Last June, head coach Jim Schlossnagle was on the brink of leading the Texas A&M Aggies to their first College World Series in program history.
Eleven months later, now in burnt orange, Schlossnagle stood in the opposite dugout leading a new No. 1 team in search of renewed glory.
With a series on everyone’s mind in the Lone Star State, the Longhorns continued to stake their claim as the state’s premier program, sweeping rival Texas A&M this weekend at UFCU Disch-Falk Field in Austin.
“It means a lot to me that they play well and didn’t get caught up in all of the peripheral things about the weekend,” head coach Jim Schlossnagle said. “This series isn’t about any coaches or any of that kinda stuff — it’s about the players and about the fans.”
Texas’s ability to preserve its bullpen during critical moments, while the starting pitchers lasted deep into their starts, proved to be a highlight for the Longhorns this weekend.
Junior pitcher Max Grubbs and freshman Dylan Volantis, the Longhorns’ premier closers, were used heavily against Texas A&M. Grubbs saw action in all three games for a total of 1.6 innings, throwing three strikeouts and picking up his fifth save on Sunday.
“I have a lot of confidence in (Max),” Schlossnagle said after Sunday’s victory. “I don’t like throwing a guy three times in a row, but it’s also great preparation for getting into a regional and it’ll probably happen (pitching three games in a row).”
Earning two saves this weekend, closing out both Friday and Saturday, Volantis has emerged as one of the best freshman pitchers in the country. Throwing six strikeouts on 11 batters faced and allowing just two hits, Volantis ended both games identically, striking out Texas A&M freshman outfielder Terrence Kiel II.
“We were trying to avoid using Volantis,” Schlossnagle said after game two. “But when you have a chance to win one and win a series, you go ahead and do it.”
Opening the series, junior pitcher Ruger Riojas was elevated to Friday’s starter in the wake of junior pitcher Jared Spencer’s season-ending injury. Lasting 5.2 innings, Riojas weathered the storm from the explosive Aggie bats, collecting five strikeouts en route to his eighth victory of the season in Friday’s 2-1 victory.
The duo of junior starting pitcher Luke Harrison and sophomore reliever Thomas Burns was a deadly combination, forcing the Aggies to clamor in the batter’s box. Pitching for a combined eight innings, Harrison and Burns allowed five hits as they struck out nine hitters, sealing the series victory on Saturday.
With both teams kept mostly at bay in the batter’s box this weekend, the Longhorns rang out crucial hits when they needed them the most.
In all three games, the Longhorns hit solo home runs, with sophomore outfielder Tommy Farmer IV and freshman infielder Adrian Rodriguez hitting home run balls that fell inside the Aggies’ bullpen.
Out of his natural infield position since the Auburn series, sophomore designated hitter Ethan Mendoza had a big day on Sunday, going 3-4 at the plate. His home run in the third inning was his first in almost a month, and a clutch RBI double in the eighth inning drove in the game-winning run.
“I don’t get many trots (around the bases),” Mendoza said. “Usually I’m on the bases and Rylan (Galvan) hits them, so that’s usually my trot. But it felt good to get one for myself.”
Picking up seven total Southeastern Conference series wins, with five series sweeps, the Longhorns are furthering their stranglehold on the conference in its first year, boasting an impressive 19–2 conference record.
Texas will stay home on Tuesday to square off with Prairie View A&M before hitting the road to face the No. 11 Arkansas Razorbacks in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
