Las Vegas, Nev. – After posting a 2-0 shutout win on Friday night, the Nebraska baseball team dropped the final two games of its series with UNLV, including a 3-0 loss in the finale on Sunday. Nebraska had the tying or go-ahead run at the plate in both the eighth and ninth innings, but couldn’t get the hit it needed.

Nebraska had the bases loaded with two outs in the ninth, but Brayden Torres closed out the win when he got freshman Scott Schreiber to fly out.

D.J. Myers was stellar in his UNLV debut, as the junior college transfer gave up just three hits and one walk over 7.2 innings, while striking out five. A pair of Rebel relievers finished out the shutout, with Torres picking up the save.

For the Huskers, sophomore Max Knutson struggled in his first career start, lasting just 2.0 innings. Three NU relievers stepped up and kept Nebraska in the game by giving up only one run over 6.0 innings of work, but the Husker offense was never able to find a rhythm.

After Knutson retired the Rebels in order to start the game, he issues a leadoff walk in the second and then gave up a double to Edgar Montes. Nick Rodriguez did his job with an RBI groundout that gave the Rebels a 1-0 lead. Payton Squier then lifted a shallow fly ball into left field and Christian Cox made a spectacular diving catch for the out, but Montes was able to tag up and race home to give UNLV a 2-0 lead.

Knutson got into trouble again in the third when he issued back-to-back walks to start the inning, which forced Head Coach Darin Erstad to turn the ball over to the bullpen. Junior Jeff Chesnut stepped into a pressure situation and calmed the waters for the Huskers. Chesnut kept the Rebels from adding to their lead with three straight outs, including a great play from Blake Headley on a groundball where the NU third baseman cut Joey Swanner down at the plate.

Nebraska didn’t create its first scoring opportunity until the fourth when Ryan Boldt broke up Myers no hitter with a one-out single to center field. Boldt was then in scoring position following a groundout, but was stranded there when Myers struck out Tanner Lubach.

The Rebels caught a break in the seventh when Rodriguez lifted a low line drive to center field that looked to be caught by Boldt, but he lost the ball in the sun, resulting in a triple. Squier followed with an RBI double that pushed UNLV’s lead to 3-0.

The Huskers had the tying run at the plate in Austin Darby in the eighth following a pair of two-out walks, but Hartman shutdown the situation with strikeout looking.

Blake Headley got a rally going with a two-out single in the ninth that was followed by consecutive walks to load the bases. Torres came in and got the final out to end the game.

The Huskers will head back to Lincoln for a few days before returning to the Southwest on Wednesday with a trip to Peoria, Ariz. The Huskers open a four-game series against BYU on Thursday at the Peoria Sports Complex, the Spring Training home of the San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners.

The Huskers and Cougars open the series on Thursday at 2:05 p.m. (CT), then play a doubleheader that starts at 1:05 p.m. on Friday before wrapping up the series on Saturday at 1:05 p.m.