NEB BSB: Iowa Preview & Notes
NEBRASKA at IOWA
April 11-13, 2025
Iowa City, Iowa | Duane Banks Field
Friday, April 11 – 6:02 p.m. CT
Pitching: LHP Will Walsh (4-4, 4.36 ERA) vs. LHP Cade Obermueller (3-2, 2.51 ERA)
TV/Streaming: B1G+
Radio: Huskers.com, Huskers Radio Network, Huskers App
Saturday, April 12 – 2:02 p.m. CT
Pitching: RHP Ty Horn (0-4, 7.25 ERA) vs. RHP Aaron Savary (5-0, 3.43 ERA)
TV/Streaming: B1G+
Radio: Huskers.com, Huskers Radio Network, Huskers App
Sunday, April 13 – 1:02 p.m. CT
Pitching: LHP Jackson Brockett (0-3, 4.91 ERA) vs. RHP Reece Beuter (4-0, 4.21 ERA)
TV/Streaming: BTN
Radio: Huskers.com, Huskers Radio Network, Huskers App
Follow the Game
• The first two games of this weekend's series on Friday and Saturday can be seen on B1G+. Sunday's series finale will be broadcast on BTN, with Connor Onion and Danan Hughes on the call.
• Fans can also listen to Nick Handley and David Gustafson call the action this weekend on the Huskers Radio Network.
• Every game this season can be heard for free on Huskers.com and the Official Nebraska Huskers App for both iOS and android devices.
Nebraska vs. Iowa
• Through 52 all-time meetings, Iowa holds a slight 27-25 edge over Nebraska in the all-time series.
• The Huskers won the series last season in Lincoln, picking up wins of 7-4 and 12-2 (7 inn.) over the Hawkeyes.
• Iowa swept the Big Red in their last meeting in Iowa City in 2023.
McConnaughey to Miss Remainder of 2025 Season
• Nebraska Coach Will Bolt announced the first week in March that junior right-handed pitcher Mason McConnaughey will miss the remainder of the 2025 season after suffering an arm injury against Sam Houston at the Frisco Classic.
• McConnaughey began the season as the first husker named to the Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List since 2016 and earned Preseason All-American recognition from D1Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.
Big Red vs. Ranked Foes in 2025
• Nebraska has played six games against four different ranked opponents this season after the Huskers' 7-5 win at No. 22 Kansas on Tuesday night.
• The Big Red are 4-2 against ranked teams this year after facing No. 16 Vanderbilt, No. 2 LSU, No. 5 Oregon State (3x) and No. 22 Kansas.
A Look at the Weekend Rotation
• With Brett Sears taken in the 2024 MLB Draft, Drew Christo's transition to the bullpen and Mason McConnaughey's season-ending injury, it's a new-look weekend rotation for the Huskers this year.
• Redshirt senior Will Walsh gets the nod on Friday night and holds a 4-4 record on the season with a 4.36 ERA, 39 punchouts and opposing batting average of .242 in 43.1 innings.
• Sophomore Ty Horn is set to take the mound in game two for the Huskers this weekend. Horn is 0-4 with a 7.25 ERA and 33 strikeouts in 36 innings of work.
• Senior Jackson Brockett is scheduled to start the series finale, holding an 0-3 record with a 4.91 ERA and 19 strikeouts across eight appearances, including seven starts.
Lucky Number Six in the Bolt Era
• Nebraska is 118-25 under head coach Will Bolt when scoring at least six runs.
• The Big Red have scored six-plus runs in 14 of the 15 victories this season, defeating No. 16 Vanderbilt (6-4), San Diego State (13-0), Louisiana (6-1), Washington (6-2), Wichita State (10-1), Pepperdine (9-6, 11-4). USC (6-5), Oregon State (7-3, 16-7), Rutgers (8-5, 10-5) and No. 22 Kansas (7-5).
• The Husker offense reached the six-run mark 34 times last season, compiling a 28-6 record.
• Nebraska scored six-plus runs in 33 contests (26-7) in 2023 after tallying at least six runs 23 times (19-4) in 2022, 28 times (26-2) in 2021 and seven times (5-2) in 2020.
Big Red’s First Top-Five Series Win Since 2011
• Nebraska recorded its first top-five series win since UCLA in 2011 after taking two of three games against No. 5 Oregon State at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park on March 28-30.
• The Huskers opened the series with a 7-3 win on Friday night and suffered a 16-5 setback in seven innings on Saturday, before wrapping up the series with a 16-7 eight-inning win on Sunday afternoon.
• The Oregon State pitching staff came into the weekend with a 2.81 ERA, before the Huskers plated 28 runs on three doubles, eight homers and a .370 batting average from the NU offense in the three-game series.
Walsh Among Nation’s Most Efficient Pitchers
• Will Walsh enters the weekend as one of 14 pitchers nationally-and one of two Power 4 pitchers-boasting a sub-.245 batting average-against and less than 10 walks in at least 40 innings of work.
• The southpaw has had five of his seven starts go at least six innings, including a season-high seven innings against San Diego State and Washington.
• Walsh has recorded five starts with at least six strikeouts and two-or-less walks, including a season-high nine punchouts with no free passes in seven innings vs. Washington.
Buettenback’s Big Bat in Last 10 Games
• Max Buettenback comes into the weekend as one of 39 sophomores nationally with at least a .650 slugging percentage in 60-or-more at-bats this season.
