Horn battles into the fifth but Nebraska baseball's bats go dead cold in 2-1 loss to Michigan
Nebraska baseball (16-6, 3-1) scored early against Michigan (11-9, 1-3) but couldn’t muster any extra energy in the 2-1 loss to the Wolverines in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The Huskers got a strong performance from their pitching staff. Ty Horn managed a high pitch count into the fifth inning striking out 8 Wolverines. The bullpen dominated not allowing a single run to come across.
The Huskers sputtered on offense despite scoring in the first inning. Michigan starter, Kurt Barr, fanned 10 Huskers across seven innings of work.
Here is an instant recap of the Huskers’ first conference loss of the season….
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UM’s plate discipline stunts the strong Husker start
The Huskers’ offense from the two wins against Wichita State carried over immediately into the weekend series. Nebraska wasted no time getting going when Mac Moyer doubled on the first pitch of the game. Jeter Worthley kept his on-base streak going when he followed with a single, moving Moyer to third. Case Sanderson then appeared to fly out to left field, but the Wolverine outfielder let the ball slip from his grasp, which allowed Moyer to score the game’s first run.
Horn struggled with efficiency in the home frame. In an inning that eclipsed 20 pitches, the Husker ace worked around a leadoff single after an overturned pitch-clock violation. He walked another in the frame but induced a strikeout in the scoreless inning.
Michigan got on the board as Horn hit the 40-pitch mark in the second. Greg Pace Jr. reached on a single and then stole second to set the table for the No. 9 hitter. Drew Culbertson came through to turn the lineup over with an RBI single on a two-strike count to knot the game at 1-1.
The Wolverines grabbed their first lead in the bottom of the third inning. The UM lineup took close pitches to work deep into counts, and it paid off. As Horn looked for a strike-three call, the Wolverines rattled off three singles to nab another run and a 2-1 lead after three innings.
Horn used an efficient inning to boost the Huskers into the fifth. The junior struggled with command early, causing him to sit at 70 pitches after three, but he began to land his breaking ball for strikes. In the fourth inning, he struck out the side with two looking on off-speed pitches to end the frame with the deficit at 2-1.
Barr leads the Wolverines to the win despite a strong performance from the Nebraska bullpen
The Nebraska offense went cold as Barr limited the Huskers’ production. Barr worked scoreless fifth and sixth innings. He stranded two runners in the fifth. In the sixth, he notched his eighth strikeout. He retired five straight Huskers to maintain the 2-1 lead through six innings.
Caleb Clark provided strong relief work for Nebraska. He cleared Horn’s jam in the fifth inning. He then worked a clean sixth with his father, who is from Canada and dealing with a serious illness, in the stands. Clark returned for the seventh but left for Tucker Timmerman. The move allowed Nebraska to play a matchup. Timmerman struck out Carson Luna to end the seventh with the 2-1 deficit intact.
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In the eighth inning, the Wolverine pitching staff allowed its first walk once reliever Ben Debiec entered the game. He walked Jett Buck before Dylan Carey rolled over in his fourth at bat to kill the threat with a tailor-made 5-4-3 double play. Timmerman and Grant Cleavinger worked a clean eighth inning to send the game to the ninth with NU down 2-1.
Miken Miller led of the ninth inning in his first action since the game against Florida State. The Johnson County Community College transfer beat out an infield single before being replaced by Preston Freeman. Any momentum NU had died when Drew Grego hit into a 6-4-3 double play. NU mustered two bases runners but a Moyer ground out ended the game.
When the slider is the primary pitch, Horn is unhittable
Nebraska looks like a winner every Friday night with Horn on the mound. So far this season, however, the junior has lacked the ability to take over games. From my eye it is clear that his slider defines his greatness.
Horn dominated the end of the 2025 season. His performance largely fueled the team’s Big Ten Tournament title. In 2026, he has posted only one dominant outing. He completed seven innings against Michigan State to open Big Ten play. Outside of that start, efficiency issues and free passes have made him battle through the fifth inning in multiple outings.
He labored through another heavy start against Michigan on Friday. However, the end of the outing showed glimpses of his former dominance. After hitting the 70-pitch mark in the third, Horn struck out six straight batters over the next two innings to end his day.
The tide turned when he began throwing his slider for strikes to open counts. His two called strikeouts in that inning came on the breaking ball. This gave the Wolverine lineup something to think about, which caused confusion for the rest of his time on the mound.
The Michigan hitters struggled once Horn treated his slider as his primary pitch. When the right-hander uses the slider as his go-to option, his high fastball becomes more valuable. Despite finding his rhythm late, Horn finished the fifth inning with momentum. He looks to carry that energy into his next home start against Indiana.
