Caron Leads Huskers to 7-6 Win vs. Nicholls

Josh Caron went 3-for-4 and drove in a career-high five runs, leading the Huskers to a 7-6 win vs. Nicholls in the series opener at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park on Friday night.

Nebraska (11-5) totaled seven runs on 11 hits with an error, while Nicholls (17-4) tallied six runs on eight hits.

Caron tied a career-high with five RBI, finishing 3-for-4 with a double and home run. Rhett Stokes joined Caron in going 3-for-4, recording his fourth three-hit game in his last six contests. Cayden Brumbaugh walked four times, the most by a Husker in a single game since Cam Chick in 2022.

Riley Silva added a pair of hits from the No. 2 spot, while Dylan Carey and Cole Evans each drove in a run. Joshua Overbeek made his first start at Haymarket Park, reaching base in two of his five plate appearances.

Drew Christo allowed two runs, one earned, in a five-inning start on Friday. The junior struck out four and surrendered four hits across five frames. Tucker Timmerman allowed three runs over 1.1 innings while Evan Borst improved to 2-0, allowing an earned run across 0.2 innings.

Kyle Perry (0.1 IP) and Mason McConnaughey (0.2 IP) combined to pitch a shutout eighth frame, while Casey Daiss recorded his team-leading fourth save with a scoreless final inning.

Christo worked around a single in each of the first two innings and hung consecutive scoreless frames in the third and fourth to send a scoreless game into the bottom of the fourth.

The Huskers plated the game’s first three runs on a pair of hits in the fourth to jump ahead 3-0. Overbeek led off with a single, followed by full-count walk to Evans to place runners on first and second with no outs. The Big Red grabbed a three-run lead after Caron drilled his fifth homer of the season to right field.

Nicholls responded quickly by getting two of the runs back off two hits and an NU error. A one-out double down the left-field line set up Basiel Williams’ RBI single to right to cut the Husker lead to 3-1. The Colonels climbed within one after a muffed catch on a routine fly ball to right with two outs.

Stokes began the bottom of the fifth with a single up the middle, and Silva reached on a bunt single to put runners on first and second with one out. The Huskers loaded the bases after a walk to Overbeek on a 3-1 count. Evans brought home Stokes on a sacrifice fly to right to stretch the lead to 4-2 through five innings.

Timmerman tossed a scoreless sixth inning after issuing a one-out walk to maintain the two-run advantage for the Big Red.

The NU offense scored for the third consecutive inning to expand the lead to 5-2 for the Huskers in the sixth. Caron opened the inning with a double down the left-field line and moved to third on Garrett Anglim’s sacrifice bunt. Carey lined a 1-1 pitch through the left side to score Caron on an RBI single.

Nicholls fought back with three runs on two hits in the seventh to lock the game at five. Two walks and a single loaded the bases with no outs, while Gerardo Villarreal smacked a sacrifice fly to left to bring the visitors within 5-3. Jaden Collura’s pinch-hit two-RBI double down the left-field line tied the game back up at five.

Nebraska scratched across a run for the fourth straight inning, as the Huskers touched home twice to retake the lead at 7-5. The Big Red had the bases loaded with no outs after a walk to Brumbaugh, Silva’s single and a hit by pitch to Overbeek.

Following consecutive outs, Caron lined a two-RBI single back up the middle for his fourth and fifth RBI of the night to score Brumbaugh and Silva and give the Big Red a 7-5 advantage after seven innings.

The Colonels plated a run in the eighth to trim the NU lead in half. Two walks and a single through the left side created a bases loaded situation with two outs for Nicholls. McConnaughey induced a swinging strikeout with two outs, but a wild pitch allowed the runners to advance and make it a one-run game.

A leadoff single brought out Daiss from the bullpen, who forced a fielder’s choice and a game-ending double play to secure the Huskers' 11th win of the season.

Nebraska and Nicholls continue the weekend series tomorrow at 2:05 p.m. at Hawks Field at Haymarket Park. Saturday’s matchup can be seen on B1G+, while fans can listen to Greg Sharpe and Ben McLaughlin call the action on the Huskers Radio Network.