Even after a disappointing loss to UC Irvine on Saturday, the Husker baseball team still had hopes on Sunday morning that it could overcome the defeat and make its way to super regionals.
Those hopes were quickly and unceremoniously crushed by Oral Roberts pitcher Kelly Minissale, who pitched a two-hit gem in shutting out the Huskers 8-0 in regional action Sunday afternoon, ending hopes for the Huskers to make the short trip east to the College World Series.
The Huskers (41-16-1) got behind early and could never get a bead on Minissale, who carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning and was dominant from the opening pitch.
Oral Roberts pounded Husker pitching for 15 hits in advancing to the regional final, led by Brendan Duffy's 3-for-3 effort with three runs scored. Oral Roberts scored a run in the opening inning and never looked back in bringing the Nebraska baseball team's season to a close.
It's been a great year for the Huskers, who weren't expected to finish higher than the middle of the pack in the Big 12 Conference this year. A great winning streak early in the year got them on the right track, and with some great pitching by the likes of Johnny Dorn and Thad Weber, Nebraska stayed in the conference race until the final weekend. Although the team picked the wrong time of year to go through a significant slump -- losing six of their final nine games -- the team has a lot to be proud of and hopefully they will be able to bounce back and be back in the thick of things in 2009.
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