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Schreiber named semifinalist for Golden Spikes Award

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Now that the season is officially in the books, several Nebraska baseball players await the Major League Baseball Draft on June 4-6th.

The first Husker likely to be called is senior infielder Scott Schreiber. After being selected in the 26th round by the Tampa Bay Rays last year, Schreiber returned for his senior year to show off his power - he did just that.

Schreiber was named one of 25 semifinalists for the Golden Spikes Award on Monday afternoon. A 2016 All-American and two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection, Schreiber batted .369 with a team and conference-high 18 home runs.

Senior infielder Scott Schreiber finished the 2018 season with a Big Ten-best 18 home runs. Photo by Kenny Larabee.

He was second in the league with 79 hits. He also tallied 48 RBIs, 13 doubles and a triple. Scott went 0-for-5 with a strikeout and a walk in Saturday’s season finale, but head coach Darin Erstad says Schreiber’s contributions to the program will long be remembered.

“A wonderful human being,” Erstad said just before Schreiber’s final home series in Lincoln. “Gets graduated in four years, goes out there and is just a special player and a special person. It’s just been a pleasure to be around him and he’s going to go down as one of the best players to ever play here.”

Schreiber finished his career with 44 home runs, tying Alex Gordon for fourth most in school history. Gordon was the last Husker to be named a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award.

The finalists for the Golden Spikes Award will be announced on June 6, and the winner will be announced on June 22.

Huskers open as very early favorite against Akron

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The Nebraska Football season kicks off in 103 days when the Huskers welcome Akron to Memorial Stadium for Scott Frost’s first game as head coach.

The point spread opened today, and Nebraska is a very early 18.5 point favorite, according to VegasInsider.com.

Kickoff time and TV information for the first game has yet to be announced.

The largest spread favoring the Huskers in 2017 was 14.5 against Arkansas State.

Husker Baseball ends season on positive note, but miss postseason

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Senior second baseman Zac Repinski ended his Nebraska career with his first home run of the season in an 11-8 win at Illinois on Saturday. Photo by Kenny Larabee.

 

The Nebraska baseball team (24-28, 8-14 Big Ten) was able to avoid a season-ending sweep on Saturday afternoon with an 11-8 win at Illinois (31-18, 15-9 Big Ten).

The Illini won Thursday’s series opener 5-2 and Friday’s game 13-6.

The Huskers ended the 2018 season on a positive note, but did not qualify for next week’s Big Ten tournament, and will not play any kind of postseason game for the first time since 2011.

Nebraska also finished with its fewest win total since going 24-20 in 1998.

Six seniors on Nebraska’s team played their final career game. Head coach Darin Erstad, who just completed his seventh season, was proud of the effort they showed in the season finale.

“They came out playing hard,” Erstad said in a postgame interview on the Husker Sports Network.”They kept fighting, regardless of what the score was. We talked about that, and I figured that’s what they’d do. You just never know if they’ve run out of gas or emptied the tank emotionally, but we were able to fight back there a little bit and put together a win.”

Illinois took an early 3-0 lead after the first two innings, but the Huskers tied the game with three runs in the top of the third, and took a 5-3 lead with two runs in the top of the fifth.

The Illini fired back with a four-run sixth inning to lead 7-5, but the Huskers took the lead for good by scoring six runs in the top of the seventh.

Junior third baseman Angelo Altavilla had one of his best games of the season, going 4-for-5 at the plate with two runs scored, two RBIs and three stolen bases.

Junior designated hitter Jesse Wilkening went 3-for-5 with a run scored, an RBI and two doubles. He ends the 2018 season with a team-best .372 batting average.

Nebraska outhit Illinois 15-8, and had two big home runs - one from senior second baseman Zac Repinski and another from freshman left fielder Keegan Watson.

It was Repinski’s second career homer in his final game, while Watson ended his first season with his first career dinger on his first career hit.

On the mound, senior Matt Warren made the final start of his college career, lasting five innings and allowing three earned runs on three hits. He also struck out and walked a pair of batters.

