The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of a Texas Longhorns Win vs. Lamar

The No. 3 Texas Longhorns showed off some offensive firepower in a 14-4 run-rule victory over the Lamar Cardinals in their first midweek game of the season.

The night started slowly for Texas, which trailed through four innings before the bats found life in the bottom of the fifth. Then it just took off from there.

Texas scored 12 unanswered runs across the final three innings, finishing with 13 hits, nine walks and 14 runs. The win marked the Longhorns’ third run-rule victory in their first four games.

The Good — Offensive Explosion

welcome to the @carson_tinney laser show 💪#HookEm pic.twitter.com/zVVrUTEt2a
— Texas Baseball (@TexasBaseball) February 18, 2026

Once the bats woke up, they really woke up.

Carson Tinney led the charge in the second inning with a 116 mph home run that put Texas on the scoreboard. The Notre Dame transfer finally got going after just one hit in three games, smacking another homer in the sixth, scoring three runs, and reaching base four times.

Temo Becerra added three RBIs, including a pivotal bases-clearing triple in the fifth inning that gave Texas its first lead.

The turning point came in that fifth frame, when the Longhorns sent 11 batters to the plate and scored six runs behind timely extra-base hits from Adrian Rodriguez and Becerra. Texas added five more runs in the seventh, highlighted by Maddox Monsour’s three-run triple.

Overall, Texas outhit Lamar 13-6 and recorded six extra-base hits in the victory.

While the offense has been a question mark early this season, Tuesday showed that when this lineup gets going, it’s almost impossible to stop.

The Bad — Another Slow Start

Texas infielder Ethan Mendoza makes the turn on a double play in the third round of the SEC Baseball Tournament. | Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

For the third time in four games, Texas found itself playing from behind early.

Starter Jason Flores struggled to settle in, allowing three runs in the second inning as Lamar capitalized on extra-base hits to jump ahead 3–0. The Longhorns’ offense was also quiet early before Tinney’s second-inning homer sparked some life into the lineup.

While Texas ultimately controlled the game, slow openings against stronger competition could become a dangerous habit once conference play arrives. Early consistency remains a work in progress, something the Longhorns will need to cleanup before things get tougher.

The Ugly — Lamar’s Collapse After the Fifth

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— Texas Baseball (@TexasBaseball) February 18, 2026

For four innings, Lamar looked somewhat capable of pushing Texas into a tight midweek battle at the Disch. The Cardinals built an early lead and applied pressure with timely hitting, but everything soon unraveled.

Defensive miscues, free passes and an inability to slow Texas’ momentum allowed the game to spiral quickly. Lamar’s pitching staff struggled to find the strike zone as the Longhorns sent 11 batters to the plate in the fifth, and the Cardinals never recovered. Texas continued to capitalize late, adding five more runs in the seventh to mercifully end the game via run rule.