Nebraska – Page 9 – North Platte Post Archive

Three Huskers Advance to NCAA Quarterfinals

Posted on March 19, 2015

St. Louis, Mo. – Robert Kokesh (174), James Green (157) and Anthony Abidin (141) each advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships during Session II of the tournament on Thursday night.

Kokesh, the top seed at 174 pounds, picked up his second major decision of the day with his 11-0 triumph over Purdue’s Chad Welch. Kokesh outscored his two opponents 20-0 on Thursday and will face eighth-seeded Tyler Wilps of Pittsburgh in Friday morning’s quarterfinals.

Green, a three-time All-American, also notched a pair of bonus-point wins at 157 pounds on Thursday. He won a 20-5 technical fall over Drexel’s Noel Blanco after his major decision in the first session. Green will battle No. 12 seed Mitchell Minotti of Lehigh in Session III.

Abidin, the No. 9 seed at 141 pounds, topped eighth-seeded Geo Martinez of Boise State in the second round by a 6-4 decision. Abidin is set to grapple against top-seeded Logan Stieber of Ohio State on Friday morning.

Austin Wilson (165), TJ Dudley (184) and Aaron Studebaker (197) each won in Session I, but fell in the second round to seeded opponents. Dudley fell by a narrow decision to top-seeded Gabe Dean of Cornell, Studebaker lost to No. 2 seed Morgan McIntosh of Penn State, 14-5, and Wilson fell to 15th-seeded Ethan Ramos of North Carolina, 6-3. All three Huskers will wrestle in the consolation bracket in Session III on Friday.

Tim Lambert (125), Eric Montoya (133) and Collin Jensen (HWT) each rebounded from a first-round loss with a win in the consolation bracket.

Nebraska is tied for fifth as a team with 18 points. Ohio State leads the team race with 23 points, while Iowa (21) and Oklahoma State (19.5) round out the top three.

Friday’s action begins with Session III at 10 a.m. (CT) on ESPNU and ESPN3. Session IV, also set for Friday, starts at 7 p.m. The championship semifinals will be broadcasted on ESPN and all matches will be streamed on ESPN3.

NCAA Championships
March 19-21, 2015
Scottrade Center
St. Louis, Mo.

125 pounds
First Round: #2 Nahshon Garrett (CORN) by dec. over Tim Lambert (NEB), 10-6
Consolation First Round: Tim Lambert (NEB) by major dec. over #15 Chasen Tolbert (UV), 9-1

133 pounds
First Round: #6 Earl Hall (ISU) by dec. over Eric Montoya (NEB), 7-4
Consolation First Round: Eric Montoya (NEB) by dec. over Zach Synon (MIZZ), 4-0

141 pounds
First Round: #9 Anthony Abidin (NEB) by major dec. over Nick Lawrence (PUR), 8-0
Second Round: #9 Anthony Abidin (NEB) by dec. over #8 Geo Martinez (BSU), 6-4

157 pounds
First Round: #4 James Green (NEB) by major dec. over Markus Scheidel (COL), 13-4
Second Round: #4 James Green (NEB) by tech. fall over Noel Blanco (DREX), 20-5

165 pounds
First Round: Austin Wilson (NEB) by dec. over #2 Michael Moreno (ISU), 7-5
Second Round: #15 Ethan Ramos (UNC) by dec. over Austin Wilson (NEB), 6-3

174 pounds
First Round: #1 Robert Kokesh (NEB) by major dec. over Taylor Massa (MICH), 9-0
Second Round: #1 Robert Kokesh (NEB) by major dec. over Chad Welch (PUR), 11-0

184 pounds
First Round: #16 TJ Dudley (NEB) by major dec. over Ophir Bernstein (BRO), 9-0
Second Round: #1 Gabe Dean (CORN) by dec. over #16 TJ Dudley (NEB), 9-8

197 pounds
First Round: #15 Aaron Studebaker (NEB) by dec. over Jake Smith (WVU), 3-1
Second Round: #2 Morgan McIntosh (PSU) by major dec. over #15 Aaron Studebaker (NEB), 14-5

Heavyweight
First Round: #6 Adam Coon (MICH) by pin over Collin Jensen (NEB), 4:29
Consolation First Round: Collin Jensen (NEB) by dec. over Nathan Butler (STAN), 5-3

Huskers Happy to Dance in South Carolina

Posted on March 19, 2015

Columbia, S.C. – Nebraska Coach Connie Yori and the Huskers met the media and held their first practice at Colonial Life Arena on Thursday in preparation for Friday’s game against Syracuse in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament.

