Nebraska baseball pulls ahead in ninth inning to win first Big Ten tournament title

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Nebraska baseball won a defensive battle on Sunday to win the Big Ten baseball tournament.

The Huskers defeated the Nittany Lions 2-1 at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha.

It is Nebraska’s first tournament championship, and the Huskers are the first team to win the championship after losing the first game since 1995.

Penn State got on the board in the first inning on a Nebraska error.

The bases were loaded, and Joe Jaconski ran to home plate on a failed pickoff attempt by Husker pitcher Jackson Brockett.

Meanwhile, Travis Luensmann pitched perfectly for Penn State over the first three innings, allowing no hits and striking out five.

Nebraska threatened to score in the fourth, but the Nittany Lions made a double play to end the inning.

The Huskers tied the game in the top of the seventh with a Josh Caron home run to right field. That was his sixth homer of the tournament, which is a record.

In the ninth, Cayden Brumbaugh stole second, then made it home on a Gabe Swansen double to give the Huskers the lead.

Brockett bounced back from the three-hit first inning, allowing only one hit and throwing four strikeouts over the next seven innings.

He was relieved in the ninth by Brett Sears, who got the save.

Nebraska’s next step is the NCAA tournament, which starts Friday.

The Huskers’ matchup will be announced Monday.