Late Rally Falls Short at UCLA

Nebraska brought the tying run to the plate in the top of the ninth inning, but the Huskers fell 5-2 in the series opener at UCLA on Friday night at Jackie Robinson Stadium in Los Angeles.

Nebraska (7-9, 1-3 Big Ten) scored two runs on eight hits and a pair of errors, while UCLA (14-4, 3-1 Big Ten) recorded five runs on seven hits.

Tyler Stone was 2-for-4 on the night with a double, home run and two RBI. Cayden Brumbaugh went 2-for-4 with a double, while Max Buettenback, Will Jesske, Dylan Carey and Robby Bolin had one hit each.

Will Walsh dropped to 2-3 on the season after allowing four runs on six hits in 6.1 innings of action. The southpaw struck out six batters and issued two walks. Drew Christo surrendered a run on one hit and two walks in 0.2 innings, followed by Caleb Clark dealing a scoreless eighth inning.

UCLA took a 1-0 lead in the second after a two-out double to the wall in right-center, followed by an RBI single to right field had the Bruins ahead by a run through two innings.

The Huskers threatened in the top of the fourth with Buettenback’s leadoff double down the left-field line, but a pair of groundouts and a strikeout prevented the Huskers from plating the tying run.

The Bruins doubled the lead to 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth with a two-out solo homer to left field off the bat of Payton Brennan.

Stone led off the fifth inning with a double into the left-center gap to give Nebraska a leadoff double for the second consecutive inning. The NU offense loaded the bases with two outs in the inning, but a flyout to the warning track in right field off the bat of Buettenback put an end to the inning.

Devin Nunez reached on a full-count walk in the top of the sixth, before Stone blasted a 1-2 pitch over the left-field wall for a game-tying two-run homer.

UCLA scored three runs on two hits and an NU error to take a 5-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh. An infield single and a walk had runners on first and second, followed by a sacrifice bunt that moved the runners over.

A second walk in the inning loaded the bases for the Bruins, while a sacrifice fly to deep right allowed the go-ahead run to come home. An RBI single through the right side doubled the lead to 4-2, and a wild pitch in the next at-bat grew the lead to 5-2 through seven innings.

The Huskers threatened in the top of the ninth inning, bringing the tying run to the plate with one out. Joshua Overbeek reached on a swinging strikeout in the dirt, followed by Carey’s single to left field had runners on first and second with one out. A strikeout and a pickoff at first extinguished the Big Red’s scoring chances and clinched the 5-2 win for the Bruins.

Nebraska and UCLA continue the weekend series tomorrow afternoon at Jackie Robinson Stadium in Los Angeles. First pitch between the Huskers and Bruins is set for 4 p.m. CT on B1G+.