After dominating the first two games of the series, the Texas baseball team had a tough time containing Baylor’s offense Sunday, falling 11-2 to the Bears.
“(The Longhorns) had the right attitude all the way through,” Texas head coach David Pierce said. “We just let one inning get away from us, and at times you(‘ve) just got to look away and tip your hat. (The Bears) played better than us today.”
Baylor made their presence felt at the plate from the opening pitch, scoring five runs in the first four innings.
It wasn’t until the seventh inning, however, that the Bears were able to run away with the game. Baylor scored six runs in the seventh inning and never looked back.
Redshirt sophomore pitcher Kolby Kubichek started on the mound for Texas to close the series. He struggled with his control, giving up four walks, and Baylor’s batters smacked five hits and scored five runs.
Kubichek’s inability to find his spots resulted in free bases for the Bears all day long, Pierce said.
“It wasn’t Kolby’s day,” Pierce said. “He had, I think, three passes early, a couple of wild pitches, then pitching behind and then barreled some balls.”
Kubichek was pulled for freshman pitcher Tanner Witt, but Witt couldn’t spark the Longhorns either. Witt only allowed one hit and two runs, but his two walks hindered his game.
Pierce was forced to go deep into his bullpen to find someone who could stop the flood of hits. He sent out five different pitchers, but none were able to suppress Baylor’s scorching play on the offensive end.
Baylor was led at the plate by senior catcher Andy Thomas, who dominated the Longhorns’ assortment of pitchers, scoring three runs on three hits.
Texas didn’t just have a rough day on the defensive end. The Longhorns’ bats couldn’t make any noise against Baylor’s rotation, only mustering two runs on five hits.
Despite the overall lackluster performance, the redshirt freshman duo of infielder Trey Faltine and outfielder Douglas Hodo III each scored one run and got a hit against the Bears.
Baylor senior pitcher Hayden Kettler left Texas’ batting group in shambles as he allowed just two runs on four hits. Kettler did not walk any batters.
Sunday was just not Texas’ day, and Texas allowed its opponent to score double-digit runs for the first time all season.
Texas looks to get back on track as it faces the University of the Incarnate Word on Tuesday night, Pierce said.
“We’re a very unified team, and we’re going to keep it that way,” Pierce said. “We’ll learn from this one and be ready to play on Tuesday.”
