Nebraska baseball continues its week-long homestand this weekend with a three-game series at Haymarket Park against No. 12 USC. 

The Huskers knocked off in-state rival Creighton on Tuesday night and now face a monster home series against one of the Big Ten’s top teams. 

Here’s a breezy look at the series between the Huskers and Trojans. 

Pitching Matchups/TV and streaming:

Friday, April 17 – 6:02 p.m.

RHP Cooper Katskee (5-0, 3.27 ERA) vs. LHP Mason Edwards (6-0, 1.35 ERA)

TV/Streaming: B1G+

Radio: Huskers.com, Huskers Radio Network, Official Huskers App 

Saturday, April 18 – 2:02 p.m.

RHP Carson Jasa (7-0, 2.13 ERA) vs. RHP Grant Govel (7-0, 2.13 ERA)

TV/Streaming: B1G+

Radio: Huskers.com, Huskers Radio Network, Official Huskers App

Sunday, April 19 – 12:02 p.m.

RHP Gavin Blachowicz (3-1, 2.27 ERA) vs. RHP Andrew Johnson (3-1, 3.66 ERA)

TV/Streaming: NPM/B1G+

Radio: Huskers.com, Huskers Radio Network, Official Huskers App

The Matchup:

>>> The conversation around the final six weeks of the regular season will be determined by how the Huskers fare this weekend against the Trojans. Nebraska enters the weekend with an RPI in the upper 20s and has an opportunity to at least continue the hosting conversation if it can take the series with the Trojans, who are seeking marquee wins to pair with their Top-20 RPI to bolster their own hosting chances. 

>>> Nebraska won’t likely see a better trio of opposing starting pitchers than it will this weekend against USC. Trojan left-hander Mason Edwards comes in with a 6-0 record and 1.35 ERA. Edwards boasts a sub-1.00 WHIP and is averaging 10.5 strikeouts per appearance this season. He’s backed by right-hander Grant Govel, who boasts equally gaudy numbers — 7-0, 2.13 ERA and .80 WHIP. As a team, USC has a 3.39 ERA with 379 strikeouts to 149 walks on the season. Nebraska is going to need to be disciplined at the plate, but ready to hit when USC pitching makes rare mistakes. 

>>> This will be the latest in a run of games for the Huskers against talented teams. The last two weeks have featured tense, high-pressure games for the Big Red and Nebraska head coach Will Bolt said his team has done a nice job of not blinking. He said he thought the effort on Tuesday night when Nebraska fell behind early against Creighton showed the “fortitude” of his group. 

“Our guys just don’t give an inch. Baseball is a tough game built for tough people and I think we have a pretty tough team. Win or lose they’re going to show up the next day and compete as hard as they can,” Bolt said. 

>>> Bolt said Will Jesske could be a factor in this weekend’s series, but how much still remains in doubt. Jesske has been nursing a sore hamstring for several weeks and Bolt said the team is being careful with him. In other injury news, Bolt said redshirt freshman Auden Pankonin is getting close to throwing a live practice outing and could factor late in the season out of the bullpen. 

>>> Nebraska mixed up its starting rotation for this weekend, moving Ty Horn out of his Friday night spot and inserting Cooper Katskee. Sophomore Gavin Blachowicz is back starting Sunday. How will Nebraska opt to use Horn in relief? He threw 3.0 innings against Creighton on Tuesday night, but could be an important piece of middle relief to get the ball from Nebraska’s starter to closer J’Shawn Unger.