May 10, 2008

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OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - The Nebraska softball team scored five runs over the first three innings and added run in the seventh to defeat the second-seeded Sooners, 6-5, in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championshpi at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium.

The win marked only the second time in the 13-year history of the Big 12 Championship that the No. 10 seed has defeated the No. 2 seed. The victory was also Nebraska's first against a top-10 opponent in 186 games dating back to an April 9, 2005 win at ninth-ranked Baylor.

Junior right-hander Molly Hill (14-16) earned the victory for the Huskers. Hill worked around seven walks and a pair of homers to fight through a complete-game effort in which she allowed five runs on eight hits in seven innings of work. Behind her, Nebraska used timely hitting to score six runs on only five hits.

Nebraska (24-27) advanced to Saturday's 4:30 p.m. semifinal against sixth-seeded Texas Tech, which defeated third-seeded Missouri, 5-3. The game will be televised live on Fox Sports Net.

Oklahoma fell to 43-12 with the loss, while the defending champion Sooners exited the tournament without a victory for the first time ever. Jadyn Smith took the loss, allowing three runs on two hits in only 1.1 innings of relief work. Lauren Eckermann earned the start and was tagged with two runs (one earned) on two hits over the first 1.2 innings. D.J. Mathis closed out the game by allowing one unearned run in four innings of one-hit relief.

"This team has a lot of fight and a lot of pride," Nebraska Head Coach Rhonda Revelle said after the victory. "They're playing for the name on the front of their jersey. We have a lot of history and pride in this program and this team lived up to that tradition today. I'm very proud of how hard they fought to win this game."