Nebraska’s Brett Sears pitched what will likely be the top Big Ten mound performance of the week – 9 shutout innings on 2 hits, striking out ten. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
In one of the most dominating college pitching performances in recent memory, Nebraska’s Brett Sears shut down the Buckeyes on just two hits in the opening game of the three-game series in Lincoln.
Lincoln, NE – You know doubt have heard it before…that good pitching will shut down good hitting every time.
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Well, Nebraska senior Brett Sears demonstrated that very fact in masterpiece fashion Friday night, shutting out the Ohio State Buckeyes, 3-0, on a complete-game 2-hitter in which the Buckeyes really only had a couple of well-hit balls, and struck out ten times.
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Sears, who ranks second in Big Ten stats for wins, and first in earned run average, was simply dominating, striking out 10, walking none, and needed just 115 pitches to do something that you seldom see in a college baseball game – a complete-game shutout by the starting pitcher.
Ohio State coach Bill Mosiello mustered a faint smile afterwards as he paid credit where it was justly due.
“He was fantastic, and we never made the adjustments,” said Mosiello. “He had a great changeup, and I think we swung through sixteen of those changeups…like we were obligated to swing. We saw the same pitch over and over and we never adjusted to it.
“The changeup is the hardest pitch to hit in baseball because you don’t see spin, you don’t see anything. And he was still touching 94 in the ninth, I thought we could scratch a couple of runs, but he was still touching 94 in the ninth, and throwing that changeup. He pitched with a lot of confidence and was just outstanding.”
“The changeup is the toughest pitch to hit in baseball.” A Buckeye hitter is frozen by one in the fifth inning of Friday’s loss to Nebraska.
Ironically, one of the Buckeyes’ two hits came from Trey Lipsey leading off the game…a slug bunt that he beat out for a single down the first base line.
The other was a flaired single over second base in the fifth inning by right fielder Mitch Okuley.
But in both cases Sears simply bowed his neck and pitched as if he hadn’t noticed. Only four times in the game did he pitch from behind in the count, starting 23 of the 27 outs with a count of 1 strike, 2 strikes, or 1 ball and two strikes.
Sophomore Landon Beidelschies was the tough luck opponent on the mound for the Buckeyes, and continued his puzzling issues of struggling in the first inning. Nebraska scored in the bottom of the first by loading the bases on a pair of singles, a walk, and a 6-4-3 double play that drove in the runner from third base.
Nebraska added a pair of runs in the bottom of the third on a hit, a walk, and a single to the left of third baseman Tyler Pettorini that hancuffed him, then got far enough out into left field for both runners to score from third and second, respectively.
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Beidelschies would pitch out of the inning, then a scoreless fourth, before being lifted one out deep in the fifth after a leadoff single. Freshman reliever Chase Herrell came on to retire the side on a ground ball to shortstop and a pair of strikeouts.
From that point Brett Sears seemed to gain momentum, picking up five of his ten strikeouts over the final five innings. And when he came out to pitch the bottom of the ninth the huge crowd at Nebraska’s Haymarket Park gave him a standing ovation. He didn’t disappoint.
OSU’s Tyler Pettorini reaches for the baseball on a stolen base attempt during Friday’s loss to Nebraska.
Up to that point Sears’ (6-0, 1.14 ERA) fastest pitch on the scoreboard radar gun had been 93 miles per hour. He eclipsed that twice during the final three outs – a soft line drive to second by Nick Giamarusti, a strikeout of Josh Stevenson, and a fly ball to left field by Lipsey for the 27th out.
“When you get a guy throwing that many strikes you don’t have a choice but to be ready for the ball,” added Mosiello. “He upgrades their whole team by being able to do that, and he’s not the only guy on their staff capable of doing it. They just don’t walk many people.
“We pitched well, there weren’t a lot of balls hit hard against us, but they played a great pitching and defensive game against us. Now we have to come back tomorrow and win a game. We don’t have a choice. We’ve dropped the first game before and still taken the series.”
Game Notes:
The Buckeyes’ bullpen had one of its better nights of the season. Chase Herrell pitched two innings of scoreless, one-hit baseball.
Reliever Logan Jones pitched a scoreless eighth, striking out the side. Combined over 4.2 innings, the bullpen pitched scoreless, 1-hit baseball.
Jacob Morin came on to relieve Herrell in the seventh and pitched .2 innings of spotless baseball.
And Logan Jones, featuring a really good breaking ball, pitched a perfect eighth, striking out the side.
As it turned out, Herrell, Morin, and Jones proved to be one of the few positives for the night.
Out of his total of 115 pitches thrown for the shutout, Brett Sears threw 81 strikes.
Saturday’s game has been moved from 2 pm to 12 noon because of the forecast for high winds later in the game.
There’s very little question as to which Big Ten school leads the conference in home attendance. 5,670 locals packed Haymarket Park Friday to see the Huskers win.
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