In a total flip from its last two performances against Oklahoma State, Texas baseball gave a lackluster effort on Sunday, resulting in a 7-2 loss to close out the series without a sweep.
The Longhorns faced a wave of pitching instability, giving up a total of nine walks and leaving OSU plenty of room to relieve the chip on its shoulder. Cowboys starting pitcher and sophomore Carson Benge pitched for six straight innings without allowing a single run for Texas, while the Longhorns saw eight different pitchers take the mound throughout the game.
“We want to have confidence in guys, but they have to pitch ahead in counts, and we’re giving up free passes,” head coach David Pierce said. “Repeatability, I think that’s the biggest thing for them. They’ve got to focus … and get locked in on repeating pitches.”
Neither opponent gained momentum at the plate for the first three innings, with Texas having five groundouts and two flyouts, closing off any opportunities to see home plate.
OSU broke the silence at the top of the fourth inning as Benge slammed a solo home run to center field. Sophomore left fielder Nolan Schubart followed in his wake with a single before junior first baseman Colin Brueggemann replicated Benge’s homer almost exactly, giving the Cowboys a 3-0 lead.
Starting junior pitcher Lebarron Johnson Jr. couldn’t seem to find his rhythm, giving up a single, a stolen base and an RBI double in the fifth inning to make it a 4-0 game. In his past four games, Texas went on to win the game, but he only averaged about three innings pitched before being turned away to the dugout. Johnson pitched about four innings against OSU, allowing seven hits, a walk and a wild pitch.
From there, Texas began to scrounge through its pitching rotation but dug itself a deeper hole by giving up three walks between pitchers sophomore Luke Harrison and freshman Easton Tummis. Under junior pitchers Chase Lummus and Andre Duplantier Ⅱ, Texas gave up a combined four walks in the top of the seventh inning for an RBI, with hopes of a series sweep dwindling rounding a 5-0 deficit.
Senior pinch hitter Jack O’Dowd finally got Texas on the board, crushing a solo home run into the Yeti Yard. O’Dowd has been out of the starting lineup for most of the season, alongside fellow senior Porter Brown, but has proved that he can step up when the team needs it most.
“It was great for Jack (O’Dowd), he needed that, personally,” Pierce said. “Both (O’Dowd and Brown) are locked in mentally, they’re still all in, … they’re just having a tough year.”
Despite OSU gaining two more runs in the top of the ninth inning, the Longhorns wouldn’t go down with just one run, as junior designated hitter Kimble Schuessler launched another solo homer in the bottom of the ninth to cap off the game at 7-2.
Texas will travel to Orlando, Florida next weekend to continue its postseason conference run, taking on UCF beginning on Friday.
