Preview: Nebraska Baseball vs. Creighton with Breakdown

Creighton Scout

Last Season: 43-16 (17-4 Big East, T-1st); Big East regular season and tournament champions
Finish: L, 8-3 to No. 6 Arkansas; 2-2 at Fayetteville Regional
Big East Awards: Pitcher, Freshman and Coaching Staff of the Year
All-Big East: 3x First Team, 3x Second Team, 

Head Coach: Mark Kingston
Year at School: 1st; 2nd at CU; 16th as HC
Creighton Record: 18-15 (.545)
Career Record: 508-350-1 (.591)
NCAA Regionals/Championships: 2x Super Regionals, 7x Regionals, 2x MVC regular season titles, 1x MVC tournament
Awards: 2x MVC Coach OTY

All-Conference Returners: RHP Wilson Magers (Fr. OTY, 1st Team), C Connor Capece (2nd Team)
Big East Preseason Poll: 2nd of 8 teams; three first-place votes
All-Big East Preseason Honors: C Connor Capece, RHP Wilson Magers

Key Returners

• Ben North | INF | Gr. | A returning contributor from 2025, the long-time Bluejay is one of three players with an average above .300 (.355) and leads the team with 15 stolen bases while ranking second in home runs (6) and third in RBIs (27). 
• Connor Capece | C | Jr. | The Omaha Gross alum enjoyed a breakout sophomore season by hitting .351 in over 50 games while earning All-Big East Second Team honors, but he's struggled as a junior with only a .261 clip in 33 games.
• Nate McHugh | C | Sr. | A former transfer from Iowa Western CC and Boston College, McHugh is second on the team in average (.336) and has the second-most home runs with six in just his second season with the Bluejays. 
• Teddy Deters | OF | Gr. | A returning starter from 2025, the graduate student has earned a team-leading 23 walks with five homers and 16 RBIs on a .263 average in 114 at-bats. 
• Nick Venteicher | INF | Soph. | The Millard West graduate hit .198 as a freshman before returning this season to improve to a .241 average in 83 at-bats. 
• Shea Wendt | RHP | Jr. | Heralding from Blair, Nebraska, the junior has steadily improved throughout the season and now owns a 3.58 ERA in the most appearances (14) on the team.
• Jimmy Burke | RHP | R-Sr. | A returning reliever from last season, Burke has good stuff with 26 strikeouts, which ranks second among relievers, and owns an ERA of 4.44 in 17 appearances and 26.1 innings.

Impact Transfers/Newcomers

• Matt Goldenbaum | RHP | R-Soph. | A transfer from South Florida, Goldenbaum has broken out as a sophomore, recording a team-leading 68 ERA in 13.1 innings and 12 appearances with a pair of saves. 
• Nick Bowron | C | Fr. | Heralding from Minnesota, the first-year player has hit .237 in 38 at-bats, including 11 walks.
• Joe Washburn | INF | Fr. | The 5-foot-7, first-year infielder has slashed .304 in his first 56 college at-bats while contributing seven RBIs and seven stolen bases in 21 games. 
• Isaac Wachsmann | OF | R-Jr. | The 6-foot-4 transfer from Big East foe Xavier leads the Bluejays with 30 RBIs and seven home runs.
• JT Adams | RHP | Jr. | A starting pitcher transfer from Fort Scott CC, the Kansas native is in the bullpen for CU and ranks second among relievers with a 3.14 ERA in 14.1 innings. 
• Jakob Ruhl | RHP | Fr. | A two-time All-State player at Central City, the Nebraska native is a swing starter for the Bluejays with a 4.88 ERA, as four of his 11 appearances this year have been as a starter. 
• Rocco Gump | INF | Gr. | The 6-foot-3 transfer was an all-conference player at Northwestern State before transferring to Creighton, where he's hitting .226 in starting all 33 games. 
• Chris Baillargeon | INF/OF | Gr. | A former All-Patriot League performer at Holy Cross, the New York native has added a pair of home runs and 15 RBIs with a .226 average across 30 games. 
• Lew Rice | OF | Gr. | After earning the conference batting title as a junior and being named to the 2025 Big South All-Tournament team, Rice hasn't seen that translate to Creighton, where he's hitting just .224 in 76 at-bats across 28 games. 
• Evan Stratton | RHP | Jr. | A swing starter at Riverside CC last season, the junior right-hander from California has produced a 6.55 ERA as one of nine pitchers on Creighton to have at least 10 appearances.

Outlook

Since narrowly coming back to steal a game from its rival, Creighton has fared well since dropping a 6-5 contest to the Huskers in Omaha on March 31. That began with a 1-2 series loss to preseason Big East favorite UConn, but the Bluejays bounced back with a midweek win over North Dakota State as well as a sweep of conference foe Seton Hall that scored a combined three runs across the three-game series. While not necessarily tested in the latest four games, CU has taken care of business and has seen its pitching staff take a big step by surrendering just seven combined runs as part of the team's four-game winning streak.

For the Nebraska matchup, it'll be interesting to see who Mark Kingston decides to throw out. CU's start last time, Ian Koosman, was chased after just 1.2 innings, after his defense allowed three unearned runs. Evan Stratton and Shane Curtin allowed three more runs before JT Adams, Jimmy Burke, and Matt Goldenbaum combined for three shutout frames.

True freshman Jakob Ruhl could be an option. Making four starts out of his 11 appearances this year, Ruhl has turned in a solid 4.88 ERA in over 27 innings with opponents hitting .266 off the young hurler. Despite going 0-for-3 in the game against NU, Xavier transfer Isaac Wachsmann has found his stride and now leads CU in home runs (7), RBIs (30), and doubles (8) while also stealing seven bases.

With the series moving back to Lincoln and Nebraska hungry to bounce back from its poor week, give me the Huskers to defend its home field and secure the season series over the Bluejays.