Huskers Visit Columbus for First Time Since 2012

Lincoln - Following a 13-2 midweek win over Omaha on Tuesday night at Hawks Field, the Nebraska baseball team (24-15-1, 7-4-1 Big Ten) returns to Big Ten play this weekend with a trip to Columbus, Ohio, for a three-game series against the Ohio State Buckeyes (16-24, 4-8 Big Ten).

The series will start the second half of the Big Ten schedule for both teams. 12 games into the 24-game conference slate, the Huskers sit in third place with a 7-4-1 record, while the Buckeyes are in 11th place with a 4-8 league mark.

The Huskers have won both of their Big Ten road series this year, including a 2-0-1 win at Indiana and a 2-1 win at Minnesota last weekend. Dating back to last season the Huskers have won four straight conference series on the road. After being swept at Michigan last year, the Huskers ended the season with wins at Rutgers and Michigan State.

On the year the Huskers are 12-10-1 away from Hawks Field, including a 9-4-1 record in true road games. Nebraska hasn't lost consecutive road games since March 3 and 4 when it dropped the first two games of the Frisco College Classic to Oklahoma State (1-0) and Arkansas (15-5).

Ohio State enters the weekend with series losses each of the past two weekends to Michigan State and UNC Greensboro. The Buckeyes are 1-3 in conference series this year, with the lone win coming at Penn State 2-1. They were swept by Minnesota to open conference play and then lost 2-of-3 at home to Purdue. After taking the series at Penn State, the Buckeyes lost 2-of-3 on the road to the Spartans.

The Buckeyes are 5-11 at Bill Davis Stadium this season, including a 2-6 record during the month of April.

Ohio State's marquee win this season came at the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge where they handed Oregon State its first loss of the season. The Beavers enter currently sit at the top of most polls with a 32-3 record. Nebraska also played the Beavers that same weekend in Surprise, Ariz., and lost twice, 10-1 and 5-2.

Nebraska-Ohio State Series History
Nebraska and Ohio State have met 18 times dating back to 1991 and the Huskers hold a 10-8 advantage. The Buckeyes won the first game between the two teams, 5-2, on Feb. 21, 1991. The only other time they met for non-conference play was at a tournament in Lafayette, La., in 2001 and the Huskers won 10-5 on Feb. 23.

Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten in 2012 the teams have met 16 times, including 12 times during the regular season and four times at the Big Ten Tournament. As conference foes, the Huskers hold a 9-7 advantage.

The two teams have met four times for a series during league play, and each of the last three series took place in Lincoln. This weekend will mark NU's first trip to Columbus since 2012.

During the 2012 season the Huskers dropped the series opener in Columbus, 10-2, but then after a rain out on Saturday the Huskers swept a doubleheader on Sunday, 5-4 and 17-9, to take the series. The Buckeyes returned the favor in 2013, as they dropped the series opener in Lincoln before winning the final two games of the series.

Nebraska swept a home series in 2014, getting three-straight complete games from Christian DeLeon, Chance Sinclair and Aaron Bummer. The Buckeyes came to Lincoln for the third straight year in 2015 and just like 2013 they lost the opener, but won the next two games to take the series. The wins on Saturday and Sunday in 2015 both came in 10 innings.

NU and OSU at the Big Ten Tournament
Nebraska, Ohio State and Indiana are the only three teams in the Big Ten that have qualified for each of the past five Big Ten Tournaments. Over the past five years the Huskers have played 17 games at the Big Ten Tournament, including four games each against the Buckeyes, Hoosiers and Michigan State Spartans.

The Huskers and Buckeyes have split their four games, with the Huskers taking the last two meetings.

Ohio State knocked the Huskers out of the 2012 Big Ten Tournament, and after losing to the Buckeyes in the winner's bracket in 2013 the Huskers later eliminated the Buckeyes. The teams met in the opening round of the 2014 tournament at TD Ameritrade and Huskers scored four runs in the bottom of the ninth for a walk-off win.

How to Listen/Watch the Huskers
Fans can listen to Greg Sharpe, Ben McLaughlin and Nick Handley call all the action this season on the Husker Sports Network. Every game this season can be heard on Huskers.com and the Official Nebraska Huskers App for both iOS and android devices.

All three games this weekend in Columbus will be carried on 1400 AM in Lincoln and 590 AM in Omaha. Fans can also listen on TuneIn.com or the TuneIn App on the Husker IMG Sports Network channel.

All three games will be video streamed on Buckeye Vision (subscription required).

