Sarah Harness tossed a one-hit shutout and Nebraska recorded 14 hits in a 7-0 victory over Lamar Saturday afternoon.
Harness (1-0) was brilliant in the circle while tossing her first career shutout as a Husker. She fanned 11 batters in 6.0 innings. Harness allowed only one hit, which came in the first at-bat for Lamar.
On offense, Billie and Brooke Andrews led the Big Red, combining for six of Nebraska’s 14 hits. Courtney Wallace and Katelyn Caneda each added two hits while Sydney Gray finished with two RBIs.
Aaliyah Ruiz (0-3) recorded the loss for the Cardinals. Ruiz pitched 2.1 innings, giving up eight hits and five runs.
Billie Andrews hit her first homer of the season with a leadoff shot in the first inning to give NU an early 1-0 lead.
The only hit for Lamar came in the first inning as Sam Bean hit a single up the middle. With one out, a walk advanced Bean to second, putting the Cardinals in scoring position, but two strikeouts from Harness got NU out of the inning.
NU extended its lead to 5-0 with four runs in the second inning. Abbie Squier led off with a single to left field and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from Caitlynn Neal. Ava Bredwell recorded her first double of the season, scoring Squier. Four consecutive singles Brooke Andrews, Katelyn Caneda, Billie Andrews and Courtney Wallace, scored one and loaded the bases. Sydney Gray recorded a sacrifice fly, scoring Caneda. A ground out from Mya Felder ended the inning.
Two walks in the bottom of third inning put Lamar in scoring position for the second time, but a two-out strikeout got the Huskers out of the inning once again.
After being held scoreless in the third inning, the Big Red added two more in the fourth. Billie Andrews led off with a single. With one out, Gray doubled to right field, scoring Andrews. Felder singled to second base, advancing Gray to third. Squier added a sacrifice fly out, scoring Gray, and putting the Huskers ahead 7-0.
Lamar looked to score in the sixth inning after two walks with one out put the Cardinals at first and second. However, the Huskers stranded the runners after a ground out and a fly out.
NU was able to hold Lamar the last inning, winning 7-0.
The Nebraska softball team (3-1) handed Houston (2-1) its first loss of the season as the Huskers claimed the 7-0 victory.
Courtney Wallace (2-0) earned her second complete game shutout of the season. The senior held the Cougars to four hits and tallied five strikeouts.
For Houston, Kenna Wilkey (1-1) recorded the loss after pitching 5.1 innings, giving up six hits and four runs.
Offensively, Billie Andrews, Mya Felder, Caitlynn Neal and Ava Bredwell all added two hits while Andrews and Bredwell each chipped in two RBIs.
BIllie Andrews followed up game one with another leadoff home run to give the Huskers an early 1-0 lead in the first inning.
The Cougars looked to respond in the bottom of the first. A single and an error put runners on first and second, but a double play and a fly out got the Huskers out of the inning.
The Huskers looked to score in the top of the fourth. With two outs, Caitlynn Neal singled to center, followed by a single to right field from Ava Bredwell. NU was unable to capitalize, and the score remained 1-0.
The Cougars reached scoring position in the bottom of the fourth after a single and a stolen base, but two strikeouts and a ground out, kept Houston off the board.
Houston reached scoring position in the bottom of the fifth. A hit and a passed ball put a runner at second, but after a walk a fielder’s choice at third got NU out of the inning.
The Big Red extended its lead in the top of the sixth. Felder led off with a single, advancing to second on an error. Squier was hit by a pitch, and Felder and Squier advanced to second and third on a sacrifice bunt from Neal. Ava Bredwell hit a single to center field, scoring two. A fly out from Katelyn Caneda advanced Bredwell to third. Billie Andrews had a hard hit ball back to the pitcher, scoring Bredwell. The Huskers went into the bottom of the sixth ahead, 4-0.
NU added three more runs in the top of the seventh. Sydney Gray singled followed by a double from Felder put runners at second and third. Squier singled, scoring Gray, and advancing to second on the throw. Neal added a single to center field, scoring Felder. A passed ball added the third run of the inning, but a double play and a ground out ended the inning. NU took a 7-0 lead into the bottom of the seventh.
The Cougars loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh with two singles and a walk, but Wallace responded with two strikeouts and a pop up to secure the 7-0 victory.
The Huskers return to action Sunday, Feb. 12. NU will face Virginia at 9:30 a.m. (CT). Fans can listen to the action live with the call from Nate Rohr on Huskers Radio Network. It will also be streamed on maxxsports.tv.
