Texas Longhorns Softball Avoids Midweek Upset, Survives vs. Texas State

The No. 1 Texas Longhorns have a big-time challenge coming into Red and Charline McCombs Field on the weekend with the No. 15 Texas A&M Aggies, heading to Austin for the dirt edition of the Lone Star Showdown.

However, before that, the Longhorns had a midweek clash against the Texas State Bobcats, and Texas was almost caught looking too far ahead. The Longhorns managed to come away with the win, surviving their road trip down I-35 to San Marcos and returning home with a narrow 3-2 victory on Wednesday night.

The Longhorns now improves to a 29-1 record through 30 games of the season and continues to extend the longest winning streak in program history, with the streak now sitting at 27 games. And while the Longhorns managed the win on Wednesday, the game was a little too close for comfort.

Texas Squeaks one out in San Marcos

Texas Longhorns pitcher Teagan Kavan throws a pitch in the fifth inning against the Texas Tech Red Raiders. | Brett Rojo-Imagn Images

A usual potent offense for the Longhorns didn't manage to get much going for the majority of the ballgame, and the Bobcats were the ones that drew first blood, scoring their pair of runs in the third inning.

With those runs coming in a nontraditional manner for the Bobcats, the Longhorns' defense allowed the runs on an uncharacteristic error after a throw from senior Leighann Goode was offline to first base, allowing the two Bobcat runs to reach home and score.

"I don't know if we were looking past them," head coach Mike White said. "But we certainly didn't get a good performance from our starting pitching, too many walks, too many hit batters."

Getting the midweek start for the Longhorns in the circle was senior Citlaly Gutierrez, who managed to pitch just two innings in her start as she surrendered a hit, an earned run, and accounted for three of the six walks given up by the Longhorns' pitching staff.

White had to go to his bullpen fairly early in the game, bringing in sophomore Cambria Salmon in the third inning, looking to bring some stability in the circle. However, the Longhorns were unable to find it with Salmon as she pitched 1.2 innings in which she struck out a pair of batters but allowed a hit, a walk, and two hit-by-pitches.

The Longhorns had to go to the bullpen a second time, this time bringing out their ace in junior Teagan Kavan, who usually won't pitch in these midweek games, but White felt it necessary to get Kavan into the fold.

And that decision paid off as the junior was in command from the jump, pitching the rest of the game without giving up a hit, allowing two walks but striking out five in 3.1 innings pitched.

While the pitching was being situated, the bats for the Longhorns had finally woken up, getting a run back in the fourth inning until flipping the game on its head in the sixth inning courtesy of back-to-back home runs from senior Reese Atwood and junior Katie Stewart.

Atwood's solo home run squared things all even at two, and with the very next at-bat, Stewart's solo shot provided the go-ahead and ultimately the winning run for the Longhorns.

The Longhorns return to the field as they return to conference play, taking on Texas A&M with game one of the three-game series slated for Friday, March 27, at 6 p.m. CT.

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