Big 12 Roundup: The Eyes Of Texas Are Upon You, 'Horns
The Big 12 college baseball season is getting to the meat of the schedule, with conference play in full swing. Now, no series is a gimmie, often times with two ranked opponents slugging it out. Texas made the biggest splash this weekend, taking all three games from Texas Tech in dramatic fashion. TCU, Kansas State, and Oklahoma State also notched weekend sweeps.
Four teams live in D1 Baseball's top 25 rankings: Oklahoma State (17), Texas (21), Texas Tech (22), and West Virginia (24).
Break Out The Brooms
Texas took an 11-game win streak home against their toughest series opponent yet and defended Austin like it was the Alamo. Friday was a no-doubter, taking the series opener 6-2 thanks to two Mitchell Daly sac-flies. The other two games were nail-biters. Saturday's 6-5 rubber match lasted 12 innings and ended on a game-ending wild pitch. Sunday's finale finished 9-8 behind another walk off, this time from Garret Guillemette's solo home run.
Kansas State notched their own three-game sweep over Oklahoma. The Wildcats also won Sunday's finale on a walk off thanks to a Brady Day sac-fly. K-State won the last two series games by one run, as well.
TCU handled their sweep over Kansas with a bit less theatrics. After a sluggish 8-6 win Friday, TCU beat Kansas 32-5 in the final two games; Sunday featured a beautiful 14-0 shutout on a shortened seven-inning complete game from Cam Brown (8Ks).
Oklahoma State completed their three game sweep over Baylor with plenty of offense. In total, the Pokes scored 37 runs but allowed 19.
Take Me Home, Country Roads
West Virginia won two of three over Xavier and moved to 18-6 on the season. The Mountaineers surely would have liked to see a more commanding series win, but they never ask how, just how many. Defense led the way on Friday and Saturday's victories, holding the Musketeers to four and two runs, respectively.
WVU dropped the shot at a sweep of their own with an 8-3 loss on Sunday.
Team That Impressed Me The Most
Is it that obvious? A three-game sweep over #14 Texas Tech wasn't just the Big 12 performance of the weekend, it was the Big 12 performance of the year. The Texas Longhorns made a huge statement that, despite their losses this offseason, they're vying for the conference championship and a seat in the postseason.
At 18-7, they've rattled off 14 straight victories after a treacherous start to the season. The 4-7 start to the year was far from what David Pierce had in mind, but the Longhorns began the season against two top-10 SEC teams (plus Mizzou, now inside the top 25), No. 1 LSU, and at Cal State Fullerton, a traditionally great program.
The instant this team got to Big 12 play, they showed what they're really capable of. I expect Texas to continue being a real issue to the rest of the conference.
Notable Performances
Roc Riggio, INF, Oklahoma State: Welcome back, Roc. The sophomore – who's no stranger to this list – hit three more homers and drove in 11 runs this weekend against Baylor. He has the second-most RBI (27) and ties for the most homers (eight) on the Pokes this year.
Cam Brown, P, TCU: Though the game was cut short on a mercy rule, Brown rung up eight in a seven-inning complete game shutout. Brown could have kept the clinic going through nine innings, only allowing three total baserunners. It's Brown's second shutout this season, accounting for both his wins so far.
Garret Guillemette, C, Texas: Guillemette hit a walk-off solo shot to complete the sweep of Texas Tech at home. It's the junior's third round-tripper of the season. He's been excellent at the plate this year, batting .313 and drawing 14 walks while striking out just 10 times on 101 plate appearances.
Special non-Big 12 shoutout to Jacksonville infielder Kris Armstrong. The grad student hit a ridiculous eight home runs in 21 at-bats while driving in 24 RBI... on the weekend. He added three doubles and two more hits to a career series against Central Arkansas.
Big 12 College Baseball Standings
Rankings below courtesy of D1Baseball
1. #21 Texas Longhorns (18-7, 3-0)
T2. #17 Oklahoma State Cowboys (20-5, 4-2)
T2. Kansas State Wildcats (17-8, 4-2)
T2. TCU Horned Frogs (15-9, 4-2)
T5. #22 Texas Tech Red Raiders (18-7, 2-4)
T5. Oklahoma Sooners (13-11, 2-4)
T5. Baylor Bears (9-15, 2-4)
8. #24 West Virginia Mountaineers (18-6, 0-0)
9. Kansas Jayhawks (8-14, 0-3)
Upcoming Weekend Series
Conference Play
Baylor at Kansas (three games, Lawrence, KS)
Texas at #20 Oklahoma State (three games, Stillwater, OK)
#24 West Virginia at Kansas State (three games, Manhattan, KS)
TCU at #14 Texas Tech (three games, Lubbock, TX)
Non-Conference Play
#9 Stanford at Oklahoma (four games, Norman, OK)
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