Remember Arlington.
After Texas Longhorns lost the opening three games to the SEC powers in the State Farm College Baseball clash to start the season, coach David Pierce met with the team in the tunnel.
“Let’s remember this meeting,” said Pierce at the time. “We will remember how we started and, each day that we feel we are going to understand, we will think about it.”
These fights were clearly in front of the minds of Texas players, as they completed a three-game sweep in South Carolina, which entered the weekend unbeaten and returned to Columbia, dropped from 10th to 16th place nationally in the ranking of Division I of Baseball. while Texas rose to tenth position.
For Pierce, what contributed most to the three victories at UFCU Disch-Falk Field was consistency in all phases of the game.
“Oh, what a great weekend – we had a team that went out and played consistent baseball, we had some timely hits and excellent shots against a very good and very proud hitting team,” said Pierce.
South Carolina entered the game as one of the best hitting teams in the country, marking a significant challenge for Texas. On Friday, playmaker Ty Madden predictably shot well, but some of the other shooting performances were important in the future. Saturday’s starter, the right-handed Tristan Stevens, had his fastball sinking by working to adjust his slider, helping him out of two jams and finally launching the sixth inning.
Stevens had to work out of a difficult obstruction on the third entry, giving up a single and a double to place the runners in second and third without being eliminated. But Stevens came up for the moment, dealing with the first exit alone and then inducing a double inning final game after walking South Carolina’s best hitter, Wes Clarke, to load the bases.
In the fifth, Stevens had to overcome some mistakes by third baseman Cam Williams. The first baserunner reached with a mistake and Williams was unable to hit a ball with force that put the runners in first and third with an eliminated. Once again, Stevens responded, eliminating the final two hitters to withdraw the side, including Clarke to close the entry.
“I came out of the hill and I kind of realized to myself that this is something I’m used to,” said Stevens. “I had to say to myself, ‘Hey, I’ve been in this situation before. I know how to get out of this. And I just have to make my proposals. ‘So I regrouped – I know that was his best hitter, but I knew that if I challenged him with my best things, then he would have to hit. And that slider was definitely, I believe, one of my best. “
After Stevens energized the team with his big shot in the fifth inning, the Texas bats managed two big swings providing some margin for the Longhorns in the previously goalless game, as hitter Peyton Powell hit a home run on the opposite field that he barely overtook o The fence of the left field and the second baseman, Mitchell Daly, also destroyed one of them.
Stevens overcame another major obstacle in the sixth inning, during which he struggled this season, allowing the baserunners and not getting much help from the bullpen after the match. Against South Carolina, however, with a double play erasing a first single and a lineout for second baseman Mitchell Daly, he managed to pass through the inning.
After allowing five strokes and hitting five hitters with a walk in six innings, Stevens left and right-handed Palmer Wenzel managed to lead the way with two hits in three innings thanks to his weapon, sinking the fastball and attracting six groundouts.
On Sunday, the Texas bats continued to play consistently in the first four innings, during which the Horns scored one in the first, one in the second, two in the third and four in the fourth.
Doubles from catcher DJ Petrinsky and designated hitter Ivan Melendez produced three runs and three singles, from first baseman Zach Zubia, third baseman Cam Williams and shortstop Trey Faltine, scored three more runs.
“I think we are starting to catch bats,” said Petrinsky. “I was trying to play as a team and I think we definitely made some headway.”
Clearly, Madden and Stevens proved that Texas can win South Carolina quality lineups, but winning in the postseason – and getting a favorable spread in the postseason – often means that pitchers compete when they don’t have their best. . On Sunday, that was what right-handed Kolby Kubichek did.
Good coaches also have the ability to know when their pitchers are confident enough to make big shots in difficult situations. In the fourth entry, after Kubichek gave up a one-two and a walk to put runners first and second and Clarke stepping on the plate, Pierce faced exactly that situation as he headed for the mound.
“Well, as you know, when I get off the bench, they are leaving the game most of the time,” said Pierce. “Some guys are very deliberate about looking you in the eye and saying, ‘Coach, it’s okay, I know what I’m going to do – I’m going to hit him from the inside, I’ll take care of it.’ And he said the right things, and I felt very comfortable with that confrontation, more than with Witt in the inning.
“And then, if he was ready to deliver the ball to me on time, we go to Witt. But I liked the way he approached me. He looked me in the eye and said, ‘Coach, I can beat you right here.’ And so I just wanted to reassure you that, if we leave, it will be strictly to influence you, I mean, really expand and just be a way down. He did an incredible job. “
Clarke hit the swing and Kubichek managed to pass the inning. Bryan’s product only went through four entries, allowing for five hits and two runs after hitting three hitters and giving up two walks, but it helped Texas maintain its lead.
Right-handed Tanner Witt came in to shoot three entries with six eliminations and a single run allowed, before right-handed Cole Quintanilla and Aaron Nixon finished the game. Nixon struggled a little in the ninth, allowing for two runs, but was able to make the pitch he needed to arrest two base runners and end the game.
Texas returns to Disch on Tuesday for a 6:30 pm game on the Central Longhorn Network against UTRGV.