Cowboys knock Huskers out of Big 12 tourney

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BY CURT McKEEVER / Lincoln Journal Star

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Nebraska baseball team was looking Saturday to advance to the Big 12 Conference Tournament championship.

Instead, it moved on to Part III of its season.

The Huskers’ 11-5 loss to Oklahoma State on Saturday ended NU’s hope of playing in Sunday’s title game against Texas and left the Huskers  awaiting their draw for the NCAA Tournament.

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Oklahoma State second baseman Mike Gosse, left, throws to first base over Nebraska's Jake Mort (2) in the second inning in the Big 12 conference baseball tournament on Saturday at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City. (AP)

Oklahoma State second baseman Mike Gosse, left, throws to first base over Nebraska's Jake Mort (2) in the second inning in the Big 12 conference baseball tournament on Saturday at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City. (AP)

The sites for the 16 regionals, one of which NU expects to host, will be released Sunday, while the top eight national seeds and the complete 64-team field will be announced Monday morning.

Nebraska (40-14-1) was able to solve sophomore left-hander Tyler Lyons, who threw a complete-game six-hitter in OSU’s 19-2 win in Stillwater, Okla., on April 26. The Huskers banged nine hits and scored all of their runs in six innings against Lyons, but needed much more to keep pace with the league’s top-hitting team.

Oklahoma State (41-16) gave senior right-hander Thad Weber rude treatment for the second straight time this season. Weber, who’d given up nine hits and seven runs in just 31/3 innings of the 19-2 loss, lasted the same number of innings Saturday and was tagged for seven runs on eight hits and a walk.

The Cowboys broke a scoreless game and took control with a four-run third inning. Three of those runs came with two outs, the final two on Dean Green’s homer to straight center field.

Nebraska trailed 7-1 after four innings, then scored twice in both the fifth and sixth to pull to 8-5.

With Lyons having been pulled after the sixth, the Huskers loaded the bases with one out against relievers Matt Peck and Robbie Weinhardt. But Weinhardt turned a grounder hit by Tyler Farst into a threat-ending double play and OSU sealed things by scoring three unearned runs in the bottom of the inning.