Kody Clemens' walk-off homer keeps the Baseball season alive

Saturday, May 28

Oklahoma City, Okla.

12:30 p.m.

University of Texas

25-31

TCU

40-15

TCU

Texas

Photo by: Big 12 Conference

Kody Clemens' walk-off homer keeps the Baseball season alive

05.28.2016 | Baseball

Box Score

The freshman third baseman launched a 1-0 pitch over the wall in center to give the Longhorns a 2-1 win.

Box Score

OKLAHOMA CITY—With the ballgame tied 1-1, freshman Kody Clemens launched a walk-off home run in the ninth inning on Saturday afternoon to give the Longhorns a 2-1 win over TCU. The walk-off win—the first for the Longhorns this year—keeps the Texas Baseball season alive in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship.

TCU got on the board in the first inning when, after Austen Wade led off with a single, Evan Skoug hit a one-out double to plate Wade and give the Horned Frogs a 1-0 lead. Starter Connor Mayes settled in however and struck out the side in the first to limit the damage.

After both sides exchanged zeroes over the next three innings, it was Texas who struck next. Shortstop Bret Boswell cranked his first of two doubles to open the inning. He advanced to third on a Kody Clemens groundout and Jake McKenzie came through for the Longhorns, driving in Boswell with a single up the middle to knot the game at 1-1.

TCU threatened again in the sixth. After two fly outs to open the inning, the Horned Frogs' Josh Watson tripled over the head of Patrick Mathis who just barely missed making the grab as he crashed into the fence. With the runner on third, Kody Clemens and Kacy Clemens combined for an impressive play to end the inning. When Elliott Barzilli ripped a shot down the third base line, Kody Clemens smothered it and fired to first base where his brother made a tough pick to record the out.

That would be all for Mayes in the ballgame as he turned in his best start of the season. The sophomore right-hander finished with six innings, allowing six hits and one run with no walks and six strikeouts on 110 pitches.

Travis Duke entered in relief for the Longhorns and tossed two perfect frames to move the ballgame to the ninth. Freshman Chase Shugart came on and, after hitting the first batter, induced a 6-4-3 double play and a fly out to close out the top half of the frame.

Then came the bottom of the ninth.

With one out in the inning, Kody Clemens drove a 2-0 pitch to straightaway center that landed on the grass and gave Texas its first walk-off win of the season.

The Longhorns and Horned Frogs will face off at 4:30 p.m. CT to determine who heads to the championship game.

POSTGAME NOTES
•   Connor Mayes' 110 pitches are his most since throwing 127 on May 23, 2015 vs. Baylor in last year's Big 12 Baseball Championship…he tossed a complete game in that one, which fell on his 19th birthday.
•   With his two doubles today, Bret Boswell is now 6-for-12 with three doubles, three RBI and five runs scored in the tournament.
•   Senior LHP Travis Duke made his 115th career pitching appearance for the Longhorns…Duke sits just three behind former Longhorn Austin Wood for most all-time (118).
•   This is the first walk-off win for Texas since May 21, 2015 vs. Baylor, also in the Big 12 Baseball Championship, when Tres Barrera hit a solo homer in the ninth.
•   The walk-off is the first of Kody Clemens' career.