Freshman righty Andrew Abrahamowicz got his first win of the season on the mound, tossing 1.1 innings and allowing just one run on one hit through five batters faced.

Senior Jake Hohensee pitched the last two innings, and closed out the Illini for his 13th save of the season. He struck out two and walked two, but didn’t surrender a hit.

The Huskers will conduct exit interviews beginning on Monday, while the Big Ten tournament begins in Omaha on Wednesday.

The MLB Draft takes place June 4-6. Senior Scott Schreiber, who got drafted in the 26th round last year but returned for his final season of eligibility, finished the 2018 campaign with a .369 batting average and a team-best 18 home runs.

Senior pitcher Luis Alvarado is also hoping for good news after being announced as a 13th round pick last summer.

There’s also a decent chance Wilkening gets drafted after having the best season of his career offensively. He got drafted in the 28th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks back in 2015.

You can contact Tommy at 402-840-5226, or you can follow him on Twitter @Tommy_KLIN.

 

Decker, Ward announce their departure from Husker Football

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Two Nebraska Football players announced their decision to leave the program via Twitter on Saturday.

The first of those two was junior center Michael Decker, who was the Huskers’ starting center in 2017 for five games until he suffered a season-ending knee injury at Purdue in late October.

An Omaha North product, Decker also appeared in all 13 games of the 2016 season.

Decker thanked former head coach Mike Riley, his staff and current head coach Scott Frost in a statement posted on Twitter early Saturday afternoon.

“Over the past six months, I have taken a step back and looked at my future career goals and decided that I can no longer accommodate football’s commitments,” Decker said.

Decker is a political science major and a five-time member of the Nebraska Scholar Athlete Honor Roll.

The second player to announce his departure from the program was redshirt freshman linebacker Andrew Ward.

Ward redshirted in 2017, but was someone working their way up the chart this spring, according to inside linebackers coach Barrett Ruud.

Ward comes from Muskegon, MI and was one of the top 20 inside linebackers in the country when he announced his commitment to Nebraska on Christmas Day 2016.

Ward also thanked Coach Riley’s and Coach Frost’s staff “for giving me a chance to come to Lincoln and be a Cornhusker.”

There have now been seven players who have formally announced their departure from Nebraska Football since Frost’s hiring. Just this past week, senior receiver Keyan Williams and sophomore offensive lineman Bryan Brokop announced their decision to leave the program.

 

You can contact Tommy at 402-840-5226, or you can follow him on Twitter @Tommy_KLIN.

 

Nebraska tennis, golf coaches not returning according to A.D. Bill Moos

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Nebraska Athletic Director Bill Moos announced Wednesday that men’s golf head coach Bill Spangler and men’s tennis head coach Kerry McDermott will not return following the expiration of their contracts this summer.

“I would like to thank Coach Spangler and Coach McDermott for their dedicated years of outstanding service to the University of Nebraska, and wish them the best in their future endeavors,” Moos said.

A national search for their replacements will begin immediately.

McDermott had an annual salary of $70,000. Spangler made $65,000.

Storm Chasers, Royals announce 2019 exhibition

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The Omaha Storm Chasers and Kansas City Royals have announced the 2019 Royals Exhibition Game presented by SAC Federal Credit Union, which is scheduled for March 25, 2025 at Werner Park. First pitch is set for 6:05 p.m. central.

“We are very excited to welcome the Kansas City Royals to Omaha in 2019,” Storm Chasers President and General Manager Martie Cordaro said. “We are very appreciative of Dayton Moore and the entire Royals organization in working with us in committing to making this game happen for our fans.”

The Royals and Storm Chasers were scheduled to have an exhibition on March 26, 2018, but it was cancelled due to inclement weather.

Moore, the Royals Senior Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager, wanted to give back to the fans after the first scheduled Royals-Chasers exhibition at Werner Park was rained out on March 26.

