The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
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Kansas
No. 7 Baseball tops Kansas, 11-4
05.06.2006 | Baseball
AUSTIN, Texas -- Freshman starter Riley Boening (Yoakum, Texas) struck out seven over six shutout innings and the UT offense plated 11 runs on 13 hits as No. 7 Texas posted an 11-4 victory over Kansas in front of 5,446 fans at Disch-Falk Field on Saturday, May 6.
While the Longhorns' (35-15, 18-4) win over the Jayhawks (33-20, 10-13) secured UT its sixth league series triumph, it also extended the team's win streak to a season-best seven games. Additionally, with Nebraska's 5-4 loss to Oklahoma State, the Horns move into first place in the Big 12 standings by percentage points.
Following a scoreless opening frame, Texas grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second as Carson Kainer (Tomball, Texas) drew a leadoff walk, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a one-out double from Bradley Suttle (Boerne, Texas). KU looked to answer in the top of the third by placing runners on the corners via a hit batter, a sacrifice and an infield hit, but Boening induced a come-backer on a suicide squeeze to cut down the lead runner at the plate and notched his fourth strikeout of the game to end the chance. Texas then received a two-out single from Chance Wheeless (Round Rock, Texas) followed by a run-scoring double off the bat of Drew Stubbs (Atlanta, Texas) to pull in front 2-0 in the bottom of the third. Still alive in the frame, an error on a pickoff moved Stubbs to third before a hit batter and a walk loaded the bases, but Kansas starter Nick Czyz worked out of further trouble with a groundout to first to keep it a two-run contest.
While back-to-back hit batters with two outs in the fourth for UT came in front of a two-run double from Wheeless to stake the Horns to a 4-0 advantage, Boening limited the Jayhawks to only three hits through five frames. One inning later in the bottom of the sixth, Texas again threatened with runners on the corners courtesy of two hits and a sacrifice. Nick Peoples (Round Rock, Texas) then singled in one run before a two-out walk loaded the bases. Despite the opportunity, Kansas reliever Sean Land got a groundout to hold the UT lead at 5-0.
After a scoreless seventh for both sides, Kansas received a leadoff double from Ritchie Price and a one-out single from Gus Milner to place runners on the corners with one out. While a base hit off the bat of Jared Schweitzer broke up the shutout bid to make it a 5-1 game, Austin Wood (Kingwood, Texas) entered the game and managed to have his first batter hit into an inning-ending double play. Singles by Peoples and Brett Lewis (Rockwall, Texas) then combined with a sac bunt in the bottom of the eighth to give UT runners at second and third with one away before Stubbs delivered a two-run base hit, Kainer doubled and Suttle singled to make it 9-1 in favor of the Horns. Not done in the frame, Texas received a single by Chais Fuller (Fairfield, Calif.), a wild pitch and a two-base error to plate two more scores and make it an 11-1 ballgame. Continuing to battle, Kansas put together four hits in the top of the ninth, including an RBI-double from Brock Simpson and a run-scoring single by Price, en route to scoring three times. Even so, Keith Shinaberry (Austin, Texas) came on from the UT bullpen to record the final two outs and cap off the 11-4 win. While Boening, who matched a career-best for innings pitched for the third time this season as he scattered three singles, walked four and struck out seven over six innings of work, earned his fourth win, Nick Czyz shouldered the loss for KU.
Paving the way for Texas' 13-hit attack were six players with multiple-hit outings. Included in that group were Peoples, who went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and one RBI, Stubbs, who scored once while driving in three runs during a 2-for-4 effort, and the duo of Wheeless and Suttle, who each went 2-for-4 with one run scored and a pair of RBI. Kansas, meanwhile, had its offense led by Simpson, who went 3-for-4 with one run scored and one RBI, and the tandem of Price and Milner, who each tallied a pair of hits. Of additional note for UT, both Peoples and Kainer extended their current hit streaks to seven games while Wheeless has now hit safely in each of the last five contests.
The Horns and Jayhawks wrap up their three-game set at Disch-Falk Field on Sunday, May 7 with a 1 p.m. Central game presented by AT&T.
