NU Notes: Matthews Tabbed Big Ten Player of the Week

Junior Brice Matthews has been named the Big Ten Baseball's Player of the Week, the league office announced Monday afternoon.
Matthews hit .500 (7-for-14) with a double, a triple, two homers, 11 RBI and four runs in four games against Omaha and Nicholls, while recording an OPS of 1.722 with a 1.143 slugging percentage and a .579 on-base percentage.
The Humble, Texas, native had a pair of multi-hit games and tallied back-to-back five-RBI games in the weekend series against Nicholls in Manhattan to extend his on-base streak to 21 games.
Matthews went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a walk against Omaha on Tuesday, before posting a 1-for-4 performance with a grand slam and five RBI in the second game of Friday's doubleheader vs. Nicholls.
The junior rounded out the week with a perfect 3-for-3 day at the plate on Sunday, falling a single shy of the cycle. Matthews drove in five runs for the second straight game, while also drawing two walks and scoring three runs.
Huskers Travel to Creighton on Tuesday
NEBRASKA at CREIGHTON
March 21, 2023
Charles Schwab Field | Omaha, Neb.
Tuesday, March 21 - 6 p.m. CT
Pitching: LHP Jackson Brockett (1-0, 0.84 ERA) vs. RHP Dominic Cancellieri (0-0, 4.91 ERA)
TV/Streaming: Nebraska Public Media
Radio: Huskers Radio Network – Lincoln (1400 AM), Omaha (590 AM), Huskers.com, Huskers App
Nebraska makes the short trip to Omaha for a midweek matchup at Creighton on Tuesday night at Charles Schwab Field. First pitch between the Huskers and Bluejays is set for 6:02 p.m.
Tuesday night's game will be broadcast live on Nebraska Public Media, with Larry Punteney and Bill Steckis on the call.
Fans can also listen to Greg Sharpe and Ben McLaughlin call the action on Tuesday night on the Huskers Radio Network, which can be hard on KLIN (1400 AM) in Lincoln and KXSP (590 AM) in Omaha. Every game this season can be heard for free on Huskers.com and the Official Nebraska Huskers App for both iOS and android devices.
Nebraska vs. Creighton
• Nebraska and Creighton have met 144 times on the baseball diamond, with the Huskers holding an 86-56-2 advantage in the all-time series.
• The series is split at 9-9 through 18 games played at Charles Schwab Field.
• In their lone meeting last season, the Huskers fell 3-2 to the Bluejays in Omaha on March 29.
• The two teams met in Lincoln last April, but the game was suspended in the third inning due to inclement weather.
2-For-.400
• Nebraska is one of 11 teams nationally with two everyday starters hitting at least .400 this season at the plate.
• Anderson is hitting .438 with nine doubles, two triples, three homers, 22 RBI and 12 runs, while Matthews is adding seven doubles, six home runs, 28 RBI and 21 runs with a .424 hitting clip.
• Other teams with at least two players hitting above .400 and have started every game this season include Alabama State, Auburn, Georgia, Grand Canyon, Kent State, Kentucky, Michigan State, Monmouth, The Citadel and UTSA.
Third Time's the Charm
• Third-inning at-bats have proven to be successful for NU pitching and hitting, as the Huskers are outscoring opponents 18-1 in the third inning this season.
• On the mound, the NU pitching staff holds a 0.50 ERA with 15 strikeouts and just nine hits allowed in the third inning of games.
• Offensively, the Huskers are hitting .316 with five doubles, four home runs, 16 RBI and 18 runs in the third frame.
Matthews, Caron a Constant on the Base Path
• Brice Matthews and Josh Caron have been a constant on the base paths for the Huskers recently, as both enter Tuesday night having reached base safely in 15-plus games.
• Matthews comes into the midweek matchup with the Bluejays with a 21-game reached base streak, while Caron has reached base safely in 18 straight games.
Flashing the Leather
• Through their first 18 games this season, the Huskers have committed just 10 errors and rank eighth nationally with a .983 fielding percentage.
Carey Settles into College Game
• Dylan Carey has had a productive start to his collegiate career, hitting .343 with five doubles, a triple, two home runs, 12 RBI and 16 runs scored.
• In 17 games, the Castle Rock, Colo., native has compiled seven multi-hit games, including a pair of three-hit games and a four-hit performance.
Numbers to Know
9 – Jackson Brockett takes the mound with a nine-inning scoreless streak on Tuesday night. Brockett is 1-0 with a 0.84 ERA in four appearances this season.
19 – Nebraska and Creighton take the field on Tuesday night for the 19th all-meeting between the two teams at Charles Schwab Field. Each team was won nine times in their previous 18 games in Omaha.
11 – Nebraska is one of 11 teams nationally with at least two everyday starters hitting above .400 this season.
