 "Photo: Maxx Scholten/The Daily Texan")
If there were any questions about Texas’ grit and toughness caused by their struggles at the beginning of conference play, straight wins against its rival, the No. 1 team in the Big 12, showed what the team is made of.
“Sometimes, your prayers are answered,” head coach Augie Garrido said. “There’s been spirit that exists around this team from the beginning, and we’ve had our struggles and now we’re coming out of it.”
The weekend started out on a positive note for Texas when it captured the first game of its doubleheader with a 7-3 win over Oklahoma.
Sophomore right-hander Chance Ruffin started for the Longhorns and was credited with the win. Ruffin, who pitched a season-high 10 strikeouts, held Oklahoma to three runs on seven hits in 6.1 innings. Senior closer Austin Wood came in for relief and earned his ninth save of the season in 2.2 hitless shutout innings.
In game one, Texas (29-8, 12-6 Big 12) reached home plate first with five runs in the bottom of the second inning. The Longhorns were led offensively by sophomore outfielders Tant Shepherd and Kevin Keyes, who both went 2-for-3 with one RBI. Infielders Michael Torres, Brandon Belt and Brandon Loy, and catcher Cameron Rupp all had each hit as well.
“We’ve improved so much over the last month, where we would get three or four hits and win 3-1,” Rupp said. “Now, we’re scoring six or seven runs per game with 10-plus hits in the last 10 games. We’ve been hitting the ball well and we want to keep that going.”
With runners on first and second, Rupp smashed a single to right field, plating Shepherd and giving the Horns their first run of the series. Loy batted next and doubled to right center to drive in Rupp and Keyes, extending the lead 3-0.
Seconds later, Loy scored on an OU wild pitch, and sophomore center fielder Connor Rowe scored in the same series on an error by the OU catcher, putting Texas up 5-0.
“We are definitely hitting our stride at the right time,” Wood said. “Offensively, we’re doing great and the guys have really come alive, and it’s helped out immensely.”
Oklahoma (29-11, 8-7 Big 12) got on the scoreboard with two runs in the top of the fourth when first baseman Aaron Baker knocked in two Sooners with his 10th home run of the season. But the Longhorns kept the runs coming in the sixth and the eighth, leaving OU out to dry with only three runs.
After a 30-minute break, the Longhorns took to the field again with continuous momentum.
Texas jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead after three innings and ended up winning the second game of the doubleheader, 6-2. The sweep put Texas in first place in the Big 12 standings, ahead of Baylor and Texas A&M.
In game two, Torres led the Texas offense, going 3-for-4 with two doubles, one RBI, one run and one stolen base. Rupp led the team with three RBI in a 2-for-4 performance that included his fifth home run of the season. Also notable was the fact that eight of the nine Longhorn starters registered at least one hit, and Belt extended his career-high hitting streak to 13 games.
“We’ve come a long way,” Wood said. “I think that Kansas series was a wake-up call for sure. It’s never fun to lose three games in conference, or any time really. Ever since then we’ve kind of turned things around offensively.”
Wood explained that the keys to the Longhorns’ pitching are superb coaching and a positive aura.
“We have fun doing it,” Wood said. “We’re a close-knit group and we enjoy being around each other. We have a good time in the bullpen and we want to pick each other up. And luckily, we’re pretty good at it.”
In Sunday’s series finale, it was the same song, third verse. This time, Oklahoma got on the scoreboard first as it raked in two runs after the second inning. But Texas responded in the third with four runs, taking advantage of four walks to claim a 4-2 lead. The lead flip-flopped a few times before the Horns kept it for good in the bottom of the fifth.
Freshman pitcher Taylor Jungmann earned the series finale win with 4.1 innings of scoreless relief as he gave up five hits and struck out three before Wood came in to earn his 10th save of the season. This substitution marked Wood’s 100th career appearance.
He is only the fourth Longhorn to do so, joining a club comprised of Randy Boone (106), J. Brent Cox (106) and Houston Street (105). He also moved into a tie with Mike Hamer for fifth place on Texas’ career save list with 10.
“I didn’t really think anything of it today,” Wood said. “One day I’ll probably look back on it and think it was really cool, but the season isn’t over, thankfully, and hopefully I’ll get a few more opportunities. It’s a good feeling.”
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