The ninth-seeded Huskers (21-10, 10-8 Big Ten) will battle eighth-seeded Syracuse (21-9, 11-5 ACC) in Friday’s first round at approximately 6:30 p.m. (central).

The game between Nebraska and the Orange will follow Friday’s first game between No. 1 seed South Carolina (30-2, 15-1 SEC) and 16th-seeded Savannah State (21-10, 13-3 MEAC), which will tip at 4:05 p.m. (central). Both games will be televised live by ESPN2.

Yori addressed members of the media in the official NCAA Press Conference at Colonial Life Arena on Thursday afternoon, prior to Nebraska’s practice. She was joined by Nebraska senior forwards Emily Cady and Hailie Sample, who both will be playing in the 132nd games of their Husker careers. For Cady, it will be her school-record-tying 132nd consecutive start.

Cady said the Huskers were proud to be competing in their fourth straight NCAA Tournament.

“We take a lot of pride in it. We’ve worked really hard to get to the point that we’re at,” Cady said. “It’s humbling and we’re really, really proud of it.”

Sample said the Big Red, who advanced to the 2013 NCAA Sweet 16 and 2014 NCAA Second Round, were thrilled with another postseason opportunity.

“I think we’re just excited in general,” Sample said. “We’re thinking about the game at hand.”

Yori said the Huskers were thrilled to be in South Carolina in the NCAA Tournament.

“I’m just glad we’re here. I’m just happy to be in the NCAA Tournament, and I think we all feel that way,” Yori said. “The first game is going to be incredibly difficult because I think the two teams are very evenly matched.”

Wilson’s Upset Sparks Huskers in Session I

Posted on March 19, 2015

St. Louis, Mo. – Junior Austin Wilson (165) knocked off No. 2 seed Michael Moreno of Iowa State and five other Huskers posted wins in Session I of the NCAA Championships at the Scottrade Center on Thursday.

Wilson, making his third NCAA Championships appearance, raced out to an early 5-0 advantage over Moreno after scoring near fall points in the first period. He notched a 7-5 decision over the Cyclone to pick up his 17th win of the season.

Top-seeded Robert Kokesh (174) opened his tournament with a 9-0 major decision over Michigan’s Taylor Massa to improve to 34-0 this season. Kokesh, a two-time All-American, will face Purdue’s Chad Welch in the second round tonight.

Three-time All-American James Green (157) also picked up bonus points along with No. 9 seed Anthony Abidin (141) and 16th-seeded TJ Dudley (184). Abidin and Dudley each shut out their opponents for major decisions. Green notched a 13-4 major decision over Markus Scheidel of Columbia.

Sophomore Aaron Studebaker posted a 3-1 decision over West Virginia’s Jake Smith at 197 pounds. Tim Lambert (125), Eric Montoya (133) and Collin Jensen (HWT) also wrestled for the Huskers, but each of them fell to top-10 opponents in the opening round.

As a team, Nebraska is tied for fifth with 10 points after the first session. Ohio State leads the team competition with 13.5 points, while Penn State is second with 11.5 points.

Session II starts tonight at 6 p.m. (CT). ESPNU will televise the championship bracket matches and ESPN3 will stream all bouts.

NCAA Championships
March 19-21, 2015
Scottrade Center
St. Louis, Mo.