Heating Up in April
Ben Miller entered his senior season as a career .303 hitter, but entering Nebraska's series finale at Indiana on April 1 he was hitting just .205 on the year. Since the calendar switched from March to April, Miller has played in each of NU's 16 games and coming into Friday the Clive, Iowa, native has posted a .368 batting average (25-for-68) at the plate, raising his season average 69 points to .274.

During the 16-game stretch, Miller leads the Huskers in hits (25), doubles (5) and RBIs (14).

Earlier this month against Maryland, Miller went 10-for-13 (.769) in the series with two doubles, four runs scored and three RBIs. The senior first baseman slugged .923 on the weekend and had an on-base percentage of .786. For his efforts he was named Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday, April 10.

Join the Club
Ben Miller was taken in the 32nd round of the 2016 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates, but turned down professional baseball to instead return to Nebraska for his senior season. The Clive, Iowa, native now has a chance to cement his name near the top of Nebraska's all-time hits list.

Miller became the 25th player in school history to total 200 career hits on Saturday, April 8, with a 4-for-4 game against Maryland, his first career four-hit game. He followed it up the next day with a 4-for-5 performance in the series clincher.

Miller enters Friday with 214 hits, ranking him 22nd all-time at Nebraska. Last weekend at Minnesota he passed Pat Kelly, who had 212 hits during his three-year career from 2012-14 and currently serves as Nebraska's undergraduate assistant coach.

Over the past two seasons Miller has averaged 68.5 hits and with that average in 2017 he would end his career just outside of NU's all-time top 10. If Miller can match his 77 hits from last season, he would tie Michael Pritchard for fifth all-time at Nebraska with 251 hits.

The Huskers have had at least one player join the 200 hit club in each of the past five seasons, including 2016 second-round pick Ryan Boldt last year.

NU 200-Career Hit Club
1. 338 Matt Hopper 2000-03
2. 305 Jeff Leise 2000-03
3. 281 Will Bolt 1999-02
4. 261 Darin Erstad 1993-95
5. 251 Michael Pritchard 2011-14
6. 250 Paul Meyers 1984-86
7. 249 Joe Simokaitis 2002-05
8. 248 Jed Dalton 1992-95
9. 247 Chad Christensen 2010-13
10. 246 Darin Petersen 1992-95
11. 242 Mark Kister 1985-87
12. 240 Alex Gordon 2003-05
13. 238 DJ Belfonte 2007-10
14. 234 Todd Sears 1995-97
15. 231 Daniel Bruce 2002-05
16. 229 Ken Ramos 1987-89
17. 227 Jake Opitz 2005-08
18. 226 Austin Darby 2012-15
19. 223 Curtis Ledbetter 2003-05
223 Ryan Boldt 2014-2016
21. 222 John Cole 1999-01
22. 214 Ben Miller 2014-Present
23. 212 Pat Kelly 2012-14
24. 203 Ken Harvey 1997-99
25. 201 Francis Collins 1995-97

Angelo's Arrival
After making a pair of starts last season as a true freshman, Angelo Altavilla has become a key contributor in 2017. The sophomore infielder leads the team with 10 doubles, ranks second on the team in RBIs with 25 and is third on the team with a .301 average.

Altavilla has started 38 of NU's 40 games, and has shown versatility in the field with 28 starts at shortstop, eight at third base and two at second base.

Get the First One On the Road
Since joining the Big Ten Conference for the 2012 season, Nebraska has played 22 league series on the road and has a record of 15-7. In 65 regular-season Big Ten road games, NU is 38-26-1.

Including last weekend at Minnesota, the Huskers have won the opening game of a Big Ten road series 15 times and have won 13 straight series when they have taken the opener on the road.

The last time NU didn't win the series after winning the opener was in 2012 at Indiana. Nebraska took game one 13-2, but then dropped a doubleheader the next day, 7-5 and 9-6.

In the seven road series when the Huskers have started with a loss, they have gone on to win the series just twice, including last season at Rutgers when NU dropped the opener and then took a doubleheader on Saturday. Prior to the comeback at Piscataway, the only other time NU had lost an opener on the road and then won the series was in 2012 at Ohio State. NU lost 10-2 on Friday and then swept a doubleheader on Sunday, 5-4 and 17-9.

Get a Lead for the Bullpen
During Darin Erstad's tenure at Nebraska, the Husker bullpen has done its job when it has a lead. Prior to ninth-inning walk-off loss last season at Rutgers on Friday, April 29, the Huskers had won 73 straight games when leading after the eighth inning. Since the loss at Rutgers, the Huskers have won 35 straight games when leading after eight innings.

