The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Rice
No. 8 Baseball takes season series from No. 25 Rice
03.23.2010 | Baseball
March 23, 2010
AUSTIN, Texas -- The No. 8 Texas Longhorns used a four-run sixth inning and allowed just two hits on Tuesday evening to post a 5-1 win over the No. 25 Rice Owls at UFCU Disch-Falk Field.
The victory gave the Longhorns the final edge in the 2010 season series against Rice. Texas won a 2-1 decision at Minute Maid Park on March 5 and the Owls earned a 10-6 victory last Tuesday at Reckling Park.
Texas (16-5) broke the scoring seal in the bottom of the third inning. Jordan Etier hit a solo home run to leftfield to stake the Horns to a 1-0 advantage.
Rice (12-10) tied the game in the top of the fifth. Anthony Rendon led off the inning with a four-pitch walk and Rick Hague singled to center field. Steven Sultzbaugh drew a walk to load the bases. On a misbunted squeeze play by Craig Manuel, Rendon scored on a muffed toss from pitcher to catcher at the plate.
The Longhorns reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the sixth. Texas took advantage of one Rice error, three walks, one wild pitch, one passed ball and one sacrifice fly to score four runs without a hit in the inning. Leading off the frame Brandon Loy reached on an error, Cameron Rupp walked and Kevin Keyes was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Kevin Lusson drew a walk to push Loy across giving Texas a 2-1 advantage. With the basepaths still saturated and Jonathan Walsh at the plate, Rupp scored on a wild pitch and Keyes scored on a wild pitch. Walsh closed out his plate appearance with a sacrifice fly to drive in Lusson, inflating the cushion to 5-1.
After two scoreless innings, Texas pitcher Chance Ruffin closed out the top of the ninth by striking out Hague and Michael Ratterree to end the game.
A patient Longhorns' offense took advantage of six walks, one hit batsmen, two Rice errors, three wild pitches and one passed ball while striking out just once.
Sam Stafford made his first career start for the Longhorns. Scheduled for a low pitch count, he worked 3.0 innings, retiring all nine batters he faced, including two strikeouts. Ruffin (4-1) closed out the game to earn the win. He pitched 3.1 shutout innings, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out three.
Abe Gonzales (2-3) was saddled with the loss for Rice. He allowed two runs, one earned, on one walk and one hit batsman in 1.1 innings.
Texas returns to action on Friday in Lubbock to face the Raiders at 6:30 p.m.
TEXAS QUOTES
Head Coach Augie Garrido
On taking the series: We like to win the series against Rice. It is kind of a bragging rights between Houston and Austin. We have a large alumni base down there in Houston--very supportive alumni--and they appreciate when they can maintain bragging rights in Houston.
On Rice: You have two national championship-type programs that have competed and won more championships than most states have won, so it is always a tough game and a tough series and an important one.
On P Sam Stafford: Sam Stafford has been working towards that. He had a good summer in Santa Barbara. We have been reluctant to pitch him anywhere but here to begin with because he has a tendency to be wild, but he has always had that kind of fastball and breaking ball. It's just that sometimes it has gotten away from him. Tonight he had great command. He is one of the best athletes on the team, so we may have discovered a pitching arm that really wants to get out there and compete.
P Chance Ruffin
On the series against Rice: It is always fun when we get to play Rice, especially when we beat them and since I have been here at UT, we have sort of struggled to do that. It means a lot to come out here and have a good game all-around--offensively, taking good at-bats and defensively, pitching staying down in the zone and getting one of the best hitting teams in the country out consistently.
On the game overall: When you go out and have your offense taking good at bats and your pitching throwing the ball down in the zone and getting outs, it is always a fun night.
2B Jordan Etier
On his homerun in the third inning: We were just trying to get out there and get off to a good start, and I was just trying to see about getting out there and getting a line drive. He (Anthony Fazio) missed it a little bit and the ball got up in the wind.
On the at-bat that resulted in a home run: My first pitch, I swung at a high fast ball, and I thought he was coming back with a curveball. I just wanted to sit back, and it came back in, and I just reacted.
P Sam Stafford
On how he felt today: I felt good. I was just happy to get an opportunity to pitch, but overall, I felt pretty solid.
On the adrenaline of his first collegiate start: The adrenaline really comes before you get out there, for me at least. I just felt like after my warm-up pitches, I kind of calmed down and just felt a lot more comfortable.