125 pounds
First Round: #2 Nahshon Garrett (CORN) by dec. over Tim Lambert (NEB), 10-6

133 pounds
First Round: #6 Earl Hall (ISU) by dec. over Eric Montoya (NEB), 7-4

141 pounds
First Round: #9 Anthony Abidin (NEB) by major dec. over Nick Lawrence (PUR), 8-0

157 pounds
First Round: #4 James Green (NEB) by major dec. over Markus Scheidel (COL), 13-4

165 pounds
First Round: Austin Wilson (NEB) by dec. over #2 Michael Moreno (ISU), 7-5

174 pounds
First Round: #1 Robert Kokesh (NEB) by major dec. over Taylor Massa (MICH), 9-0

184 pounds
First Round: #16 TJ Dudley (NEB) by major dec. over Ophir Bernstein (BRO), 9-0

197 pounds
First Round: #15 Aaron Studebaker (NEB) by dec. over Jake Smith (WVU), 3-1

Heavyweight
First Round: #6 Adam Coon (MICH) by pin over Collin Jensen (NEB), 4:29

Huskers Host Michigan to Open Big Ten Play

Posted on March 19, 2015

After playing 20 non-conference games to start the season, the Nebraska baseball team (14-6, 0-0 Big Ten) is set to open Big Ten Conference play this weekend when they host the Michigan Wolverines (11-8, 0-0 Big Ten) for a three-game series at Hawks Field.

Friday’s series opener is scheduled for 6:35 p.m., Saturday’s game is set for 2:05 p.m. and the series concludes on Sunday at 11:05 a.m.

The Huskers and Wolverines have played 15 games all-time and the Huskers hold a 8-7 advantage in the series. 11 of the 15 games have come since 2012 when the Huskers joined the Big Ten Conference, and during that time frame the Huskers are 7-4 against the Wolverines, including a 2-0 record at the Big Ten Tournament.

This weekend’s match comes right in the middle of Nebraska’s 16-game home stand and the Huskers enter Friday a perfect 7-0 at Hawks Field this year. The Wolverines have played all 19 of their games away from Ann Arbor, as they won’t play their first home game until Tuesday, March 24, against Bowling Green. The Wolverines are 4-4 in true road games this year, with 11 of their 19 games played at neutral sites.

Senior Chance Sinclair is scheduled to start for the Huskers on Friday night and he will face sophomore lefty Brett Adcock. Last season, Sinclair pitched the second game of NU series at Michigan and gave up just one unearned run over 7.1 innings in a 3-1 win. Adcock saw 1.0 inning of relief in the series finale, giving up two runs on two hits, while striking out two.

Senior Kyle Kubat is set to start on Sunday and will look to improve to 4-0 all-time against the Wolverines. The 6-1 Kubat started each of Nebraska’s two wins over Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament, including a career-high 8.2 inning outing last season in Omaha. Michigan is set to counter with freshman right hander Ryan Nutof. A native of South Elgin, Ill., Nutof is 1-1 on the year in five starts with a 2.67 ERA over 27.0 innings of work. Nutof has given up 15 hits and walked 15, while striking out 19.

Sophomore Derek Burkamper will start on Sunday for the Huskers, it will be his sixth career start and his first during league play. Burkamper has gone at least 6.0 innings in each of his last three starts and will be looking for his second straight win. The Wolverines have yet to announce a starter for Sunday.

Friday, March 21 (6:35 p.m.)

Probable Starters: RHP Sinclair (2-3) vs. LHP Adcock (2-2)

TV: None

Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: HuskersNSide

Radio: Husker Sports Network

Wednesday, March 22 (2:05 p.m.)

Probable Starters: LHP Kubat (3-0) vs. RHP Nutof (1-1)

TV: None

Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: HuskersNSide

Radio: Husker Sports Network

Sunday, March 23 (11:05 a.m.)

Probable Starters: RHP Burkamper (2-1) vs. TBA

TV: None

Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: HuskersNSide

Radio: Husker Sports Network

Nebraska’s Riley Must Pick and Choose what Offense Can Do

Posted on March 18, 2015

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — New Nebraska coach Mike Riley says he has a hunch the entirety of his pro-style offense won’t be game-ready come fall.

Riley said Wednesday that he and his staff will spend next week’s spring break studying practice video and paring back the number of plays they’ll work on the rest of the spring practice.

He said he wants to head into the fall with his offense “pretty good at a few things and not average at a whole bunch of stuff.”

Riley said the quarterbacks need to complete a higher percentage and cut down on interceptions.

