Huskers Hold Off Indiana in Series Opener

Max Buettenback’s two-run homer in the second inning provided the early spark and Ty Horn struck out six across five innings to lead No. 24 Nebraska to a 6-5 win against Indiana on Friday night at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park.

Nebraska (20-6, 6-1 Big Ten) scored six runs on six hits and an error, while Indiana (10-15, 3-7 Big Ten) totaled five runs, seven hits and three errors.

Buettenback finished 1-for-2 with a homer, two RBI and two runs scored, and Dylan Carey went 1-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Case Sanderson drove in two runs and reached base three times without a hit, while Mac Moyer, Miken Miller, Jett Buck and Drew Grego tallied one hit each.

Horn earned his first win of the season, allowing two runs on four hits with six strikeouts and three walks across five innings. Caleb Clark and Tucker Timmerman combined to deal the next two frames before J’Shawn Unger closed it out with a pair of perfect innings to record his third save of the season.

Nebraska broke through in the second when Buck reached on a fielding error and Buettenback launched a two-run homer to right field to give the Huskers a 2-0 lead.

The Big Red added two more in the third. Moyer singled and Worthley laid down a sacrifice bunt to move him to second before Carey singled up the middle to score Moyer. Two wild pitches moved Carey to third and then home on a balk to push the lead to 4-0.

Sanderson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded after two walks and an error to score Buettenback and extend the advantage to 5-0 through four innings.

Indiana rallied for four runs in the sixth to pull within one at 5-4. A wild pitch after consecutive singles plated the Hoosiers’ first run and an RBI single brought Indiana within 5-2. A two-RBI single to left field with the bases loaded made it a 5-4 game going into the bottom of the sixth.

Nebraska answered in the bottom of the sixth when Grego doubled and eventually scored when Sanderson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to extend the lead to 6-4.

Indiana added a run in the seventh on an RBI groundout to make it 6-5, but Unger retired all six batters he faced in the eighth and ninth to preserve the one-run victory on Friday night.

Nebraska and Indiana continue the series tomorrow afternoon at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. on B1G+.