FINAL SCORE:
Texas - 15
St. John's - 4
Winning Pitcher: Luke Harrison (1-0)
Losing Pitcher: Chris Batuyios (0-1)
BOX SCORE
RECAP:
After giving up a run in the Top 1st inning, the first run that the Horns had given up in 28 1/3 innings, Grubbs was able to bounce back and keep them off the board in the 2nd inning despite giving up a couple of singles. In the bottom of the 2nd, freshman Will Gasparino hit a single to right field, driving in two runs to give the Horns the lead. The Red Storm stormed back in the Top 3rd scoring 2 runs to take a 3-2 lead over the Horns after Luke Harrison gave up a 2 RBI double. The Horns struck back though in the Bottom of the 4th as the Horns put a 5 spot. Will Gasparino got an infield single, scoring Max Belyeu. Jalin Flores then hit a grand slam, his 2nd of the season when he crushed a breaking ball over the LF wall into the street, which put Texas up 7-3. Andre Duplantier got in a spot of trouble in the Top 5th giving up a run, but Heston Tole came in with the bases loaded and slammed the door shut on rally. The Horns then tacked on 3 more runs in the bottom of the Bottom 5th as Gasparino doubled to right CF, scoring Kennedy and Schuessler. Jared Thomas followed that up with an RBI single, scoring Gasparino to make it 10-4. After a quiet 6th inning by both teams, the Horns again put up a crooked number on the board in the Bottom 7th as Powell doubled down the RF line, scoring Thomas, Gasparino, and Belyeu. The next batter up was Jalin Flores who again crushed a belt high pitch to left CF for a two run home run to make it 15-4. Grant Fontenot pitched a scoreless Top 8th, striking out two batters to keep St John's at bay and then Tanner Witt came in to pitch the 9th and sat them down in order 1-2-3, including a strikeout to end the game.
BIG MOMENT:
While there were a couple of big time plays, the top play of the night has to be the grand slam by Jalin Flores. When Flores is able to extend, he is able to tap into some natural raw power. The grand slam was a big moment as it shifted momentum in a big way to the Horns and gave them a lead they would never come close to relinquishing.
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE:
While Jalin Flores is well deserving here going 3-5 on the night with a grand slam and a two run home run, I am going to give the award to freshman Will Gasparino who went 3-3 on the evening with 4 RBI and a walk. Tonight is the kind of performance that can drastically boost the confidence of a freshman that has had some nice at-bats early in the season, but is still working on tightening up his swing. Kudos to the young man and many more to come!
TAKEAWAYS:
Have to like what the Horns did at the plate tonight, especially when a guy like Peyton Powell goes 1-4. Casey Borba went 0-5 on the night, but it felt like a good learning experience for him to understand how to adjust in game to how he is being pitched. For Porter Brown, the results did not really show it, but it was quietly a good night as he took each at bat deep into the count. While it is not what everyone wants to see from Brown, it is something to build on. On the pitching front, it was not the cleanest outing for Grubbs, but there are quite a few teachable moments in his first collegiate start. Harrison got the win, striking out two batters in 1.2 IP, though some of his fastballs were really running high. Andre Duplantier looked good for two batters and then completely fell apart. He was trying out some different mechanics tonight, but it feels like he can only be used in spot situations at this point. Heston Tole did Heston Tole things in getting out of the jam he inherited from Duplantier. Fontenot looked fairly sharp tonight, striking out two of the three batters he faced. Finally, Tanner Witt made an appearance in the Top 9th and sat them down 1-2-3 via a fly out, ground out, and strikeout. The most noticeable thing was that Witt hit 93mph on one of his fastballs and was really going downhill with it and attacking the bottom of the zone. It was a very small sample size, but if Witt can give Texas 6-9 outs, that would be massive at this juncture and going forward, something to build on.
Texas - 15
St. John's - 4
Winning Pitcher: Luke Harrison (1-0)
Losing Pitcher: Chris Batuyios (0-1)
BOX SCORE
RECAP:
After giving up a run in the Top 1st inning, the first run that the Horns had given up in 28 1/3 innings, Grubbs was able to bounce back and keep them off the board in the 2nd inning despite giving up a couple of singles. In the bottom of the 2nd, freshman Will Gasparino hit a single to right field, driving in two runs to give the Horns the lead. The Red Storm stormed back in the Top 3rd scoring 2 runs to take a 3-2 lead over the Horns after Luke Harrison gave up a 2 RBI double. The Horns struck back though in the Bottom of the 4th as the Horns put a 5 spot. Will Gasparino got an infield single, scoring Max Belyeu. Jalin Flores then hit a grand slam, his 2nd of the season when he crushed a breaking ball over the LF wall into the street, which put Texas up 7-3. Andre Duplantier got in a spot of trouble in the Top 5th giving up a run, but Heston Tole came in with the bases loaded and slammed the door shut on rally. The Horns then tacked on 3 more runs in the bottom of the Bottom 5th as Gasparino doubled to right CF, scoring Kennedy and Schuessler. Jared Thomas followed that up with an RBI single, scoring Gasparino to make it 10-4. After a quiet 6th inning by both teams, the Horns again put up a crooked number on the board in the Bottom 7th as Powell doubled down the RF line, scoring Thomas, Gasparino, and Belyeu. The next batter up was Jalin Flores who again crushed a belt high pitch to left CF for a two run home run to make it 15-4. Grant Fontenot pitched a scoreless Top 8th, striking out two batters to keep St John's at bay and then Tanner Witt came in to pitch the 9th and sat them down in order 1-2-3, including a strikeout to end the game.
BIG MOMENT:
While there were a couple of big time plays, the top play of the night has to be the grand slam by Jalin Flores. When Flores is able to extend, he is able to tap into some natural raw power. The grand slam was a big moment as it shifted momentum in a big way to the Horns and gave them a lead they would never come close to relinquishing.
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE:
While Jalin Flores is well deserving here going 3-5 on the night with a grand slam and a two run home run, I am going to give the award to freshman Will Gasparino who went 3-3 on the evening with 4 RBI and a walk. Tonight is the kind of performance that can drastically boost the confidence of a freshman that has had some nice at-bats early in the season, but is still working on tightening up his swing. Kudos to the young man and many more to come!
TAKEAWAYS:
Have to like what the Horns did at the plate tonight, especially when a guy like Peyton Powell goes 1-4. Casey Borba went 0-5 on the night, but it felt like a good learning experience for him to understand how to adjust in game to how he is being pitched. For Porter Brown, the results did not really show it, but it was quietly a good night as he took each at bat deep into the count. While it is not what everyone wants to see from Brown, it is something to build on. On the pitching front, it was not the cleanest outing for Grubbs, but there are quite a few teachable moments in his first collegiate start. Harrison got the win, striking out two batters in 1.2 IP, though some of his fastballs were really running high. Andre Duplantier looked good for two batters and then completely fell apart. He was trying out some different mechanics tonight, but it feels like he can only be used in spot situations at this point. Heston Tole did Heston Tole things in getting out of the jam he inherited from Duplantier. Fontenot looked fairly sharp tonight, striking out two of the three batters he faced. Finally, Tanner Witt made an appearance in the Top 9th and sat them down 1-2-3 via a fly out, ground out, and strikeout. The most noticeable thing was that Witt hit 93mph on one of his fastballs and was really going downhill with it and attacking the bottom of the zone. It was a very small sample size, but if Witt can give Texas 6-9 outs, that would be massive at this juncture and going forward, something to build on.