Presumptive starter Tommy Armstrong Jr. stood on the sideline for Wednesday’s practice because of tightness and spasms in his lower back.

Husker Offense Continues Learning Curve

Posted on March 18, 2015

Lincoln, Neb.- The Nebraska football team completed its seventh practice of the 2015 spring football season on Wednesday afternoon. The Huskers practices for just over two hours outside on the Ed and Joyanne Gass practice fields in full pads.

Nebraska Head Coach Mike Riley spoke with media members following practice, as he mentioned that the Husker quarterback corps has been doing really well learning all of the new commands in Riley’s offense.

“I think the quarterbacks have done a nice job of having a lot to learn and making some plays. I guess it’s remarkably like practice for me, some of it looks good, some of it doesn’t,” he said. “You go back and look at the film, but you know what, for the most part considering learning a new language—even the stuff as simple as a new cadence—I think they have done ok.”

Riley added that the Husker quarterbacks need to cut down on some of their interceptions before the annual Red-White Spring Game. Riley mentioned that location of the football and making good choices with the football are the keys to cut down on the interceptions and make good quarterbacks.

During practice Wednesday, things got a little chippy during the scrimmage portion of the Husker practice. Riley loved the team’s intensity during practice, but said that the team needs to be smart, as some of their actions can result in personal foul penalties.

“I like the spirit, but I think that you have to practice self-control because that is a penalty plus you get kicked out,” Riley said. “You are just practicing something that is bad for your team, so we don’t have that.”

Junior quarterback Tommy Armstrong sat out practice Wednesday. According to Riley, Armstrong has been battling a minor back injury that should not keep him off the field for long.

“He has had some lower back (spasms) so he has had a hard time, he has struggled through a couple of practices with it, so we just decided to keep him out today,” Riley said.

Overall, Riley said he is pretty impressed with the Huskers spring practice season so far, noting the team still has a long way to go, as the evaluation process continues.

“I think that it is interesting, I am impressed with a lot of the volume that we have in, I am not yet impressed with how we execute it all yet. I think we are going to now have to be very selective on the rest of spring and what we do for fall camp.”

Nebraska returns to the practice field on Friday for its eighth workout of the spring. Check back at Huskers.com for updates.

Huskers Sweep Sycamores, Improve to 7-0 at Home

Posted on March 18, 2015

Lincoln – The Nebraska baseball (14-6, 0-0 Big Ten) team hung on to a one-run lead for the second straight day, as they completed a two-game sweep of the Indiana State Sycamores (8-9, 0-0 MVC) on Wednesday afternoon with a 3-2 victory. The Huskers are now 7-0 at Hawks Field and continue their 16-game homestand on Friday at 6:35 p.m.when they open Big Ten play with a three-game series against the Michigan Wolverines.

Hits and base runners were at a premium on Wednesday, with the two teams combining for 15 hits. Junior catcher Taylor Fish led all players with three hits, his second career three-hit game. Both pitching staff pounded the zone, as each team issued just one walk. Three Husker freshmen combined for 10 strikeouts on the afternoon, including five from starter Zack Engelken, who went 4.1 innings. Jake Meyers earned the win in 2.2 innings of relief, while Nate Fisher tossed a scoreless inning of relief with two strikeouts.

Senior Josh Roeder shut the door for the second straight day to notch his seventh save of the season. Roeder is now seven saves away from breaking Brett Jensen’s NU career saves record of 31.

The Huskers scored all three of their runs in the fourth inning, capped by a two-run homer from Austin Darby that landed in the visitor’s bullpen beyond the right-field wall. It was Darby’s first home run of the season and snapped an 0-for-9 slump for the senior right fielder. Scott Schreiber got the Huskers on the board earlier in the inning he delivered a deep fly ball to left field that scored Blake Headley, who led off the inning with his seventh double of the year.

The Sycamores broke in the scoring column in the fifth when Manual Estevez led off the inning with a home run. Two batters later, Meyers took over for Engelken with the tying run at the plate and promptly got a pair of outs to keep the Huskers in front 3-1.

