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Nebraska Baseball Blows Final Nonconference Game in Final Inning to South Dakota State

Jackrabbits plate five runs in the ninth inning to upend the Huskers

Kaleb Henry

Pinch-hitter Josh Caron walks off the field after striking out with the bases loaded to end the game.
Pinch-hitter Josh Caron walks off the field after striking out with the bases loaded to end the game. / Amarillo Mullen

Nebraska baseball was two outs away from closing out the final nonconference game of the year with a win.

But then all hell broke loose. South Dakota State posted five runs in the top of the ninth inning to take the win, 10-6. With the loss, the Huskers fall to 30-17 on the year. The Jackrabbits improve to 18-25.

A week after throwing a no-hitter, Jackson Brockett tossed just 3.0 innings, giving up one earned run on two hits. Nine other Husker hurlers saw time, including three in the final frame.

Nebraska notched 12 hits in the game, led by a 3-for-5 effort from Rhett Stokes. The Huskers stranded 14 baserunners, including three in the bottom of the ninth inning when pinch-hitter Josh Caron struck out swinging with the bases loaded to end the game.

The Huskers led 6-2 going into the eighth inning, but that's when the Thatcher Kozal show began for the Jackrabbits. Kozal slugged a three-run homer to cut the Huskers' lead to a single run, and he repeated the feat in the ninth with another three-run blast that provided the Jacks their final 10-6 margin of victory.

Nebraska stays home to host Indiana for a three-game series this weekend.

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Kaleb Henry
KALEB HENRY

Kaleb Henry is an award-winning sports reporter, covering collegiate athletics since 2014 via radio, podcasting, and digital journalism. His experience with Big Ten Conference teams goes back more than a decade, including time covering programs such as the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Oregon Ducks, and USC Trojans. He has contributed to Sports Illustrated since 2021. Kaleb has won multiple awards for his sports coverage from the Nebraska Broadcasters Association and Midwest Broadcast Journalists Association. Prior to working in sports journalism, Kaleb was a Division I athlete on the Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Track and Field team where he discussed NCAA legislation as SIUE's representative to the Ohio Valley Conference Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. 

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