FINAL
Texas A&M - 1
Texas - 2
BOX SCORE
Winning Pitcher: Ruger Riojas (8-1)
Losing Pitcher: Ryan Prager (2-3)
Save: Dylan Volantis (10)
RECAP
The Disch was packed tonight with 7,294 fans, the 6th largest regular crowd.
That included a packed Yeti Yard which was rented out by the Longhorn Foundation for those who donated $1M or more and friends.
In the Top 1st, RHP Ruger Riojas was on the mound for the Horns in lieu of normal Friday night starter Jared Spencer. Riojas struck out the first two batters he faced before giving up a soft single to 2B against the shift. Ruger got out of the inning though on the next pitch as the Aggy hitter swung at a pitch and sent it to LF where it was caught by freshman LF Adrian Rodriguez.
Bottom 1st - LHP Ryan Prager was on the mound for the Aggies and looked like his previous self as he retired the side in order without much stress.
In the Top 2nd, Ruger was back on the mound and again got two quick outs before running a pitch inside that hit the batter to put a man on. Ruger bounced back though, getting former Texas player Gavin Kash to ground out to Kimble Schuessler at 1B.
In the Bottom 2nd, Prager again was dealing as he got back to back ground outs and then a fly out to LF.
In the Top 3rd, the 9 hole hitter for the Aggies laid down a perfect bunt single to put the lead man on. Ruger battled back though to retire the next three batters in a row, including another strikeout against Jace LaViolette to put up another zero on the board.
In the Bottom 3rd, RF Tommy Farmer IV led off with a check swing dribbler down the 3B line to get the lead off man on. LF Adrian Rodriguez then hit a liner to the gap in left CF putting Tommy Farmer on 3B, but Rodriguez was tagged out trying to turn a single into a double as the Aggy defender got the ball back in very quickly. That brought the 9 hole hitter, 2B Jayden Duplantier to the plate. Hitting just .129 on the season, Jayden came up with a huge hit as he hit an 0-1 pitch to the gap in left CF that landed at the base of the Yeti Yard wall for an RBI double to put the Horns up 1-0. The Horns could not capitalize further as both DH Ethan Mendoza and C Rylan Galvan failed to get on base or move him over.
In the Top 4th, Ruger got a ground out to Kimble for the first out, but then hit the next batter he faced to put a runner on. It made no difference though as Ruger fielded a chopper to the right side of the mound, firing to SS Jalin Flores covering 2B on the run, who then relayed to 1B in time for the double play.
In the Bottom 4th, SS Jalin Flores led off with a double down the 3B line that came off the top of the defenders glove. Unfortunately, the Horns could not take advantage as CF Will Gasparino, 1B Kimble Schuessler, and 3B Casey Borba went down in order, sending it to the 5th inning with the Horns still holding a 1-0 lead.
In the Top 5th, Ruger gave up a lead off single through the left side. Riojas benefited from a pitchers friend though as Gavin Kash hit a chopper back up the middle right to Jalin Flores who stepped on the bag and fired across in time for the double play. That was a very fortunate play as the next two batters each got a single off of Ruger to put two men on with two outs, but Ruger got the dangerous Jace LaViolette to hit a deep fly ball to CF (391 feet, 104 off the bat) which was caught by CF Will Gasparino to end the scoring threat.
In the Bottom 5th, 2B Jayden Duplantier was able to earn a 2 out walk, but was then caught stealing on a really nice pick off move by Prager.
In the Top 6th, Ruger got back to back outs, but had thrown 89 pitches, so Jim Schlossnagle came out of the dugout and made a call to the bullpen to bring in RHP Max Grubbs. Grubbs got the first batter out that he faced, inducing a ground out to Jalin Flores at SS to send the game to the Bottom 6th with the Horns still leading 1-0.
In the Bottom 6th, Ethan Mendoza led off by grounding out to the SS. Rylan Galvan then hit a single back up the middle to get a runner on. Jalin Flores was not able to move him over though as he struck out swinging. Will Gasparino then laid down a perfect bunt single down the 3B line to put two runners on with two outs, prompting a pitching change by Aggy head coach Michael Earley. The new righty faced Kimble Schuessler first who hit a lazy fly ball out to CF to end the frame.
In the Top 7th, Max Grubbs retired the side in order to put up another zero on the board.
