The Nebraska baseball team has officially entered the postseason at this point.
In spite of what can only be described as a poor regular season, the Huskers made do with what they had. They overcame the loss of their star player Mason McConnaughey and overcame the upheaval that occurred early in the season to end with a record of 28-27 and eighth place in the Big Ten.
The Nebraska Cornhuskers, who were on the verge of being eliminated from the conference tournament heading into the final three weeks of the season, secured their spot in Omaha to compete for the Big Ten’s automatic NCAA qualifier spot. This is the only way for Nebraska to compete in a regional in 2025. They did this by securing three big weekend series victories over Minnesota, Michigan, and Purdue.
During the current season, the Big Ten Tournament made a significant adjustment to its format in order to determine the winner of the conference championship. At Omaha, the top twelve teams in the conference will be divided into four pools of three teams each. These pools will be broken into four groups. Following the completion of a round robin, the champion of each pool will be placed into a single elimination bracket consisting of four teams in order to determine the winner. The Huskers are in the same pool with No. 12 Michigan State and No. 1 Oregon, both of which equaled UCLA for the regular season conference crown with a record of 22-8. This means that the Huskers have a lot of work to do. The first game that Northwestern University will play is on Tuesday night against the Spartans. Then, on Friday night, they will compete against the Ducks.
As the Huskers prepare to make the short trip to Omaha in the hopes of winning the Big Ten Tournament for the second consecutive year, here is all you need to know about the game.
The following is a matchup between Nebraska (28-27, 15-15 B1G) and Michigan State (28-25, 13-17 B1G). Here is how to follow along.
When: Tuesday, twentieth of May, 2025
Omaha, Nebraska’s Charles Schwab Field is the location.
The time is six o’clock. Big Ten Network Can Be Watched on CDT
Prospective pitchers can be heard on the Huskers Radio Network and affiliated stations.
Missouri State: Joseph Dzierwa, left-handed pitcher, junior (8-3, 2.31 ERA, 85.2 IP, 22 ER, 61 H, 98 SO, 21 BB) | Oklahoma State: Ty Horn, right-handed pitcher, sophomore (2-4, 5.66 ERA, 68.1 IP, 43 ER, 76 H, 62 SO, 25 BB)
Record of the Series
The all-time series is currently led by Nebraska, 18-10.
The last time these two teams competed against one another was in the last conference series of the regular season in 2024, which took place in East Lansing. Nebraska won two of the three games. When the Huskers and Spartans faced one other in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Big Ten Tournament, Will Walsh, the Huskers’ starting pitcher, threw a complete game shutout.
Scouting season for Michigan State University in 2025: 28-25 (13-17 Big Ten, 12th)
Jake Boss Jr. had a record of 468-406 during his 17th season at Michigan State and 493-440 during his 18th season as head coach.
Joseph Dzierwa, Jr., left-handed pitcher, was named to the All-Conference team for back-ups.
Key Transfers: Caleb Berry, C, Gr. (Milligan) | Parker Picot, OF, Soph. (Alabama) | Tyler Horvath, RHP, Gr. (Case Western Reserve) | JT Sokolove, OF, Sr. (Illinois State) | Zach Maxey, RHP, Gr. (Miami, OH).
* Denotes the Leader of the Team
Principal Actors
Joseph Dzierwa, LHP, Jr. | 8-3 | 2.31* ERA | 85.2* IP | 98* SO | 21 BB | 22 ER | 61 H
Second in WHIP, strikeouts, and innings pitched, and the leader in the B1G in earned run average.
The only other starting pitcher in the conference with an earned run average (ERA) that is lower than three.
Sam Busch, an infielder and a senior, with a batting average of.290, 15 home runs, 60 RBI, 10 doubles, a slugging percentage of.590, and an on-base percentage of.972.
The leader of the Spartans in the majority of offensive categories.
Captain of one of two ships.
Ryan McKay, an offensive lineman and sophomore. The average is.322, and there are 19 doubles, 55 runs batted in, 65 hits, 35 walks, and 11 strikeouts.
Batting first for the Spartans in the lineup. Has the second-most stolen bases on the team.
One of two hitters on MSU with an average above .300.
Caleb Berry, C/DH, Gr. | .310 AVG | 6 HR | 34 RBI | .874 OPS | .487 SLG
Played two seasons each at Milligan and Lincoln Memorial before transferring to MSU.
Tyler Horvath, RHP, Gr. | 3-2 | 5.40 ERA | 33.1 IP | 34 SO | 9 BB | 6 SV*
(19 total appearances), all of which came from the bullpen. Second most appearances.
Stats that stand out
Hitting: Ranks second in the conference in fewest strikeouts, pointing towards an offense that puts the ball in play despite pedestrian numbers.
Pitching: First in fewest walks allowed with 200 in 452.2 IP. That means the Spartans also rank second in lowest BB/9 with a 4.0 mark
Leave a Reply