“The Omaha community, Storm Chasers front office and their ownership has had an amazing and impactful influence on the success of the Kansas City Royals,” Moore said . “As soon as the decision was made to postpone the exhibition earlier this year my first priority was to make good on returning to Omaha for our fans in that area. We are proud of the association we have and thrilled to play at Werner Park next spring.”

Should inclement weather arise on March 25, 2019, the game will be played the following day with the start time to be determined.

The game will mark the first time the Royals have played a contest at Werner Park. It’ll also be the first time the organization has participated in a game in the Omaha metro since 2000.

Ticket prices will range from $9 to $40. Ticket holders for the cancelled 2018 exhibition will have the first opportunity for an exclusive, online pre-sale for tickets to the 2019 game.

Those who purchased club or box seats will be able to pre-order beginning on Thursday, May 17 at 10:00 a.m. central, using instructions provided via email on the same day.

Remaining tickets will go on sale on May 24 at 10:00 a.m. central online at omahastormchasers.com, through the Werner Park Ticket Office and in-person.

The Storm Chasers are currently in the midst of an eight-game road trip and return to Werner Park for a nine-game homestand on Monday, May 21. First pitch of the series opener that day vs. the New Orelans Baby Cakes is scheduled for 6:35pm at Werner Park.

Husker signee Maurice Washington’s academic status in question

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2018 Nebraska football signee and four-star running back Maurice Washington’s academic status is in question.

Trinity Christian High School coach Aveion Cason told sources Tuesday that Washington was expelled from Trinity Christian High School in Cedar Hills, Texas for disciplinary reasons and moved back to his home state of California.

Maurice Washington was one of Nebraska’s top recruits in the 2018 signing class, but his academic status for the upcoming year is now in question. Photo via Twitter.

HuskerOnline reported Tuesday that Nebraska will request an NCAA academic waiver for Washington so he can enroll at NU, but not play as a freshman.

Washington’s academic status has long been a question, because he’s attended multiple high schools.

Washington is still expected to be on campus as soon as June.

One of Nebraska’s most important signees in 2018, Washington is the No. 10 running back in the nation, the No. 26 player in Texas and the No. 207 player overall in the 2018 class on 247 Sports.

Huskers to host Seton Hall in Gavitt Tipoff Games, Creighton to host Ohio State

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Nebraska will welcome Seton Hall to Lincoln for the first time in school history as the Big Ten and Big East conferences announced the pairings for the 2018 Gavitt Tipoff Games on Tuesday.

Creighton will host Ohio State on Nov. 15 at CenturyLink Center Omaha, while Nebraska will host the Pirates on Nov. 14 at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

The Gavitt Tipoff Games were announced Tuesday. Nebraska and Creighton will both take part. Photo by Kenny Larabee.

Start time and TV information for both games will be announced at a later date. However, all Gavitt Tipoff Games are televised nationally on either FS1 or BTN.

Nebraska’s 2018 matchup with Seton Hall will mark the first time in three appearances that Nebraska has hosted a Gavitt Tip-off Games matchup. The Huskers previously made trips to Villanova (2015) and St. John’s (2017). Both games were losses.

Creighton lost to Indiana in 2015, beat Wisconsin in 2016 and won at Northwestern last year.

The Gavitt Tip-off Games is part of the Huskers’ non-conference schedule that will also feature two games in Kansas City for the Hall of Fame Classic (Texas Tech, USC and Missouri State), a ACC/Big Ten Challenge match-up and of course the annual match-up with Creighton, which Nebraska will host this year.

The 2018-19 schedule will also include 20 Big Ten games. Pairings were announced last month.

 

2018 Gavitt Tip-off Games:

Tuesday 11/13Wisconsin at Xavier
Georgetown at Illinois

Wednesday 11/14

Seton Hall at Nebraska
Michigan at Villanova
Marquette at Indiana

Thursday 11/15

Penn State at DePaul
Ohio State at Creighton

Friday 11/16

St. John’s at Rutgers

Keyan Williams announces decision to leave Nebraska Football

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Wide receiver Keyan Williams announced on Twitter Monday morning that he has been granted a release from his scholarship with the Nebraska Football team.

