Caitlynn Neal delivered a one-out walk-off double to lift the Nebraska softball team (10-6) to a 3-2 win over Weber State (5-10) on Friday afternoon.
Courtney Wallace went the distance, pitching the complete game and moving to 6-3 on the season. Wallace held the Wildcats to four hits while striking out four. Mandy Johnson (5-4) recorded the loss, pitching the complete game for Weber State, giving up eight hits and three runs.
Along with Neal’s RBI double in the bottom of the seventh, Billie Andrews and Sydney Gray each added RBIs of their own, while eight of the Huskers in the lineup recorded hits.
Gianna Memoli led the Wildcat offense, finishing 2-for-2 on the day.
Weber State threatened early in the first. A walk put the lead off runner on, but she got out after a fielder’s choice. With one on, a ground out advanced the runner to second. A walk added a second base runner, but Wallace struck out the next batter to get out of the inning.
Ava Bredwell was the first to record a hit on the day with a single through the left side, but NU was unable to capitalize, going scoreless in the first inning.
The Huskers reached scoring position in the bottom of the second. Katelyn Caneda led off, reaching first after being hit by a pitch. Gray added a single through the left side. With one out, Squier grounded out to the pitcher, advancing the runners to second and third, but a strikeout stranded two runners and the score remained 0-0.
The Wildcats had a runner reach third with two outs in the top of the fourth. Emily Ruhl was walked and Taegan Smith came in to pinch run. Smith stole second and advanced to third on a passed ball, but Wallace worked out of the inning, holding the score at 0-0 through four innings.
A single from Mika Chong put Weber State ahead 1-0 in the fifth inning. After a single and a walk, Chong’s single through the right side brought in the first run of the day. The Wildcats went ahead, 1-0.
The Big Red responded in the bottom of the fifth. Wallace doubled to center field to lead off the inning. A fly out from Squier advanced Wallace to third. With two outs, Billie Andrews singled to second, scoring Wallace, and tying the game at 1-1.
Nebraska added another run in the sixth. Bredwell was hit by a pitch followed by a single from Mya Felder. Caneda grounded out, moving runners to second and third. A sacrifice fly from Gray scored Bredwell, giving the Huskers the 2-1 lead.
The Wildcats tied the game at 2-2 in the seventh. Gianna Memoli led off with a double to left center. A sacrifice bunt moved Memoli to third. Faith Hoe flied out to left field, scoring Memoli. With two outs, Wallace recorded her fourth strikeout of the game to get out of the inning.
The Huskers secured the victory in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the seventh. Squier led off with an infield single. Brooke Andrews reached on a fielder’s choice and Squier was able to beat the throw at second, putting runners at first and second with no outs. Billie Andrews flied out to center field, but Neal followed it with a one-out double down the right field line, scoring Squier, and securing the 3-2 win.
The Nebraska softball team (11-6) recorded its sixth consecutive win after taking down Texas A&M-Commerce (2-15) Friday afternoon. The Huskers shutout the Lions, winning 3-0.
Sarah Harness (4-2) earned the win, pitching 5.1 innings. Harness held Texas A&M-Commerce to three hits while striking out five. Courtney Wallace earned the save after entering in the sixth inning and holding the Lions scoreless.
Julia Sanchez (0-4) pitched the complete game for Texas A&M-Commerce, recording the loss. Sanchez gave up eight hits and three runs (two earned).
On offense, Caitlynn Neal and Mya Felder led the Huskers. Both recorded two hits including a double while Felder added two RBIs. Ava Bredwell and Katelyn Caneda each added a double while Sydney Gray finished 1-for-3 with an RBI.
Diamond Sefe led the Lion offense, going 2-for-2 while Tatum Wright added a single. The Huskers were able to hold Texas A&M-Commerce to no extra-base hits on the day.
The Lions reached scoring position early in the first inning. After being hit by a pitch, Kaydee Bennett reached scoring position after stealing second. A fly out in foul territory moved Bennett to third, but Harness recorded a strikeout for the third out, holding Texas A&M-Commerce scoreless in the first.
The Huskers responded, putting two runners on with a lead-off walk for Billie Andrews and a single from Neal. With two outs, Courtney Wallace walked to load the bases, but NU was unable to capitalize, stranding three.
After a quiet second inning for both teams, Nebraska took the lead in the bottom of the third. With one out, Bredwell doubled to right center. Felder followed it with a single to second base, scoring Bredwell, going ahead, 1-0.
Texas A&M-Commerce threatened in the top of the fourth. A single and a walk put runners at first and second with both runners advancing to second and third after a passed ball. The Huskers held the Lions after forcing a ground out and a pop up to keep the lead.
The Big Red added two runs in the bottom of the fifth. After a fly out from Billie Andrews, Neal doubled to left center. With two outs, Felder doubled to left field, scoring Neal. Wallace reached on a fielding error, advancing Dakota Carter, who was pinch running for Felder, to third. A single up the middle from Gray scored Carter, putting the Huskers ahead, 3-0.
The Lions loaded the bases in the top of the sixth. With one out, a single down the left line added the first base runner. The next batter was hit by a pitch followed by a single to left field to load the bases. Wallace came in to pitch and recorded the final two outs to hold Texas A&M-Commerce scoreless, stranding three base runners.
Texas A&M-Commerce looked to rally in the seventh with one out and one on, but NU recorded two straight outs to secure the 3-0 shutout victory.
The Huskers return to action Saturday, March 3, to face Weber State with first pitch set for 1 p.m.