Tyler Friis led off the eighth with a double for the Sycamores, and the Huskers turned the ball to Fisher, who gave up a RBI single to Landon Curry. Fisher then retired three straight batters, including back-to-back strikeouts to end the eighth. Roeder took the mound in the ninth and sat down Indiana State’s 6-7-8 hitters in order to complete the two-game sweep.

Following Friday’s series opener, the Huskers and Wolverines will meet at 2:05 p.m. on Saturday before wrapping up the series at 11:05 a.m. on Sunday.

51,500 Tickets Sold for Riley’s 1st Spring Game at Nebraska

Posted on March 18, 2015

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska has sold 51,500 tickets for new coach Mike Riley’s first spring football game in three weeks.

Athletic department spokesman Keith Mann said Wednesday that all sections of Memorial Stadium would be open for seating at the April 11 event.

The Nebraska record for spring-game attendance was 80,149 in 2008. Last year’s event drew 61,772.

Huskers Hold On for 4-3 Win Over Indiana State

Posted on March 17, 2015

Lincoln – The Indiana State Sycamores (8-8, 0-0 MVC) had the tying run on base in the top of the ninth, but Josh Roeder closed out a 4-3 win with a strikeout for his sixth save of the season. It was the Huskers’ sixth straight victory, as they improved to 13-6 on the year.

The Huskers were outhit on the day, 8-6, but worked eight walks off the Sycamores’ pitching staff, while Nebraska’s staff issued just one free pass and struck out eight. Junior Jeff Chesnut earned the win and improved to 3-0 on the year following two innings of perfect relief with four strikeouts.

Ryan Boldt and Jake Placzek each notched two hits, with Boldt chipping in a pair of RBIs.

Placzek picked up NU’s first hit of the game in the bottom of the third with a leadoff single and later scored the game’s first run on a RBI single by Boldt. The Huskers pushed their lead to 2-0 when Jake Schleppenbach scored on a wild pitch from Indiana State starter David Stagg.

The Sycamores tied the game with a run in both the fourth and fifth innings, including a solo home run from Jacob Hayes in the fourth that bounced off the right-field foul pole.

After Chesnut retired the Sycamores in order in both the sixth and seventh innings, the Huskers regained the lead in the bottom of the seventh on a two-out single by Boldt that scored Jake Meyers. Meyers got the two-out rally started when he worked a walk, moved to second on a wild pitch and then to third on a balk. After Boldt’s single the Huskers loaded the bases with another single and a walk before Greg Kuhlman put an end to the threat with a ground out.

Colton Howell retired the Sycamores in order in the eighth and then the Huskers added an important insurance run on a one-out single by Placzek that put the Huskers in front 4-2.

Roeder took the mound in the ninth and got a pop out from the first batter he faced, but then Andy Young gave the Sycamores life when he doubled off the left-field wall. Roeder bounced back and struck out Andy DeJesus looking for the second out of the inning. Down to their last out, Indiana State got a RBI single from Kaden Moore and then had the tying run at first base, but Roeder struck out Connor McClain swinging to end the game.

The Huskers and Sycamores wrap up their two-game midweek series tomorrow at 1:35 p.m. Freshman Zack Engelken is scheduled to start for the Huskers, while lefty Trent Lunsford is scheduled to start for Indiana State.

Huskers Clash with Syracuse in NCAA First Round Friday

Posted on March 17, 2015

The Nebraska women’s basketball team made history by earning its fourth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament and will take on Syracuse Friday in the first round at Columbia, S.C.

Tip-off between the ninth-seeded Cornhuskers (21-10, 10-8 Big Ten) and eighth-seeded Orange (21-9, 11-5 ACC) at Colonial Life Arena is set for 6:30 p.m. (central) with live national television coverage provided by ESPN2. Husker fans may not be able to see the game in its entirety on ESPN2 because of tournament whip-around coverage, so fans can seek more complete coverage on ESPN3.com or the WatchESPN app. Pam Ward and Carolyn Peck will be on the television call for ESPN2.

Live radio coverage from the Husker Sports Network is available with Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch on stations across the network, including B107.3 FM in Lincoln, 93.3 FM in Omaha and 880 AM KRVN in Lexington. Free live audio is available on Huskers.com.

