No. 2 Texas Grinds Out Tough Series Win Over South Carolina: Longhorns Notebook

Winning games on the road is a difficult task under normal circumstances. Doing so in conference play, though, is even harder. So far, the No. 2 Texas Longhorns (26-5, 9-3) have shown they have what it takes to get the job done away from home in the SEC.

Entering their series against the South Carolina Gamecocks (15-18, 2-10), the Longhorns found themselves at 7-2 in conference play with a 2-1 showing away from home. Then they got thumped in the opener, a 9-1 shellacking.

They recovered nicely, though, grinding out a pair of wins in the second two games. Pitching was the star of the show in both, as they picked up a 5-3 win in the second game and then grinded out the 4-1 victory on Saturday afternoon to secure their fourth SEC series win of the season.

Three key takeaways from Texas' series win over South Carolina

Texas Longhorns Aiden Robbins, Casey Borba and Anthony Pack Jr. throw up the Hook 'Em Horns. | University of Texas Athletic

Anthony Pack Jr. continues to shine

Coming into the season, there was a ton of hype surrounding freshman Anthony Pack Jr. Through his first 31 games, the outfielder has not only lived up to those expectations but has soared past them.

That success was on full display in this series against the Gamecocks. Dialed in at the dish, he was a bright spot in an otherwise sluggish Texas offense with an 8-for-11 showing at the plate, including a two-run double in the finale.

While most freshman struggle to adjust to college baseball, Pack has not. His emergence has been a massive win for Texas and a key reason why it is a strong contender to reach Omaha.

Sluggish offense does just enough

A key storyline for the Longhorns this season has been the hot and cold nature of the offense. When they’re firing on all cylinders they’re hard to beat. Otherwise, though, they go ice cold at the plate and cannot string together hits.

It was more of the same against South Carolina. They only scored one run in the opener, five in the second game and four in the finale. However, they also struck out 33 times in the series and left 25 men on base.

A series win is a series win, yet the Longhorns will leave South Carolina knowing they could have and should have done more damage than just 10 runs across the three games.

Southpaw starters shoved

Even the game's best are going to have off days. This was the case for ace Ruger Riojas, as he allowed six runs in the 9-1 shellacking to open the series. Picking up the slack, though, was the southpaw tandem of veteran Luke Harrison and sophomore phenom Dylan Volantis.

Righting the ship on the mound for the Longhorns on Saturday, Harrison tossed 5.2 innings of two-run baseball with five strikeouts. Volantis slightly one-upped him, going 5.2 innings himself while only giving up one run and striking out six.

With Riojas likely to bounce back from his worst start of the season, the continued success of Harrison and Volantis will only make the Longhorns that much harder to beat on the weekends.

What’s next for Texas?

The Longhorns are back in action on Tuesday evening, as they return home to face the Incarnate Word Cardinals in a midweek showdown at 6:30 p.m. CT.

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