Courtesy Nebraska Athletics
No. 2 Nebraska softball held Michigan’s powerful offense at bay, stranding nine Wolverine runners on base as the Cornhuskers won, 4-2, Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament in College Park, Md.
Michigan (34-20) left runners on base in five of seven innings. Jordy Frahm (17-4) allowed four hits and four walks against the Wolverines’ lineup that scored nine against Ohio State Wednesday. But Frahm surrendered just two runs, one earned while striking out nine in the complete game victory.
Michigan took a 1-0 lead three batters into the game after an Ella Stephenson RBI double. But with runners on at second and third and no out, Frahm and the Huskers (44-6) retired the next three batters, allowing nothing more. Nebraska’s bottom of the first started similarly, as Frahm drew a walk, then Hannah Coor singled to right. Hannah Camenzind followed with a single to right to score Frahm to tie the game. Ava Kuszak followed with a squeeze bunt single to give NU a 2-1 lead. Then Jesse Farrell popped up to second base, but Janelle Ilacqua, the Wolverines’ second baseman dropped it, allowing Camenzind to score and pushing the lead to 3-1.
The score stayed there until the fourth. With one out, Madi Ramey reached on an error. After Maddie Erickson singled to left, another error allowed Ramey to score and cut the Huskers’ lead to 3-2 and put runners at 2nd and 3rd with two out. A walk loaded the bases, but Frahm struck out Lauren Putz to end the inning and leave the bases loaded. Nebraska wasted no time answering in the bottom of the fourth, as leadoff hitter Emmerson Cope clubbed a tape-measure home run to left to grow the Huskers’ lead to 4-2.
Cope paced the NU offense, hitting 2-for-4. Samantha Bland also had two hits, while Frahm reached base three times with two walks and a single.
Nebraska advances to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals, where the Huskers will take on Indiana. The Hoosiers defeated Washington, 9-2, earlier Thursday. First pitch is slated for 4 p.m., with pregame coverage at 3:45 p.m. on B-107.3.