The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Texas A&M
Baseball wins Big 12 crown with State Farm Lone Star Showdown win
05.10.2009 | Baseball
May 10, 2009
AUSTIN, Texas -- The No. 8 Texas Longhorns took advantage defensive lapses by the No. 14 Texas A&M Aggies in the first inning to score five runs and hung on for a 5-4 win in the rubber match of the State Farm Lone Star Showdown at UFCU Disch-Falk Field on Sunday afternoon.
The UT victory coupled with a loss by Oklahoma in the Bedlam Series against Oklahoma State gave the Horns their fifth Big 12 regular-season title and the third in the last four years.
With the win, Texas earned the Baseball point in the State Farm Lone Star Showdown and took a 9.5-7.5 lead in the all-sport rivalry. With just Men's and Women's Outdoor Track and Field remaining, Texas is guaranteed at least a tie in this year's Showdown. Since Texas A&M won the trophy in 2007-08, Texas would need a half-point to bring the hardware to the Forty Acres.
Texas scored all its runs in the home half of the first. With one out, Travis Tucker cued a double down the leftfield line and Brandon Belt was issued a walk. A fielder's choice groundout by Russell Moldenhauer put runners on the corners. The play appeared to be a double play, but Aggies' first baseman Luke Anders pulled his foot off the bag. The Longhorns broke the scoring seal when Cameron Rupp grounded to third base, but Caleb Shofner's throw was errant allowing Travis Tucker to score. Brandon Loy drew a walk to saturate the bases with Horns. Kevin Keyes was hit by a pitch to push Moldenhauer across for the 2-0 lead. Tim Maitland singled through the right side to push two runs across, drive A&M starter Barret Loux from the game and inflate the cushion to 4-0. Another fielding error by Shofner on a grounder by Connor Rowe allowed Keyes to score the final run of the inning.
Longhorns' starter Taylor Jungmann sailed through the first four innings before hitting the wall in the fifth. Brodie Greene hit a leadoff single back to the pitcher, Brooks Raley singled to leftfield and Anders singled to center to load the bases. Kyle Colligan drew a walk to plate Greene and Joe Patterson singled down the leftfield line to score two and close the gap to 5-3. Austin Dicharry came in to spell Jungmann on the mound and fanned Shofner looking for the first out of the inning. The following batter, David Alleman grounded back to Dicharry who threw home to get Colligan in a rundown. Rupp, the Longhorns' catcher outran, Colligan and tagged him on the way back to third and was able to dive and tag Patterson who was meandering to the hot corner.
The Aggies started another rally in the seventh. Anders drew a leadoff walk and was replaced at first on a fielder's choice grounder by Colligan. Texas closer Austin Wood replaced Dicharry on the mound and promptly hit Patterson to put two runners on. Shofner doubled down the rightfield line to push Colligan across, closing the gap to 5-4. Wood got out of the jam by fanning Alleman on three pitches and inducing a grounder to first base by Kevin Gonzalez.
Dicharry (6-1) earned the win in relief for the Longhorns. He yielded one run on one hit and one walk while striking out two over 2.1 innings in relief of starter Jungmann. Austin Wood closed out the game, scattering three hits over 2.2 scoreless innings to pick up his 13th save of the season.
Loux (3-2) was saddled with the loss for Texas A&M. He yielded five runs, all unearned, on two hits and two walks over 0.2 innings. Kyle Thebeau pitched 5.0 scoreless innings, scattering three hits and one walk. Alex Wilson closed out the game with 2.1 hitless innings, striking out one.
Texas made the most of their five hits, with one each by Tucker, Rupp, Loy, Maitland and Rowe.
Greene and Raley both had three hits to lead the Aggies and Anders chipped in with a pair of hits.
Texas returns to action next Saturday with a 1 p.m. doubleheader against the Alabama A&M Bulldogs.
TEXAS QUOTES
Head coach Augie Garrido
On taking advantages of A&M's mistakes in the first inning: The imperfections of college baseball are what make it so exciting. There is no sure thing like there is most of the time in professional baseball. The players feel the environment, they feel the pressure of the moment. They go from Superman to no confidence whatsoever in a heartbeat. Their first pitcher [Barret Loux] had an off day after a brilliant game from their pitcher [Ross Hales] yesterday. Any given day, it's anybody's game.
On the team's position with only two games remaining before postseason play: I think we put ourselves in the best position we can be in at this time, despite what happened against Kansas State and at Kansas, and what happened yesterday. I feel like we're in a pretty good position to be in the top eight [nationally] and to get a regional, and I think we've got a real good shot at the championship. All in all, the team has gotten better as the year has gone on, and it was again pitching and defense. That's how we started it and that's how we ended it.
Freshman Outfielder Tim Maitland
On notching the second start of his season and career: When coach told me today I was going to start, I got really excited. Especially against these guys because it's such a strong rivalry against A&M. We all have a bunch of buddies on that team. They think they're better than us, we know we're better than them, so it's fun to go out and prove it and just play the game.
On his two-RBI single in the first inning: We had the bases loaded and I came up with two outs. I just stepped in the box and I was thinking, they're going to give you a pitch to hit, so first good pitch you see just react to it and do what you can. I hit it between first and second and two runs scored.
Freshman pitcher Austin Dicharry
On the bullpen's vital role in today's game: Pitching with the lead is always great and you get confidence from that. You just try to gain from that every inning and do your best out there.
On coming into the game in the fifth inning with a dwindling lead: Coming out of the pen, I've kind of gotten accustomed to doing that. I've learned to go in there and throw strikes. If you make a bad pitch, just throw it away and go on to the next pitch. Coach Skip [Johnson] and [Cameron] Rupp called a great game and my defense picked me up. I just went out there and tried to hit my spots the best I could.
On taking two of three from the Aggies: It's awesome. Every game was really intense and it provided a great environment for us. I think both teams build from this and it was a great series overall.
Senior pitcher Austin Wood
On his emotions in the last inning: You've just got to make pitches and get out of it. Skip [Johnson] always talks about taking it one pitch at a time and that's what I had to do. I knew if I made my pitches I could get out and I was fortunate enough. I got a strike out right there, made pitches to the next guy and I got that ground ball to get us out of the inning.
On his arm after pitching a lot of innings of Friday: It felt pretty good. It was ten times better than what it was last weekend against Baylor. Maybe it was the fact we were playing A&M with a chance to hopefully win Big 12 Championship with what happens down the line. It felt fine. I just went out there and did my job and got my job done.
On winning the series against Texas A&M: I wasn't going to lose to A&M in my final conference home game. Everybody's mindset was that we were going to win this game. No matter how we play, no matter how they play, we were going to come out there and give it everything we got. We were fortunate enough to come away with a win. It was very intense. We did our job this weekend. Yesterday, we kind of got taken back by that pitcher over there who did his job. But today we doddle back and showed what we were made of and got the job done.
Sophomore catcher Cameron Rupp
On his double play at third base: That's something you don't see everyday. That's something I probably won't ever do again. It was just one of those things that is unheard of. It's unexplainable how it happened. We just made the play happen. I had no idea that guy was coming to third.
On being able to respond to the big play: That was a huge play. It was a huge momentum swing for us, with guys on second and third and one out. It just happened. It's one of those things that are very unpredictable for something like that to happen. You've just got to take the panic out and just relax, just let the play unfold as it is.
On what the play did for Texas: It got us going back in the right direction after the pitching kind of struggled there. But like we said all year, defense will pick you up, offense will pick you up and it was a huge play.
