Comeback Effort Falls Short

Friday, March 27

Lincoln, Neb.

7 p.m.

Indiana University

10-15, 0

#24 Nebraska

20-6, 0

Indiana

Nebraska

3/27/2026 10:30:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

LINCOLN, Neb. – On a cold night in Lincoln, the Indiana Baseball team (10-15, 3-7 B1G) came just short of completing a five-run comeback in the series opener against No. 24 Nebraska. The Hoosiers got within one run on two occasions but were retired in order in the eighth and ninth innings in a 6-5 loss on Friday (March 27) evening at Haymarket Park. It's the sixth one-run loss of the season.

IU's offense came alive in the sixth inning as it finally chased Nebraska's starter Ty Horn from the ballgame. All nine Hoosiers came to the plate. The big hits in the frame came on an RBI single from freshman pinch hitter Owen ten Oever and a two-run single from sophomore catcher Hogan Denny. Sophomore outfielder Caleb Koskie opened the scoring on a wild pitch. Denny and sophomore shortstop Cooper Malamazian each had multi-hit days against the Huskers.

Three defensive errors were a sore spot in a game where IU's pitching staff held its own. Graduate student right-handed pitcher Reagan Rivera (L, 0-3) gave up five runs but only two were earned. He allowed just three hits in the contest. In total, Nebraska bats produced just six base knocks. Redshirt junior right-handed pitcher Jacob Vogel had the best outing of the night. He tossed just 29 pitches in 2.2 innings of scoreless relief.

A bases-loaded hit-by-pitch in the sixth inning made all the difference in the game. Sophomore outfielder Cole Decker closed the deficit to one in the seventh with an RBI groundout but IU would never lead in the Friday contest. Nebraska reliever J'Shawn Unger got the final six outs in order for his third save of the year.

The Hoosiers will look to even the series tomorrow (March 28) at 3 p.m. ET in Lincoln. Graduate student southpaw Tony Neubeck will take the bump in search of his third Big Ten win of the year. The game will be streamed on B1G+ and can be heard at iuhoosiers.com/watch.

Scoring Recap
Bottom Second
Max Buettenback reached down and smacked a two-run home run to right field to open the scoring.
Nebraska 2, Indiana 0

Bottom Third
Dylan Carey singled up the middle to score Mac Moyer. Carey came around later in the frame to score on a balk.
Nebraska 4, Indiana 0

Bottom Fourth
Case Sanderson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded as Nebraska extended the lead
Nebraska 5, Indiana 0

Top Sixth
IU finally got going in the sixth inning. Caleb Koskie scored on a wild pitch to open the scoring. An RBI single up the middle from Owen ten Oever got a second run in the inning. Hogan Denny singled home two runs to bring the game within one.
Nebraska 5, Indiana 4

Bottom Sixth
Case Sanderson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to extend the lead back to two.
Nebraska 6, Indiana 4

Top Seventh
Cole Decker drove home a run on an RBI groundout to the shortstop.
Nebraska 6, Indiana 5

Top Hoosier Performers
#21 Vogel, Jacob
2.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 K

#15 Malamazian, Cooper
2-4, 2 R, 3B

#2 Denny, Hogan
2-5, 2 RBI

Inside the Box Score
• The difference in the game was three errors from IU's defense and eight free passes from the pitching staff.
• IU provided more hits (7-6) than Nebraska on Friday night.
• Cooper Malamazian and Hogan Denny each had multi-hit efforts.

Notes to Know
• With base knocks, sophomore catcher Hogan Denny and sophomore outfielder Caleb Koskie each extended their respective hitting streaks to a team-best seven games. Sophomore outfielder Cole Decker had an RBI but saw his seven-game hitting streak come to an end on Friday.

• Redshirt junior right-handed pitcher Jacob Vogel kept IU in the game with a brilliant relief effort. He tossed 2.2 scoreless innings while allowing just one hit. He hasn't allowed a run in his last five outings (9.1 innings). In his career for the Hoosiers, 32 of 42 appearances have been scoreless. That includes eight of 11 games in 2026.

• After winning the Friday opener at Nebraska in 2024, IU has now lost five-straight games in the series. In that stretch, four of those five contests have been decided by three-or-fewer runs. In fact, IU has only been outscored by nine runs (34-25) in the six games played between the two sides over the last three seasons.

• Despite committing three errors, IU only allowed six runs in the entire game. It's the 16th time this season – in 25 total games – that IU has allowed six-or-fewer runs. However, the Hoosiers are just 10-6 in those contests. The loss dropped IU to 0-6 in one-run games this year. Five of those six losses are against teams currently in the D1 Baseball top 25 rankings.

Up Next
The middle game of this weekend's series is set for Saturday (March 28) afternoon at Haymarket Park. First pitch will be at 3 p.m. on B1G+ and online via IUHoosiers.com/Audio.