NU sweeps KSU after late surge

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BY CURT McKEEVER

MANHATTAN, Kan. - They're called jug runs, as in going for the jugular.

On Sunday, the Nebraska baseball team scored seven in the last three innings to beat Kansas State 9-5 and cap a weekend sweep of the Wildcats.

In the three victories, NU scored 16 of its 21 runs after the sixth inning.

"That ain't bad," coach Mike Anderson said after his 17th-ranked club improved to 21-5 overall and a Big 12-leading 5-1. "The nice thing about it is I think our team expects it."

With a Tointon Stadium crowd of 1,452 behind him, K-State right-hander Jim Ripley struck out a career-high 10 Huskers through the first six innings. But the senior was able to get just one more out while NU produced four straight hits during a four-run seventh that left it up 6-3.

Then, after the Wildcats (19-10, 2-4) pulled to 6-5 with runs in the seventh and eighth, Nebraska came up with a three-run ninth.

"We consider that one of our strong points, not giving up," said junior right fielder Daniel Bruce, who delivered an RBI single off B.J. Kissel in between third base and shortstop to give Nebraska a 4-3 lead in the seventh.

Bruce's hit scored Braden Keith, who with one out had singled past first to move John Grose, who had walked, to third. Colin Shockey had knocked Ripley (3-2) from the game with an RBI single to center.

"We try to learn from every at-bat," Bruce said. "We had a lot of guys getting out front on a lot of pitches and we said we don't want to strike out any more. I guess we had an attitude adjustment. We don't think anybody should do that to us."

After throwing a wild pitch, Kissel intentionally walked Alex Gordon to load the bases, and K-State called on closer Matt Petersen to face Jake Mullinax.

The move looked good when the right-handed sophomore got Mullinax looking at a 3-2 pitch for a strikeout, but Nebraska designated hitter Curtis Ledbetter then golfed a 1-2 pitch to right field that fell for a two-run single when Steve Murphy couldn't hang onto the ball after making a diving effort.

"It was a slider down and away and I was just trying to hit the ball the other way," said Ledbetter, who also hit clutch home runs on Friday and Saturday. "I don't have any idea how I got that in the air and then on the ground."

Kansas State refused to go down easily and got an RBI double from Jason Long in the seventh and an RBI single from Josh Heinrich in the eighth. But given three more insurance runs, NU closer Mike Sillman worked a 1-2-3 ninth to notch his third save.

Gordon started the Huskers' final-inning outburst by hitting a one-out homer to dead center field. Mullinax doubled off the glove of Murphy before Ledbetter made it 8-5 with a double. Joe Simokaitis then bounced a single between first and second to plate Ledbetter.

"It's awesome to experience come-from-behind (wins)," Bruce said. "It shows character."

The Huskers hadn't had to play from behind for quite a while, as they'd put together four straight shutout wins. But Sunday it mattered little that a scoreless-innings stretch produced by the pitchers ended at 431/3.

Not only did Nebraska's bats wake up in the late going, but the Huskers played another error-free game to extend the number of innings they've been perfect in the field to 441/3.

"I'm absolutely thrilled," Anderson said of his team's first Big 12 road series sweep since Oklahoma last season. "For a lot of these kids, it's the first Big 12 weekend on the road. It's huge."

Nebraska returns home for five games this week. The Huskers play host to New Mexico today at 4:05 p.m. and Tuesday at 1:35 p.m. NU then takes on Texas Tech in a three-game weekend set.

"We're winning ballgames. That says something," Ledbetter said. "Results, baby!"

Reach Curt McKeever at 473-7441 or cmckeever@;journalstar.com.