Coming off a road sweep of the Tulane Green Wave, Creighton baseball faced cross-town rival Omaha Wednesday night at Charles Schwab Field.
The Bluejays came into the game with a record of 8-8 after an up-and-down start. In their first 16 games, they had series wins over Saint Mary’s, Gonzaga and Tulane, but struggled in the Tony Gwynn Tournament and went 1-2 in the REV Texas Tournament.
The Mavericks entered with a 7-10 record but had won 3 consecutive games after a successful series over North Dakota State.
Omaha took an early lead in the ballgame when junior OF/LHP Hayden Lewis hit a solo homer in the top of the second, giving the Mavericks a 1-0 lead. Omaha then doubled their lead to 2-0 in the top of the third thanks to an RBI single from graduate student INF/OF Henry Zipay.
The Bluejays turned things around in the bottom of the third. With the bases loaded, freshman infielder Joe Washburn rose to the occasion with an RBI single to third. An errant throw allowed senior catcher Nate McHugh to score, giving Creighton two runs. The inning ended with the game tied, 2-2.
The fourth inning was scoreless for both squads, but Creighton found their offensive rhythm again in the bottom of the fifth. With graduate student outfielder Teddy Deters already on base, McHugh hit a home run, giving the Bluejays a 4-2 advantage.
Neither team was able to score in the sixth, but Creighton showed a lot of offensive prowess immediately after the seventh inning stretch and scored four runs. This attack started with bases loaded. Sophomore infielder Nick Venteicher pulled off an RBI single to right field, giving Creighton a 5-2 lead. Later that inning, junior catcher Connor Capece delivered a two-run single, giving the Bluejays a comfortable 7-2 lead. Creighton would show no mercy and scored another run when freshman catcher Nick Bowron had a sacrifice fly. Creighton held a dominant 8-2 lead going into the eighth inning.
Neither team scored in the eighth or ninth inning, and the ballgame ended as an 8-2 victory for the Bluejays, improving Creighton’s record to 9-8, and dropping the Mavericks to 7-11.
McHugh was the offensive star for the Bluejays, garnering four hits and one home run.
“I was just not thinking. I think that’s probably the best answer I could give,” McHugh said.
Despite trailing by a couple of runs early in the ballgame, Creighton looked solid throughout the game both offensively and defensively. Putting up eight runs and only allowing two is a tall order.
“Played really good defense, we pitched well and we scored eight runs on nine hits. So, I thought it was one of our more complete efforts of the year and it was against a good UNO team,” Bluejay head coach Mark Kingston said.
Creighton is now on a four-game winning streak and has an overall record of 9-8. The Bluejays are back in action on Friday when they start a three-game home series against Sacramento State. First pitch at Charles Schwab Field is at 6 p.m.
