Texas baseball season ends with 8-2 loss

By Steve Lansdale

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — The frustrating 2016 season ended Saturday for the University of Texas baseball team when the Longhorns fell, 8-2, to No. 15 TCU in the second game between the teams in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpack.

With the loss, the Longhorns’ final record was 25-32.

Texas held the lead[s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level1)] twice in the game, scoring the game’s first run in the top of the third inning and then taking a 2-1 lead in the fourth. But the Horned Frogs scored three runs in each of the next two innings to blow the game open.

Shortstop Bret Boswell led the UT offense with three hits in three at-bats and a run batted in. First baseman Kacy Clemens and second baseman Jake McKenzie each scored a run for the Longhorns.

Seven pitchers took the mound for the Longhorns. Starter Ty Culbreth gave up four hits and a run before giving way to Beau Ridgeway, who surrendered six hits and three runs — two of which were earned — en route to suffering his only loss of the season against three victories.

His relief appearance was the 116^th game in the career of left-handed senior Travis Duke, who ended his career just two appearances short of matching former Longhorn Austin Wood’s 118.

Kacy Clemens finished the season with a team-leading .303 patting average; Travis Jones was second with an average of .300. Center fielder Zane Gurwitz pounded out a team-leading 63 hits, followed by Tres Barrera’s 61. Barrera and Patrick Mathis led the power production with six home runs each, while Kacy Clemens, Gurwitz and Kody Clemens each hit five. Barrera drove in the most runs of any Longhorn this season: 37.

Culbreth led the Texas pitchers with eight victories — more than twice as many as any of his teammates. Kyle Johnston struck out a team-high 43 hitters, while Chase Shugart had five of the Longhorns’ 11 saves.

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