In the Bottom 7th, Casey Borba worked a 10 pitch at-bat but unfortunately was rung up on a breaking ball that missed the zone outside per Trackman. That would prove interesting as Tommy Farmer got a hanging breaking ball on the first pitch he saw, hitting it to the bullpen in LF for a solo HR, the first of the season and the very first of his career to make it 2-0 Texas. Adrian Rodriguez then popped up on the second pitch he saw. Jayden Duplantier then hit a high pop up to shallow RF which neither the SS or LF were able to come up with. That error put Jayden on 2B with two outs and prompted Earley to make another call to the bullpen. The new pitcher struck out Ethan Mendoza looking after a lengthy at-bat to send it to the 8th with the Horns leading 2-0.
In the Top 8th, Max Grubbs gave up a lead off double to 9 hole hitter Ben Royo as he continued his perfect day at the plate. Grubbs battled back to get the lead off man Kiel to strike out swinging, bringing the ever dangerous Jace LaViolette to the plate, prompting Jim Schlossnagle to make a call to the pen to bring in freshman LHP Dylan Volantis. The young southpaw struck out LaViolette for the second out, prompting a huge cheer from the Texas fans. Unfortunately, the Aggies would score their first run of the game in the next at-bat as a sky high fly ball on the infield that got above the lights dropped in next to Kimble Schuessler, making it a 2-1 ballgame. The good news was that the batter was not able to go to 2B on the error as the next batter hit a single to put two runners on with 2 outs. Unfazed, Volantis struck out the next batter to end the scoring threat.
In the Bottom 8th, Galvan, Flores, and Gasparino all came to the plate, and unfortunately for Horns fans, were retired in order sending it to the 9th inning.
In the Top 9th, freshman LHP Dylan Volantis was back on the mound looking to earn his 10th save of the season. The first batter he faced was Austin native Kaeden Kent from Lake Travis, who drew a walk after a lengthy at-bat. Volantis battled back to get a strikeout against the next batter. Coach Michael Earley then sent a pinch hitter to the plate instead of Gavin Kash. The pinch hitter, struck out swinging for the 2nd out of the game. That brought the 9 hole hitter Ben Royo to the plate who was a perfect 3-3 on the evening. He would make it 4-4 as he hit a liner into LF for a single, putting runners on 1B and 2B with 2 outs. Leadoff man Terrence Kiel II stepped to the plate with the game on the line. Freshman v. freshman. The Texas southpaw got the best of Kiel tonight though as he struck him out looking on three straight pitches to slam the door shut and seal the 2-1 Texas victory.
BIG MOMENT
In the Bottom 9th with Texas holding a narrow 2-1 lead, there were two outs and runners on 1B and 2B with lead off hitter Terrence Kiel II at the plate. Freshman LHP Dylan Volantis struck out Kiel on three straight pitches, the final being a 81mph breaking ball for a strike 3 called looking to slam the door and seal the victory for the Horns.
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE
Tommy Farmer IV had himself a day!
The starting RF went 2-3, scoring 2 runs and an RBI, which included coming up with the big fly in the Bottom 7th to give the Horns some insurance and what would eventually be the winning run
TAKEAWAYS
A massive victory for the Horns as they won game one against one of the best lefties in the nation. Ryan Prager of Texas A&M looked like the guy that racked up double digit wins last season, leading the Aggies to within a couple of outs away from a national title.
For the Horns, they got an outstanding performance from RHP Ruger Riojas who stated that his best play of the game was the double that he turned, describing it as pretty sick. Riojas also had a chuckle in post game when asked about the over hand curveball that registered 54mph on the gun in a battle against Jace LaViolette. Ruger stated he is always trying to make his pitches look a little different and show something different.
In addition, the Horns did not have to eat into their bullpen too much in earning the win. Ruger is obviously done for the weekend and Volantis is likely as well after throwing 40 pitches, but Max Grubbs only needed 19 pitches, so he can absolutely be used again this weekend, which is big for the Horns bullpen, as they will most certainly need him again.
Offensively, I thought the Horns put together good at-bats throughout most of the night, but Prager was a version of himself that he has not shown all season long. The Horns played outstanding defense tonight with the exception of the miscue that allowed the Aggies to score their run.
Overall, hell of a game from both sides!
NEXT UP:
Horns (35-5, 17-2 SEC) will be back at it again tomorrow against Texas A&M (24-17, 8-11 SEC)
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