Led by pitching coach Ted Silva, the Huskers are 158-17 since the start of the 2012 season when they lead after the sixth inning. The Huskers are 165-10 when leading after seven innings and are nearly perfect when leading after eight innings with a 177-5 record.

Turn the Power On
Through the first 22 games of the year the Huskers hit just three home runs and didn't have a multi-home run game. The power numbers are starting to climb though, as the Huskers head into Friday with 12 home runs over their last 18 games following a season-high three home runs on Tuesday.

Last season the Huskers saw a spike in home runs with 43 on the year, which was more than the 41 they totaled in 2014 (19) and 2015 (22) combined.

Double Digits
Nebraska has totaled 10 or more hits 18 times in 40 games entering Friday. Nebraska is 15-3 on the year when notching double-digit hits, the only losses came in a 7-5 defeat to Utah on Feb. 24, an 8-6 loss at CSU Bakersfield on March 21 and a 7-6 extra-inning loss to Iowa on April 14.

The Huskers produced a season-high 19 hits against Creighton on Tuesday, April 4.

Last season the Huskers totaled 10 or more hits 27 times in 59 games and were 21-6 in those games.

Home Sweet Hawks
The Nebraska baseball program is celebrating its 16th year at Hawks Field.

Following Tuesday's win over Omaha the Huskers have a 334-120-1 (.735) record at Hawks Field since opening the park on March 5, 2002 with a 23-1 win over Nebraska-Kearney.

Since Head Coach Darin Erstad took over in 2012, the Huskers are 105-42 (.714) at Hawks Field.

With a 12-5 home record this year the Huskers have already secured a winning home record in 2017. The Huskers have posted a winning home record in each of the last 16 seasons. Nebraska has won 60% or more of its home games 13 times over the past 15 seasons, including each of the past seven seasons.

NU's worst home season at Hawks Field came in 2009, NU posted a 16-14 record (.533).

Number 200
Head Coach Darin Erstad won his 200th career game at Nebraska on Tuesday night, becoming the fifth head coach in program history to reach 200 wins.

Nebraska Baseball Head Coaches with 200 Wins
1. John Sanders 767-453-1 (.629) 20 Years
2. Tony Sharpe 394-388-6 (.503) 31 Years
3. Mike Anderson 337-196-2 (.632) 10 Years
4. Dave Van Horn 214-92-0 (.699) 5 Years
5. Darin Erstad 200-134-1 (.599) 6th Year

Draft History
Six members of the 2017 Husker baseball team have previously been drafted:

Luis Alvarado - 2014 (Boston Red Sox, 33rd Round)
Derek Burkamper - 2013 (Boston Red Sox, 20th Round)
Sean Chandler - 2015 (Milwaukee Brewers, 32nd Round)
Chad Luensmann - 2015 (New York Mets, 39th Round)
Ben Miller - 2016 (Pittsburgh Pirates, 32nd Round)
Jesse Wilkening - 2015 (Arizona Diamondbacks, 28th Round)

Closing Time
The Huskers have been able to rely on two closers this year, reigning Big Ten Freshman-of-the-Year Chad Luensmann, who saved 13 games last season and junior Luis Alvarado, who didn't step foot on the mound during his first two seasons at Nebraska.

While starting 39 games in the outfield and ranking second on the team with a .307 batting average, Alvarado also leads the team with seven saves this season. His next save would tie him with Dylan Vogt and Casey Hauptman for ninth place on NU's single-season saves list.

Luensmann is close behind with six saves on the year and his 19 career saves rank third all-time at Nebraska. Luensmann has seen an expanded role this season, also working as a long reliever. He enters the weekend ranked second on the team in appearances with 16.

The Right-Handed Jake
While the Huskers have leaned on left hander Jake Meyers on Sundays, Nebraska has relied on junior right-handed Jake Hohensee on Fridays. The Lincoln native missed the entire 2016 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery and made his Husker return on Feb. 26 against Utah, his first appearance on the mound in 653 days.

The Lincoln native entered the year with three career starts and had never gone more than 4.0 innings in an appearance. This year Hohensee has bettered that mark five times, including a 8.1-inning start against Maryland when he allowed just one hit over the first 8.0 innings of the game.

