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FINAL
Texas - 6
Houston - 5
The Longhorns get a late boomba from freshman Dee Kennedy to take the lead and then Gage Boehm slams the door shut to seal the Horns win. With the win, the Horns improve to 21-15 overall and 8-6 in Big 12 play.
Winning Pitcher: Gage Boehm (3-2)
Losing Pitcher: Justin Murray (0-3)
BOX SCORE
RECAP
The Horns got things started early as Kimble Schuessler used the pitching wedge and knocked an RBI single into shallow CF to give the Horns a 1-0 lead after the 1st inning.
After a quiet 2nd inning, the Horns got back to work in the Top 3rd inning as Powell got a 1 out single to right CF, followed by a double to LF by Jalin Flores, which brough up Kimble Schuessler, who again busted out the pitching wedge to drop a shallow fly ball into RF as the RF and 2B ran into each other, scoring a run. Max Belyeu then hit a sac fly to CF, brining home Jalin Flores to put Texas up 3-0.
Unfortunately the Cougars bounced right back in the Bottom 3rd as Houston led off with back to back singles, and then with 1 out Anthony Tulimero singled through the left side, bringing a runner home for Houston. The next batter walked, loaded the bases for freshman Ace Reese, which brought about some Ace on Ace violence as Reese hit a 2 RBI single to tie the ball game at 3-3.
In the Top 5th, freshman Dee Kennedy hit a boombah to left CF into the trees on a full count to give the Horns a 4-3 advantage. After Peyton Powell singled, Houston removed the starter Howard and brought in Ryan Dollar who immediately got Jalin Flores hit a grounder, which the Cougars pounced on and turned the double play. With two outs and nobody on, Kimble Schuessler crushed a fastball over the plate to LF that barely got a courtesy jog from the defense to make it 5-3 Horns.
In the Bottom 7th, Andre Duplantier who had not given up an earned run since the mid-week series against Air Force ran into trouble. Lead off hitter Coby DeJesus led off with a home run to LF on a 2-0 count and then Anthony Tulimero once again made his name known as he hit a home run to LF on a 1-1 count. That made it a tie ball game going into the 8th inning.
In the Top 8th inning, Texas led off the inning with a runner on 3B as Max Belyeu hit a deep fly ball to LF that Ace Reese misplayed. Unfortunately, Gasparino grounded out to the short stop on the first pitch he saw and then Galvan hit a sharp grounder to the SS who threw home, which saw Max get tagged by the catcher going home. Tommy Farmer then walked putting two men on with 2 outs, but Jared Thomas hit a fly ball to RF on a full count to end the threat. Massive opportunity missed there.
In the Top 9th, Dee Kennedy again led off the inning with a home run to left CF, in nearly the identical spot as before, also on a full count. HAVE YOURSELF A DAY YOUNG MAN! That was all Texas needed as Gage Boehm struck out the side to end the game and even the series. Game. Blouses.
BIG MOMENT
Mercy me, there were two absolutely massive moments in the ball game, so tonight we will do two, because I am the generalissimo of this thread and I feel like it.
Honorable Mention - A deep fly ball to the gap in left CF in the Bottom of the 8th inning had the potential to either score the go ahead run or put two runners in scoring position with just 1 out. Not only did that not happen, but freshman Tommy Farmer IV tracked down the ball, making the catch at the wall and then swiftly got the relay throw in to Flores who got it to Thomas for the double play to end the frame. DAMN fine play...DAMN FINE.
Moment of the Game - Freshman Dee Kennedy, leading off the Top 9th hit a no doubt boomba to left CF on a 3-2 count and he knew it.
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE
Again, another tough one here, as the Horns had multiple guys stick out tonight.
Honorable Mention - Peyton Powell busted out of his slump in a big way going 4-5 on the evening, scoring 2 runs, while Kimble Schuessler went 3-4 on the evening with 1 run score, 3 RBI and a walk.
Freshman Dee Kennedy. Have yourself a night my man! Dee got bumped up to the 2 spot from the 9 spot and responded by going 2-5 with 2 home runs, 2 runs scored, 2 RBI and 2 K. His home run in the 9th though propelled Texas to a win and brough that momentum and energy back to the lineup. Well done!
TAKEAWAYS
Definitely wasn't pretty, definitely wasn't clean, but it was a hell of a lot better than the abomination that we all saw last night.
Horns have a chance to win the series tomorrow and keep pace in the Big 12, while also getting a road win and trying to improve their overall resume.
Gotta get Jared Thomas and Max Belyeu going, especially if Powell and Flores are going to hit like they did tonight. Anything the Horns get from Kennedy this year is somewhat found money and if he continues to perform even close to what he did tonight, well, you take it with a smile.
Gotta say, I like the addition defensively of Tommy Farmer in LF. Yes, there are going to be some bumps and bruises as we saw tonight, but he has a lot of speed and the more experience he gets now helps Texas downt he road. I fully expect Porter to be back in the lineup sooner rather than later with the hope he can turn things around, but at this juncture, I'd rather see Gaspo, Farmer, and Kennedy getting all the reps they can for next year.
NEXT UP
Texas will square off against Houston tomorrow (Sunday) at 1pm looking to win the series
