The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
21-7, 2-3
Texas Tech
22-8, 4-4
No. 12/15 Baseball falls to Texas Tech, 8-4
03.29.2014 | Baseball
Longhorns outhit Red Raiders, 15-11, including four from Zane Gurwitz
LUBBOCK, Texas – Zane Gurwitz recorded a season-high four hits, Tres Barrera went 3-for-5 with a home run and No. 12/15 Texas outhit Texas Tech 15 to 11, but the Red Raiders put up seven runs in the first five innings and evened the series with an 8-4 win Saturday afternoon.
The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for Texas, which fell to 21-7 overall and 2-3 in the Big 12. The Red Raiders improved to 22-8 overall and 4-4 in the league.
Texas starter Dillon Peters (3-2) had a rare off-day, allowing a career-high five runs on seven hits in 3 1/3 innings. The junior came in with a 1.79 ERA, having allowed two runs or less in five of his six previous starts, but was tagged for two in the first inning and one in each of the next three frames.
Chad Hollingsworth pitched effectively in relief for Texas, going 4 2/3 innings and allowing three runs on four hits, with just one of the runs being earned.
Texas Tech reliever Jonny Drozd (3-0), who entered in the second inning after starter Cameron Smith went just one inning, picked up the win after going seven innings. A senior left-hander, Drozd scattered 11 hits and allowed two runs while striking out four and walking three.
A day after recording a season-high 16 hits, Texas cranked out 15 on Saturday – but fell for just the second time this season when outhitting the opponent. Gurwitz, who has seen his batting average raise to .288, an increase of 171 points since March 18, was 4-for-4.
Barrera had his third multiple-RBI effort in the last four games with a run-scoring single in the first and a solo home run in the ninth. Ben Johnson and Collin Shaw also had two-hit days, with both driving in one run. As a team, the Longhorns left 13 runners on base in the game.
The Longhorns are hitting .349 as a team over the last seven games, with five players batting above .300 in that stretch: Barrera (.533), Gurwitz (.480), Payton (.440), Brooks Marlow (.385) and Johnson (.346).
The Red Raiders received at least one hit from every starter in the lineup, and scored a run or more in each of the first five innings. Tech's eight runs, meanwhile, came from eight different players.
After Texas took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first on Barrera's RBI single, the Red Raiders countered with two runs in the bottom half on just one hit. With the bases loaded after a single, walk and hit batsman, the first run came in on a wild pitch, and after a second walk, another wild pitch brought in the second run. Texas Tech increased the lead to 3-1 on a two-out RBI single by Bryant Burleson in the second.
The Longhorns got within a run in the third, when Mark Payton singled and scored on a RBI groundout by Shaw – but that's as close as they would get. Texas Tech got the run back in the bottom half of the inning on a RBI groundout of its own, and then used an inning-ending double play to stop a Texas threat in the fourth.
Texas Tech tacked on another run in the fourth and two more in the fifth for a 7-2 lead. Texas got a run in the sixth on a RBI single from Johnson, and completed the scoring on Barrera's first career home run in the ninth.
Texas will look for the series victory on Sunday when it sends RHP Nathan Thornhill (4-0, 1.01) to the mound to take on Texas Tech LHP Chris Sadberry (3-1, 2.35). First pitch is scheduled for 2:07 p.m.
Notes
- Texas has recorded double-digit hits in six of the last seven games and is batting .349 (83-248) as a team in that span.
- Texas had 153 hits in the first 21 games this year (7.3 hits/game). In the last seven games, the Longhorns have 83 (11.9 hits/game).
- As a team, Texas has a .446 on-base percentage and .475 slugging percentage for a .921 OPS in the last seven games.
- Tres Barrera (.533, 16-30), Zane Gurwitz (.480, 12-25), Mark Payton (.440, 11-25), Brooks Marlow (.385, 10-26), and Ben Johnson (.346, 9-26) are the offensive leaders in the last seven games.
- Since March 11, Barrera is 22-of-44 (.500) at the plate, including five doubles, a triple and a home run. He has a .727 slugging percentage and a .532 on-base percentage (1.259 POS) in that span. He has raised his batting average 180 points (128 to 308) in that span.
- Since March 16, Gurwitz is 13-of-28 (.464) at the plate, with a .607 slugging percentage and .516 on-base percentage (1.123 OPS). He has raised his batting average 130 points (158 to 288) in that span.
- Texas allowed more runs (8) on Saturday than it had in the previous six games combined (6). The Longhorns also committed more errors (2) on Saturday than they had in the previous six games (1).
- After allowing six earned runs on Saturday, Texas has a 2.00 ERA, still best in the Big 12.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Drozd, Jonny (3-0)
L: Peters, Dillon (3-2)
Batting:
2B: Barrera, Tres 1 ; Shaw, Collin 1
HR: Barrera, Tres 1
RBI: Johnson, Ben 1 ; Barrera, Tres 2 ; Shaw, Collin 1
SH: McGuire, Andy 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Marlow, Brooks 1 ; Payton, Mark 1 ; Barrera, Tres 1 ; Gurwitz, Zane 1
SB: Gurwitz, Zane 2
Batting:
2B: Gutierrez, Eric 1 ; Humphreys, Alec 1
RBI: Burleson, Bryant 1 ; Barrios, Jake 1 ; Redman, Hunter 1 ; Proudfoot, Tim 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Smith, Stephen 1 ; Burleson, Bryant 1 ; Barrios, Jake 1 ; Kirsch, Adam 1 ; Conley, Devon 1 ; Humphreys, Alec 1 ; Redman, Hunter 1 ; Proudfoot, Tim 1
SB: Redman, Hunter 1
HBP: Gutierrez, Eric 1 ; Humphreys, Alec 1
