Lincoln, Neb. ? Kansas University had twice as many homers and matched Nebraska hit-for-hit, but the Huskers used a fourth-inning grand slam by Mitch Abeita to claim an 8-6 Big 12 Conference baseball victory over the Jayhawks on Saturday at Hawks Field.
KU junior Buck Afenir and senior Casey Larson each had a home run, and four Jayhawks had two hits apiece against the ninth-ranked Huskers (28-6-1 overall, 13-3-1 Big 12). KU fell to 24-18 and 4-10.
Each team had 12 hits, but KU stranded 10 runners, including six in scoring position.
Nebraska, meanwhile, took advantage of an error and three walks to earn its second victory of the series.
KU broke out to a 2-0 lead after the top of the fourth on a pair of RBIs from third baseman Tony Thompson. However, NU answered with Abeita’s grand slam with nobody out in the fourth.
The Jayhawks fought back to tie the score in the fifth on Afenir’s sixth home run of the season, however the Huskers answered with a run in the fifth and two in the sixth to chase starting pitcher Andres Esquibel after 52â3 innings.
KU cut the deficit to 7-6 on a two-out RBI single by Preston Land in the seventh and a solo home run by Larson in the eighth. But Nebraska increased the deficit to two runs with back-to-back infield hits in the eighth.
