OmaHorns: No. 6 Texas Defeats No. 11 Oregon to Reach College World Series

When one win is what stands between you and the pinnacle of your sport, coming out of the gate strong is imperative. For the No. 6 Texas Longhorns, this was the situation they found themselves in on Sunday evening.

They entered the second game of the Austin Super Regional against the No. 11 Oregon Ducks needing just one win to get to Omaha. And jump out to a hot start was exactly what they did.

In the super regional opener win over Oregon, Texas two in the first and two in the second. Repeating that feat, Aiden Robbins and Carson Tinney went back-to-back to lead off the game with solo shots before the Longhorns tacked on two more runs in the second.

Texas punched its ticket back to Omaha

Texas Longhorns pitcher Ruger Riojas delivers a pitch against the Oregon Ducks in the Austin Super Regional. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

However, the bats went cold after that. Despite several chances to break the game open and put it out of reach early, the Longhorns failed to do so which allowed the Ducks to hang around. And hang around they did.

Battling against Ruger Riojas, Oregon scored one in the third, two in the third and one in the fifth to tie the game at 4-4. While it wasn't the prettiest outing, Riojas gutted through 5.2 innings with seven strikeouts on 111 pitches.

That was where things stood until seventh. Brody Walls then entered and gave up a leadoff double before eventually being pulled for Thomas Burns. Burns did get three outs, however the Ducks plated that leadoff man and took a 5-4 lead into the eighth.

It would have been easy at that point for the Longhorns to roll over and embrace a winner-take-all game on Monday evening. Except that's not what this team does. As has been the case time and time again this season, they found a way to battle back.

With two outs, Carson Tinney drew a walk and was followed by Anthony Pack Jr. wearing a pitch to put two on. Then Temo Becerra chopped one into no man's land and beat out an infield single to load the bases.

Unfortunately for Oregon, Adrian Rodriguez stepped into the box. And one day after recording a career-high five RBI in Texas' 11-3 win, the sophomore played the role of hero. He laced a 3-1 pitch down the left field line, plating both Tinney and Pack to put Texas back on top, 6-5.

From there, Texas handed the ball to its dominant freshman closer, Sam Cozart, to get the final six outs. Answering the bell, he tossed two perfect innings with four strikeouts to secure his ninth save of the season and propel the Longhorns back to the College World Series with a 6-5 victory.

Now, the slate is wiped clean once again. After making the Field of 64 as a national seed, the Longhorns are one of the final eight teams standing. It won't be an easy path to bringing home national championship number seven by any means.

For now, though, they can celebrate as they prepare to make their 39th trip to the College World Series .

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