10 – The Huskers have totaled at least five extra-base hits in 10 of their 18 games this season. Nebraska is 8-1-1 in those 10 games, including 5-1-1 in games outside Lincoln.
7 – Nebraska ranks seventh nationally with a batting average of .332 as a team. Nine Huskers are hitting .300 or better this season, including Max Anderson and Brice Matthews hitting above .400.
Huskers Add Omaha, Iowa Western to Spring Schedule
The Nebraska soccer team announced additions to its spring schedule.
The Huskers will hit the road and face the Omaha Mavericks on Sunday, April 2 at 1 p.m. CT. NU will then face Iowa Western in a 60 minute game at 3 p.m. CT. Both games will be played in Omaha at Caniglia Field.
2023 Nebraska Soccer Spring Schedule
Sunday, March 5 – South Dakota – 1 p.m.
Sunday, March 5 – Iowa State – 1:50 p.m.
Sunday, March 5 – South Dakota – 2:45 p.m.
Sunday, April 2 – at Omaha – 1 p.m.
Saturday, April 2 – Iowa Western – 3 p.m.
Saturday, April 8 – Kansas – 1 p.m.
Saturday, April 15 – Kansas City – 1 p.m.
Saturday, April 22 – at Colorado – 12 p.m.
Note: All times are Central and home matches are in bold.
Huskers Selected for NCAA Denver Regional
The No. 23 Nebraska women's gymnastics team was selected for the 2023 NCAA Championships Monday afternoon. The Huskers received a first-round bye and will face No. 6 LSU, No. 11 Oregon State and No. 19 Georgia in the second round of the Denver Regional on Friday, March 31, at 3 p.m. (CT).
"We are very excited to be traveling to Denver for the NCAA Championships," Head Coach Heather Brink said. "Our team has worked hard for this opportunity, and we look forward to getting out on the floor will all of the teams. I want our team to compete fearlessly and with heart. I believe in them fully and know we have all put in the hard work."
This marks the Huskers the 38th appearance in the NCAA Championships and the first since 2019 when Nebraska finished in the fourth in the Ann Arbor Regional.
The 2023 Huskers are led by All-Big Ten honorees Emma Spence, Kinsey Davis and Sophia McClelland. Nebraska is coming off a sixth-place finish at the Big Ten Championships and has posted team scores of 196.900 or higher in three of the last four meets.
Session II of the Denver Regional will take place on Friday, March 31 at 8 p.m. (CT) and will include No. 3 Michigan, No. 14 Denver, No. 18 Minnesota and the winner of the first- round competition between Arizona and North Carolina, set for Thursday, March 30, at 3 p.m. (CT).
The top two teams from each session will advance to the Regional Final, which will take place on Sunday, April 2 at 6 p.m. (CT).
The other regional sites include Norman, Okla. (Oklahoma), Los Angeles, Calif. (UCLA), and Pittsburgh, Penn. (Pittsburgh).
Rifle Athletes Earn All-American Honors
Nebraska rifle athletes Cecelia Ossi, Madelynn Erickson, Emma Rhode and Vittoria Watts earned All-American recognition from the NCAA.
The junior from Annandale, N.J., earned first-team smallbore, second-team air rifle and third-team aggregate honors. Freshmen Watts and Rhode were selected for second-team air rifle and junior Erickson earned an honorable mention in the smallbore.
"All signs are pointing toward our team improving -- making it to the NCAAs, performing well, and recognition for All-Americans for four athletes," said head coach Mindy Miles. "I'm very impressed with how this season unfolded and I'm really looking forward to continuing this trend."
Ossi won the title of 2023 NCAA Smallbore National Champion on March 10-11 in Akron, Ohio. She shot a 590 in the first round of competition, qualifying her for the final, where she defeated Will Shaner of Kentucky, 16-8. Ossi's smallbore average of 587.73 led the team this season. She posted top-10 finishes in the event in every match she competed in this season, including two first-place finishes. Her air rifle average of 594.09 was second on the team. Her aggregate average (1,181.82) also led the Huskers.
It marks the second straight season that Ossi earned CRCA All-America honors, as she earned second-team smallbore honors in 2022. Ossi led the Huskers to a sixth-place showing at the 2023 NCAA Championships earlier this month.
Rhode led NU in the air rifle this season with a 594.38, and she did not shoot below a 590 once in the event. She notched 11 top-ten finishes, including two first-place.
Watts' air rifle average of 594.08 was third on the team, and she didn't shoot below a 592 in the event over the course of the season. She recorded 11 top-10 finishes in the event and broke NU's school record with a 598.
Erickson had the second-highest smallbore average on the team of 584.15. She earned two first-place finishes in the event among 11 top-ten finishes.