4 days after a title-winning sweep in opposition to No. 6 West Virginia, the Longhorns’ scorching streak rapidly got here to an finish as they had been outmatched in opposition to the No. 8 Kansas Jayhawks on Wednesday.
Regardless of a promising weekend in Austin that noticed Texas securing the No. 1 seed within the Huge 12 match and a share of the common season title, the Longhorns did not experience their momentum heading into match play. The Kansas Jayhawks, who completed simply 8–16 in Huge 12 play, knocked the Longhorns to the decrease bracket after a 6-3 victory in Arlington.
The deciding second got here within the seventh inning, with the sport tied at two, an already low rating for the Longhorns who spent the weekend scoring six runs per sport within the first two innings. With junior lefty and Huge 12 Pitcher of the 12 months Lucas Gordon chased out of the sport after 5 innings, redshirt sophomore right-hander Travis Sthele was tasked with maintaining the sport inside attain. After an improved sixth inning, Sthele bought into hassle within the seventh, loading the bases off of a single, a stroll, and an intentional stroll. Stepping in was Jayhawk and junior DH Janson Reeder, who had already homered in opposition to the Longhorns in a 4-10 dwelling victory just below three weeks earlier, Kansas’ solely win over Texas this yr.
On a 3-2 rely, Sthele threw a fastball proper down the center, permitting Reeder to launch a bomb to proper discipline, simply over junior Dylan Campbell’s head. The DH flipped his bat and rounded the bases in swagger, understanding he’d simply hit the most important dwelling run of his life and his first grand slam of the season.
Wednesday’s loss spelled one other unlucky outing for Sthele in Arlington. Although he was capable of end the sport with no extra harm, the pitcher has now given up 12 runs this season in Arlington, eight of which got here unearned in opposition to Vanderbilt in Texas’ third sport of the season throughout the 2023 Faculty Baseball Showdown.
Texas’ most important spark of offense got here from junior second baseman Jack O’Dowd, who homered twice within the sport and was liable for the primary and final runs UT scored. Wednesday was O’Dowd’s first multi-homer sport of his profession and was the catalyst that Texas wanted on the finish of their lineup.
Sadly for O’Dowd and the pitching workers, the remainder of the Longhorn batters didn’t come to play. The workforce struck out 9 occasions, three of which got here within the ninth inning. The highest six within the Longhorns order hit simply 4/20 with zero additional base hits. Although the field rating made the sport appear shut, it felt just like the Longhorns had been enjoying defensive the entire sport, distinction to the 14 runs per sport they’d been scoring of their final 5 video games.
The Longhorns now fall to 0–4 at Globe Life Subject in Arlington on the season and can want a robust displaying in opposition to Kansas State on Thursday for an opportunity at a Huge 12 match title.
