Baseball

Huskers Rally for Weekend Sweep Over No. 8 Baylor

April 15, 2001

Lincoln -- Matt Hopper's grand slap capped a seven-run eighth inning, as fifth-ranked Nebraska concluded a series sweep of No. 8 Baylor, winning 10-4 in front of 1,355 fans at Buck Beltzer Stadium Sunday afternoon.

Hopper, who went 2-for-2 off the bench, helped the Huskers overcome a 4-3 deficit to improve to 30-8 on the season and 13-3 in the Big 12 standings. Baylor, which had entered the weekend in first place in the league, falls to 27-14 overall and 12-6 in the conference, dropping into third place behind Texas, which defeated Missouri, 13-0, on Sunday.

With one out in the eighth and Baylor clinging to a 4-3 lead, Jeff Blevins' tripled and Brandon Eymann walked to put runners on the corners before Will Bolt's single to left off Baylor reliever Derek Brehm scored Blevins to tie the score at four. Jeff Leise then walked to load the bases before back-to-back RBI singles by Adam Stern and Dan Johnson, who led NU with a 3-for-5 performance, gave the Huskers a two-run advantage and chased Brehm. Hopper then put the game out of reach with a grand slam, the first of the season by a Husker, to right off Kyle Edens' first pitch for his fourth round tripper of the season and first since March 6.

"It was just one of those things," Hopper said. "I wanted to drive the ball out of the infield. Coach just looked for me to get a hit. It (the HR) is one of the better things that I have accomplished here at Nebraska. All of the frustration that I had built up came out."

Brehm took the loss, allowing six runs on five hits to drop to 0-2 on the season, while Husker reliever Thom Ott, who allowed a run in the top of the eighth, improved to 3-0 with the win. The earned run, which scored on a wild pitch, was the first earned run the Milton, Fla., native allowed in relief since March 4.

"I am really proud of the way that we battled, given the mistakes that we made early," Nebraska Coach Dave Van Horn said. "We were able to hang in there and get it done. (Adam) Stern came through with a 2-0 single and then Dan's hit fell in, then Matt got in there and hit the first pitch over the fence."

"I felt that we played the first two games just well enough to win. Today, we didn't let them have a big inning and we kept in there and found a way to win."

The Huskers jumped to a 2-0 lead in the second, as John Cole tripled to center and came around on Jed Morris' fifth homer of the season off Baylor starter Justin Taylor.

Husker starter Brian Rodaway cruised through the first five innings, holding the Bears off the scoreboard until the sixth. Consecutive singles by Trevor Mote and Chris Durbin moved runners to first and second before Kelly Shoppach gave Baylor its first lead of the game on a three-run homer to deep right, the first homer Rodaway has allowed all season. A senior from Lincoln, Rodaway allowed three runs on nine hits in six innings and struck out a career-high six Bears, but was not involved in the decision.

The Huskers tied the score at 3-all in the bottom of the frame, as Taylor, who allowed three runs on five hits, walked Brandon Eymann with the bases loaded, scoring Justin Seely, who had singled earlier in the inning, for the Huskers' third run.

Source: University of Nebraska Sports Information