIs already mark the third-highest total ever by a Husker freshman and rank 14th on Nebraska's all-time season chart.
• Edwards has twice produced streaks of seven consecutive games with at least one RBI, tying the school record. Edwards is the only player to accomplish the feat twice, as the only other Huskers to produce an RBI in seven straight games are Ali VIola (1995) and Lisa Wangler (2003).
• Edwards produced her 30th RBI of the season with a solo home run against Central Connecticut State in the 21st game of the year. Edwards reached 30 RBIs faster than any player in Nebraska history, as the previous best was 30 games by Ali Viola in 1996.
• Edwards' seven home runs in February were the most ever by a Husker in the month.
• Edwards hit her 10th home run of the season in the 23rd game of the year. She reached 10 home runs faster than any other player in school history, as All-American Ali Viola hit her 10th homer in the 24th game of the 1998 season.
• Edwards ranks first nationally among all freshmen in RBIs, second in home runs and fourth in batting average.
• Edwards ranks among the top 15 hitters nationally in RBIs per game (7th, 1.52), home runs (11th, 11), home runs per game (12th, 0.41) and slugging percentage (13th, .938).
• Edwards ranks second in the Big 12 in total bases (81) and slugging percentage (.931), third in average (.437), home runs (2) and RBIs (43), seventh in on-base percentage and eighth in hits (38).

Husker Offense Explodes in New Mexico State Doubleheader
Nebraska's offense exploded for 36 hits and 23 runs in a doubleheader sweep of New Mexico State on March 19, as the Huskers won game one 7-5 and took game two by a score of 16-1 in five innings. NU batted .507 in the doubleheader (36-for-71) with four doubles and five home runs, while posting a .775 team slugging percentage.

The Huskers produced a season-high 18 hits in each game. Before the doubleheader, a Nebraska team had not recorded 18 hits in a game in 14 seasons dating back to 1997. The Huskers' 16 runs in game two were also a season high and marked the most runs Nebraska had scored since a 21-run outburst against Illinois in 2006. It was also only the fourth time in school history that an NU team had scored more than 15 runs. The 16 runs were the second-most runs by a Husker team in a true road game, trailing only the 19 runs Nebraska scored at Creighton in 1996. NU then matched the feat again with 16 runs in game two of a doubleheader at UTEP three days later.

The highlight of the doubleheader was a 12-run fourth inning in game two, in which all 12 runs scored with two outs. Nebraska sent 17 batters to the plate in the inning and recorded 12 hits. After the Aggies recorded the second out, 12 consecutive Huskers reached base. Nebraska recorded 11 consecutive hits with two outs, including a trio of three-run homers.

Individually, nine Huskers had at least two hits in the doubleheader, including four with at least five hits. Freshman Taylor Edwards was 6-for-7 with a home run and five RBIs, while sophomore Brooke Thomason went 7-for-9 with a double and three RBIs. Senior Julie Brechtel was 5-for-8 with a double, a homer and three RBIs, while junior Madison Drake finished 2-for-4 with a homer and four RBIs after entering the day with no career home runs and four career RBIs. Out of the leadoff spot, junior Nikki Haget scored five runs while going 5-for-9. 

Hagemann Dominant in the Circle
Junior right-hander Ashley Hagemann is enjoying the best season of her career, as she has already exceeded her career high in victories. Hagemann has appeared in 23 of Nebraska's 29 games, posting an 18-2 record with a 1.58 ERA and two saves in 119.2 innings. Hagemann has also thrown a career-high five shutouts this season, while holding opposing hitters to a .172 average.

Since suffering her first loss to then-No. 1 Arizona in the third game of the season, Hagemann has been dominant against the nation's best teams. Since that loss, Hagemann is 4-0 with a 0.83 ERA and two shutouts in three starts and 26.0 total innings against ranked teams. During that stretch, Hagemann has allowed only 11 hits and posted a .126 opponent batting average, while striking out 30. Included in those totals are two starts against top-10 teams Hawaii (then-No. 10) and Florida (then-No. 1). Hagemann shut out both of those teams, allowing a total of only three hits including a 12.0-inning hitless streak. Entering the two-game series at seventh-ranked Oklahoma this weekend, Hagemann has thrown 15.2 consecutive scoreless innings against ranked opponents.

Entering the start of conference play, Hagemann leads the Big 12 in wins and innings pitched (119.2) and is tied for the league lead in appearances (23). Hagemann also ranks among the top five league pitchers in strikeouts (3rd, 127), saves (t-3rd, 2), starts (5th, 16), complete games (5th, 12) and shutouts (t-5th, 5).