A native of New Orleans, Williams came to Nebraska in 2016 after transferring in from Fresno State. He sat out the 2016 season due to transfer rules, and missed nine games in the 2017 season due to a hamstring injury.

Senior receiver Keyan Williams announced his decision to transfer from Nebraska on Monday. Photo via Huskers.com.

Williams made only one catch in his Nebraska career - it was for 19 yards in the season-ending 56-14 loss to Iowa on Black Friday.

The son of former Nebraska receivers coach Keith Williams, Keyan said in his statement Monday that reuniting with his father was a big reason why he came to Lincoln in the first place.

“But I instantly realized why the University of Nebraska, and the city of Lincoln are so special,” Williams said in his tweet. “I know I have gained some lifelong friends, and I’ll be receiving my degree this summer (in criminal justice), so I’ll be a Husker regardless.”

Williams thanked current Nebraska head coach Scott Frost for “giving me an opportunity this spring.”

He suited for the spring game on April 21, but didn’t log a catch. Williams had a team-high six catches for 69 yards for the red squad in the 2017 Red-White Scrimmage.

Williams becomes the fourth Husker to leave the program since Frost’s arrival, joining Zack Darlington, Patrick O’Brien and Ben Miles.

Nebraska now has 11 scholarship receivers left on roster.

 

You can contact Tommy at 402-840-5226, or you can follow him on Twitter @Tommy_KLIN.

 

 

Creighton’s Khyri Thomas to forego senior year, remain in NBA Draft

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Creighton guard and Omaha native Khryi Thomas, the 2017 and ’18 Big East Defensive Player of the Year, announced Sunday that he will sign with an agent and remain in the 2018 NBA Draft.

With that, Thomas will give up his final season of eligibility with the Bluejays.

Thomas averaged 15.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game for the Bluejays in 2017-18, earning him Second Team All-Big East acclaim. He led the team with 56 steals (1.7 spg), while shooting 53.8 percent from the field, 41.1 percent from three-point range and 78.8 percent at the free throw line.

Creighton’s Khyri Thomas is projected to be selected in the first round of the 2018 NBA Draft in June. If that happens, Creighton would have a player taken in the first round of the draft in back-to-back years for the first time ever. Photo via GoCreighton.com.

Thomas helped the Jays finish 21-12 in the 2017-18 season, tying for third place in the Big East and reaching the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in the last seven seasons.

In conference play, Thomas ranked third in the Big East in steals per game, fifth in both field goal percentage and three-point percentage, and ninth in assist/turnover ratio.

He was the first Big East player in more than a dozen years to rank among the top-five in both steals per game and field goal percentage in conference action.

The 6-foot-3 guard also was a lockdown defender, becoming just the 10th player in Big East history to be named the league’s Defensive Player of the Year multiple times.

Thomas played in 102 total games at Creighton, starting 96 of them. He closes his Bluejay career ranked tenth with 141 steals and 30th with 1,140 career points.

“I’m thrilled for Khyri as he moves on to the next stage of his career,” Creighton head coach Greg McDermott said. “His selfless approach to the game, positive attitude and tireless work ethic has been a joy to be around the last three years. It has been an honor to be part of his development during that time. I look forward to supporting him as he pursues his dream of playing in the NBA and appreciate the manner in which he has represented Creighton University and our basketball program.”

Creighton’s last selection in the NBA Draft came last year, when Justin Patton went 16th overall in the First Round to the Chicago Bulls, and was immediately traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Patton is currently joined in the NBA by fellow Creighton alums Kyle Korver (Cleveland Cavaliers), Anthony Tolliver (Detroit Pistons) and Doug McDermott (Dallas Mavericks).

Thomas has been projected as a First Round pick by NBADraft.net (19th), NBCSports.com (19th), CBS Sports (20th) and Bleacher Report (26th) in recent mock drafts. If Thomas is taken in the first round, it would mark the first time in program history that Creighton has had first round picks in consecutive seasons.

The 2018 NBA Draft will take place on June 21st in Brooklyn.