Hohensee will make his 10th start of the season on Friday and has a 5-2 record with a 3.17 ERA. Early in the season Hohensee ran into some bad luck. In his first three starts of the year teams scored at least two unearned runs in each start, including three unearned runs twice.

Hohensee has allowed one earned run or less in five of his nine starts this season.

Huskers in MLB
A total of 12 former Huskers are part of a Major League organization, including five that are currently at the MLB level.

MLB
Cody Asche - White Sox
Brian Duensing - Cubs
Alex Gordon - Royals
Dan Jennings - White Sox
Tony Watson - Pirates

Minor Leagues
Ryan Boldt - Rays
Aaron Bummer - White Sox
Max Knutson - Orioles
Kyle Kubat - White Sox
Michael Mariot - Phillies
Steven Reveles - Red Sox
Josh Roeder - Yankees

Lean on the Lefty
Jake Meyers has been Nebraska's Sunday starter this year and NU is 7-0-1 on Sundays this season. Over his last eight starts Meyers is 6-0 and has gone 6.0 innings or more five times, including 7.1, 8.0 and 9.0 inning efforts.

Meyers entered his start at Cal Poly on Saturday, March 19 with 21.2 straight shutout innings and extended the mark to 25.2 innings after he sat the Mustangs down in order in the fourth. The streak came to an end in the fifth when Scott Ogrin hit two-run home run after Bradlee Beesley started the frame with a double.

Leave it to Luensmann
Chad Luensmann had a tough task last season as a true freshman, he had to replace career saves holder Josh Roeder as NU's closer. Luensmann went on to save 13 games in 14 chances, a NU freshman record, and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year, becoming the first Husker baseball player to win the award.

Luensmann's 13 saves tied Brett Jensen (2006) for third place in NU's single-season record book and Luensmann ranked fourth nationally in saves. Among freshmen, Luensmann tied Long Beach State's Chris Rivera for the most saves in the country.

Luensmann ranks second on the team with six saves this season, one behind Luis Alvarado's seven saves. Luensmann enters Friday ranked third all time at Nebraska with 19 career saves. Luensmann needs 12 more saves to tie Jensen for second place on the all-time list.

Career Saves at Nebraska
1. 33 Josh Roeder 2012-15
2. 31 Brett Jensen 2004-06
3. 19 Chad Luensmann 2016-Present
4. 17 Thom Ott 2000-01
5. 14 Steve Boyd 1992-93
6. 13 Casey Hauptman 2008-11
7. 11 Dylan Vogt 2010-13
11 Dave Matranga 1990-91
11 Gary Nolting 1977-79
10. 10 Mike Bellows 1994

Schedule The best
The Huskers have played a tough schedule so far in 2017. As of Wednesday afternoon WarrenNolan.com ranks Nebraska's schedule as 44th in the country.

With a 24-15-1 record though 40 games, only two of NU's losses have come to a team with a losing record, including UC Riverside and Cal Poly.

The Husker are scheduled to play 13 games against teams that participated in the 2016 NCAA Tournament, including a pair of games against teams that were in last season's College World Series.

Nebraska has already played 2016 NCAA runner-up Arizona and CWS qualifier Oklahoma State at the Frisco College Baseball Classic in Frisco, Texas. Nebraska lost 1-0 to the Cowboys and shut out Arizona, 1-0.

So far this season the Huskers are 5-5 against teams that qualified for the 2016 NCAA Tournament, including wins over Western Carolina, Utah, Minnesota and Arizona.

Nebraska has three games left against 2016 NCAA Tournament teams, will all three taking place this weekend against Ohio State.

Games Against 2016 NCAA Tournament Teams
- 3 vs. Western Carolina (1-2)
- 3 at Minnesota (2-1)
- 3 at Ohio State (0-0
- 2 vs. Utah (1-1)
- 1 vs. Oklahoma State (0-1)
- 1 vs. Arizona (1-0)

Seeing Double
Sophomore twin brothers Matt and Mike Waldron have played in the same game at Nebraska seven times, including six times this season. Against Kansas State Tuesday, March 28, Matt started on the mound and Mike started at third base, it was the third time both brothers have been in the starting lineup of the same game.

Last year they played in the same game once. At Michigan State on May 8, Matt started against the Spartans and went 6.0 innings, while Mike was NU's designated hitter, his first career start.

The last time the Huskers had a twin brothers on the team was 1994, when Glendale, Ariz., natives Jeff and John Strasser were freshmen. Jeff made 16 appearances on the mound, including nine starts, while John played the field in 25 games, including 12 starts.