Marlow, Offense lead Texas Baseball Past Texas Tech, 11-1
LUBBOCK, Texas -- Brooks Marlow went 4-for-6 with a home run and two doubles and No. 12/15 Texas Baseball recorded double-digit hits for the fifth time in the last six games en route to an 11-1 win over Texas Tech Friday night at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park.
Playing in front of 4,206, the third-largest crowd in stadium history, Texas won its sixth straight game to improve to 21-6 overall and 2-2 in the Big 12.
The Longhorns came into the game having batted .333 in their last five games and kept it up against the Red Raiders (21-8, 3-4 Big 12), cranking out a season-high 16 hits – including five for extra bases. Marlow homered to tie the game in the third, then added a pair of doubles and scored three runs on the evening. His four hits were a career-high.
Tres Barrera went 3-for-4 with two doubles and three RBI, Collin Shaw went 2-for-6 with two runs and a RBI, and Mark Payton was 3-for-5 with three RBI. In the process, Payton extended his national-best reached base streak to 66 games.
On the mound, Parker French allowed just one run in seven innings of work, scattering six hits. After allowing the Red Raiders to score their only run in the first inning, French followed with six shutout frames while the Texas offense took control of the game.
Trailing 1-0 heading to the third, Marlow led off the inning by driving a 3-2 pitch over the right-center field fence a solo home run, his first of the season, to tie it up.
French, meanwhile, worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the third on just five pitches, and then worked a 1-2-3 fourth on just nine.
Texas took the lead with a four-run fifth inning. Marlow led off the inning with a double down the right field line, and after Moreno hit Ben Johnson with a pitch, Tech went to the bullpen for right-hander Dalton Brown. Payton responded with a single through the right side that scored Marlow and gave Texas a 2-1 lead.
The Longhorns added to the lead when Shaw singled to right field on a 3-2 count to score Payton. After Shaw stole second to put two runners in scoring position, Barrera ripped a two-run double to the gap in right center to make it 5-1 Texas.
An inning later, Marlow started a rally with a one-out double down the opposite way down the left-field line. Johnson singled to put runners on second and third, and Payton followed with a two-run single through the right side to make it 7-1.
Texas added a run in the seventh when Barrera doubled and Gurwitz drove him in with a single to right-center field; and two more in the eighth on a RBI single by Jeremy Montalbano and a bases-loaded walk to Kacy Clemens. The Longhorns added their final run on a RBI single from Barrera in the ninth.
Texas Tech's Dominic Moreno (1-5), who allowed three runs on three hits in four innings, took the loss.
Game two of the series is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday. Texas sends LHP Dillon Peters (3-1, 1.79 ERA) to the mound against Texas Tech LHP Cameron Smith (4-0, 3.38).
(Source: University of Texas Athletics)