• Buettenback has paced the Husker offense in the last 10 games, turning in career-high totals in midweek matchups at Omaha and No. 22 Kansas.
• The Lincoln native went 3-for-4 with a home run, five RBI, two runs scored and a pair of stolen bases at Omaha last week.
• The sophomore was a perfect 3-for-3 with two doubles and three RBI in Nebraska's 7-5 win at No. 22 Kansas on Tuesday.
• In NU's last 10 games, Buettenback is batting .542 (13-of-24) with three doubles, three homers, 13 RBI and an OPS of 1.642.
Sanderson’s 4-Hit Games in Back-to-Back Weeks
• With a pair of four-hit performances at Kansas State and Omaha in back-to-back weeks, Case Sanderson became the first Husker since Max Anderson (2) and Griffin Everitt (2) in 2022 with multiple four-hit games in the regular season.
• Sanderson led NU at the plate and fell a triple shy of the cycle at K-State after going 4-for-5 with a double, home run, three RBI and a trio of runs scored.
• The sophomore had a 4-for-6 night with a double, an RBI and a run scored at Omaha last week.
Husker Offense on the Rise in Last 10 Games
• Nebraska has seen significant rise in offensive production lately, as the Huskers are scoring 8.0 runs per game and hitting .326 as a team in the last 10 games.
• The Husker offense began the season hitting .243 and scoring 5.3 runs per game through the first 23 games of the year.
• The Big Red have homered 14 times in the last 10 games, after homering 17 times in the first 23 games.
• With the turnaround in the last 10 games, the Husker offense has seen a 26-point jump in batting average, 47-point spike in slugging percentage and a leap of 26 points in on-base percentage for the season.
Bats in the Nebraska Lineup
• Max Buettenback is hitting .317 at the plate and is tied for the team lead with five home runs, while driving in 18 RBI and scoring 16 runs in 22 games.
• Devin Nunez is batting .310 with three homers, 15 RBI and 14 runs scored over 25 games this season.
• Case Sanderson is hitting .307 with a team-leading .450 on-base percentage, recording 31 hits, 13 RBI and 19 runs in 30 games.
• Cayden Brumbaugh is batting .304 and leads the team with 29 runs, nine doubles and eight stolen bases in 33 starts this season.
• Dylan Carey has driven in a team-best 28 runs, is tied for the team lead with five home runs and has nine doubles in 33 starts.
• Riley Silva is hitting .269 with a .417 on-base percentage and is second on the team with five stolen bases, while Will Jesske is batting .266 with two home runs, nine RBI and four stolen bases across 25 games.
• Joshua Overbeek is hitting .263 with seven doubles, a triple, seven RBI and 13 runs scored across 28 games, while Tyler Stone is batting .262 with five home runs, eight doubles and 19 RBI, ranking second on the team with a .536 slugging percentage.
• Cael Frost is slugging .476 with five home runs and 19 RBI in 28 games, sitting third on the team with the 19 runs driven in.
Huskers in the Pen
• Luke Broderick has earned two wins and six saves in 12 appearances, maintaining a 3.29 ERA over 13.2 innings with 18 strikeouts.
• Drew Christo has pitched in a team-high 15 games with a 1-1 record and a save, recording a 5.74 ERA over 26.2 innings. He has struck out 30 batters and walked 13 while holding hitters to a .237 hitting clip.
• Caleb Clark has logged 12 innings in 13 relief outings with 10 strikeouts and five walks.
• Casey Daiss has pitched 9.1 innings in eight relief appearances with a 1.93 ERA, allowing just two earned runs on nine hits with seven punchouts.
• Jalen Worthley has a 2-0 record in 12 appearances over 16.2 innings with 12 strikeouts, while Carson Jasa is 2-2 in 18.2 innings over 11 outings with 24 punchouts.
• TJ Coats has tossed 10.1 innings with 14 strikeouts in seven appearances, including three starts.
• Gavin Blachowicz has made nine appearances with a 4.26 ERA in 12.2 innings of work. The freshman has struck out 12 and allowed six earned run on 13 hits.
• Grant Cleavinger has made eight relief appearances, picking up 10 strikeouts in 5.2 innings of work.
• Ryan Harrahill has thrown 10.1 innings over eight appearances with one start, holding a 3.48 ERA. The sophomore has allowed four earned runs on eight hits while striking out four.
• Pryce Bender is 1-0 in 12.1 innings across 10 relief appearances, while Colin Nowaczyk has struck out seven in seven innings of action across seven relief outings.
• Blake Encarnacion has thrown 2.2 scoreless innings over six relief outings, allowing no hits and striking out three.
• Tucker Timmerman has made one appearance out of the bullpen, allowing one earned run on two hits and a pair of strikeouts in 2.1 innings of work vs. No. 16 Vanderbilt.
• Aiden White and J'Shawn Unger made their collegiate debut last week at Omaha.
Silva Climbing All-Time HBP Chart
• Riley Silva has been hit by pitch 36 times in his two seasons as a Husker, which is tied for eighth all-time in program history.
• Silva is one away from tying Alex Gordon (2003-05) and Nick Sullivan (2006-09) in sixth and 10 shy of Kale Kiser (2009-12) in fifth.