The Longhorns dropped their third consecutive weekend series to Tulane this weekend in Austin, but head coach Augie Garrido sees the recent losses as good news for Texas.
“The good news is we were responsible for the losing,” Garrido said after Sunday’s game. “Why is that good news? Because it’s in our hands to change it.”
Sophomore pitcher Connor Mayes took the responsibility for the 3-2 series-opening loss after Friday’s game was paused by rain and resumed Saturday. Texas led 2-1 when the game was called Friday, but couldn’t maintain the lead Saturday. UT got on the board when sophomore left fielder Travis Jones singled up the middle in the first inning, followed by a double from junior designated hitter Tres Barrera. A groundout by sophomore right fielder Patrick Mathis scored Jones to tie the game at 1-1. The Longhorns led 2-1 after three innings when Jones doubled and scored on consecutive groundouts. The lead lasted until a two-run homer off Mayes from Tulane junior left fielder Jarret DeHart put the Longhorns away, 3-2. Despite the home run, Mayes and the Texas pitchers put together a solid performance. Tulane managed five hits off the three Texas pitchers it faced in Game 1, and Garrido continues to maintain confidence in his pitching staff.
“Our strength is in our pitching staff,” Garrido said. “We have to play defense at a high level, and we have not been able to do that … My disappointment was just that when we went behind by one run, the quality of the at-bats diminished terribly. So I’m bitterly disappointed that our experience, what we’ve been through in our schedule, did not produce the confidence in those situations that I had hoped for.”
Texas had the quality at-bats it needed later in the day, winning Game 2, 10-3, behind an offensive outburst and quality pitching. All three of Tulane’s runs came in the first inning, and that’s all UT senior lefty Ty Culbreth would allow. He settled down to pitch six innings with eight strikeouts and two walks, followed by three innings of one-hit baseball from freshman pitcher Blake Wellmann. The Longhorn offense got rolling in the second inning with back to back singles from Kody and Kacy Clemens. Sophomore second baseman Joe Baker’s double scored both brothers, and an RBI single from junior center fielder Zane Gurwitz tied the game at 3-3. UT broke the game open with a four-spot in the third inning. A Kacy Clemens RBI double plated three runs, and he later scored on a throwing error by the Tulane second baseman to put Texas up, 7-3. UT added three more runs in the sixth on a couple RBI singles to take the game, 10-3. Both Clemens brothers had a two-hit night, and Kacy says the adjustments he made at the plate are paying off.
“I feel great at the plate – I’m seeing the ball well,” Kacy said. “My swing is different than it used to be, and I’m able to barrel a lot more balls now – whether they get caught or not isn’t up to me … So if they keep falling, they keep falling. Hopefully there will be guys on base when they do, and I’ll keep getting more RBIs.”
Despite outhitting Tulane on Sunday, UT failed to manufacture enough runs and dropped the series finale, 5-3, after two unearned Tulane runs set the stage. UT sophomore righty Kyle Johnston walked a Tulane batter, followed by errors from sophomore second baseman Jake McKenzie and sophomore shortstop Bret Boswell that scored a run. A base hit added another, and Tulane was up 2-0. Texas added a run in the sixth when Boswell singled and scored on a Mathis double. In the seventh, sophomore catcher Michael Cantu doubled and scored on Gurwitz’s single to tie the game 2-2. Tulane responded with two runs in the eighth and one in the ninth. Texas’ one run in the bottom of the ninth wasn’t enough to spark a comeback as the Longhorns fell, 5-3.
Garrido says the Longhorns are capable of much more, and Texas will have to get back on track as conference play looms. The Longhorns first play UTSA at 6 p.m. Tuesday night before beginning their Big 12 schedule against TCU on March 24 at 6 p.m.
“We have provided the opponent with more opportunities than any team can withstand,” Garrido said. “And we’ve never played like that – we’re not playing our game. We’re not doing what we’re capable of doing and we need to start over.”
Blanche Schaefer 