Matt Waldron has been a staple on the mound for Nebraska all season.
The 6-foot-2 senior right-hander cruised into Friday’s matchup against Illinois with a perfect 5-0 record and an ERA under 2.00.
Then came the fireworks.
Illinois plated runs in its first three innings and eventually ran away with an 8-1 win to push the once-Big Ten leading Huskers to 1-4 in their last five games.
“This is a great lesson for our young pitchers,†Nebraska coach Darin Erstad said. “He (Waldron) obviously didn’t have his command tonight, his offspeed stuff wasn’t sharp, but he just went out there and got through six. He pitched better at the end. You don’t quit, you keep fighting and you take your lumps.â€
Waldron did take his lumps as Illinois started the game 8-for-13 as a team. He allowed a season-high six runs over six innings. His previous season-high in runs allowed was three against Oregon State on Feb. 24.
While one senior pitcher struggled, the other shined.
Illinois’ Andy Fisher faced a Huskers lineup that has not hit well since early April. Nebraska stumbled into Friday’s contest scoring 35 runs in its last 10 games, 17 of which came in two games.
Fisher capitalized on the silent Nebraska bats, fanning eight and allowing one run over seven innings to earn the win and move to 5-1 on the year.
While the Huskers mustered all of three hits off the lanky southpaw, they were still able to produce baserunners. Fisher walked seven Nebraska batters but was able to squeeze out of trouble with runners in scoring position.
Nebraska was an abysmal 2-for-20 with runners on and 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position.
“You can see guys pressing,†Erstad said. “Guys are chasing way too many pitches down. The guy’s (Fisher) got good sidearm run down and we’re just getting out of what we’re trying to do. They gave us plenty of fillers and we just kept pounding the ball into the ground. Until we start getting committed to going back to the pitches we need to, it’s going to be a tough road to hoe.â€
Illinois’ offense was a mirror image of Nebraska’s.
The Illini went 11-for-25 with runners on and had seven hits with runners in scoring position.
Grant Van Scoy was a staple in the Illinois lineup on Friday night. He racked up three hits — two of them doubles — and two RBIs.
Although he had never played in Haymarket Park, he was in the familiar territory of his home state.
Van Scoy played his high school ball at Papillion-La Vista and even played summer ball with Matt and Mike Waldron as a kid in Omaha.
“It’s just awesome coming home,†Van Scoy said.
Nebraska’s offensive didn’t do near enough on Friday, but Erstad didn’t point to the top of his lineup at all despite the offensive woes.
Spencer Schwellenbach busted out of a slump, reaching base twice and picking up an RBI for NU, while Aaron Palensky also reached base twice.
“Our top two guys in the order are getting on base the most, so it’s kind of hard to switch it around,†Erstad said. "But I’ll look at it. Sometimes a jolt like that is good. Bottom line is we aren’t swinging at the correct pitches.â€
Erstad said he is starting to hear some more bats being thrown around in the dugout as the Huskers struggle offensively.
He is OK with that fire, as long as it doesn’t turn into sulking.
“It’s not terrible now, but I don’t want it to get out of hand.â€
Nebraska will look to even the series Saturday at 2 p.m. at Haymarket Park behind senior lefty Nate Fisher.
Fisher is 4-2 on the year with a 2.81 ERA. He has held opponents to a .202 batting average this season.