Nebraska seniors Emily Cady, Brandi Jeffery, Tear’a Laudermill and Hailie Sample made history by advancing to their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament. The seniors, who all came to Nebraska as true freshmen in the same recruiting class prior to NU’s first season in the Big Ten in 2011-12, are also the first class in Husker history to produce four straight 20-win campaigns.

They will try to add to a school-record 96 career victories – an average of 24 wins per season. Prior to their arrival in Lincoln, only one Nebraska team had ever won more than 23 games – the 2010 Huskers who went 32-2 to claim an NCAA No. 1 seed.

Cady, a four-year starter from Seward, Neb., is set to tie a Nebraska record with her 132nd consecutive start on Friday. The 6-2 forward also needs just five rebounds to catch 2014 first-team All-American Jordan Hooper at No. 2 on the Nebraska career rebounds list (1,110). Cady ranks sixth among active NCAA rebounders with 1,105 in her career. She has added 1,441 points and 303 assists, while ranking among the top five players in school history with 114 career blocks.

Sample, a 6-1 forward from Flower Mound, Texas, has started 131 games alongside Cady, while Laudermill (Moreno Valley, Calif.) has made 61 straight starts. Jeffery (Vacherie, La.) has added 38 career starts to give the seniors more than 300 combined career starts.

Nebraska Cornhuskers (21-10, 10-8 Big Ten)
3 – Hailie Sample – 6-1 – Sr. – F – 7.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg
23 – Emily Cady – 6-2 – Sr. – F – 12.5 ppg, 10.3 rpg
1 – Tear’a Laudermill – 5-9 – Sr. – G – 13.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg
5 – Natalie Romeo – 5-7 – Fr. – G – 8.7 ppg, 2.5 rpg
13 – Brandi Jeffery – 5-7 – Sr. – G – 7.9 ppg, 6.7 rpg
Off the Bench
33 – Rachel Theriot (OUT) – 6-0 – Jr. – G – 16.5 ppg, 4.2 rpg
22 – Allie Havers – 6-5 – So. – C – 4.9 ppg, 3.0 rpg
31 – Anya Kalenta – 6-3 – Jr. – F – 3.2 ppg, 1.4 rpg
30 – Chandler Smith – 6-0 – Fr. – G – 1.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg
34 – Jasmine Cincore – 5-8 – Fr. – G – 1.3 ppg, 0.2 rpg
12 – Emily Wood – 5-5 – Fr. – G – 0.2 ppg, 0.5 rpg
11 – Esther Ramacieri – 5-8 – So. – G – 0.1 ppg, 0.5 rpg
50 – Darrien Washington – 6-2 – Fr. – F – Redshirting
Head Coach: Connie Yori (Creighton, 1986)
13th Season at NU (262-152); 25th Season Overall (457-292)

Syracuse Orange (21-9, 11-5 ACC)
1 – Alexis Peterson – 5-7 – So. – G – 15.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg
11 – Cornelia Fondren – 5-8 – Jr. – G – 7.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg
13 – Brianna Butler – 5-11 – Jr. – G – 13.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg
10 – Isabella Slim – 6-0 – So. – F – 1.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg
50 – Briana Day – 6-4 – So. – C – 9.8 ppg, 10.6 rpg
Off the Bench
0 – Diamond Henderson (OUT) – 5-6 – Sr. – G – 10.5 ppg, 1.9 rpg
22 – Taylor Ford – 6-0 – Jr. – F – 6.6 ppg, 4.8 rpg
4 – Maggie Morrison – 5-8 – Sr. – G – 2.8 ppg, 1.1 rpg
55 – Bria Day – 6-4 – So. – F – 1.1 ppg, 2.9 rpg
44 – Amber Witherspoon – 6-4 – Fr. – C – 0.5 ppg, 1.1 rpg
21 – Danielle Minott – 5-8 – Fr. – G – 1.4 ppg, 1.0 rpg
Head Coach: Quentin Hillsman (St. Mary’s, Md., 1993)
8th Season at Syracuse (167-99); 8th Season Overall (167-99)