Longhorns Notebook: Texas Dominates No. 6 West Virginia in Sweep

The Longhorns handled business with ease in a dominating sweep of the Mountaineers.

The Texas Longhorns entered their final regular season series knowing they had to do one thing in order to have any hope at a conference title - sweep the No. 6 West Virginia Mountaineers. 

Yes, they needed Oklahoma to take at least one from Oklahoma state in its series, but that wasn't anything they could control directly. All they could do was play the three games ahead of them and win. 

Win they did, as they handled business with ease against the No. 6 Mountaineers, recording the series sweep in dominant fashion. And, thanks to Oklahoma's 5-0 win over Oklahoma State on Friday, a regular season conference championship. 

Now, they head into postseason play with the Big 12 Tournament first up on deck. For now, though, here are three key takeaways from the Longhorns' sweep of West Virginia.

Take a bow, Jared Thomas

There was a point in the season where it was not unreasonable to question if Jared Thomas could be the starting first baseman. He showed flashes at the plate but struggled to put it together, with streaky showings at the plate hard to swallow for some. 

Well, it is more than safe to say that he has solidified his spot in the lineup at the leadoff role. The freshman ended the regular season scorching hot, finishing with a slash line of .341/.421/.511 to go with four home runs and 28 runs driven in. 

He also flashed elite leather at first, and deadly speed on the base paths as he went 10-of-16 on steal attempts. His surge to end the season was much needed, and a big reason why the Longhorns are conference champions. 

Against a potent West Virginia offense on Thursday night, he once again showed why he's the ace. 

Lucas Gordon, Big 12 Pitcher of the Year

No, Lucas Gordon has not yet been awarded Big 12 Pitcher of the Year, but at this point the honor going to anyone else would be reported to the police for highway robbery. There was no better pitcher in the conference this season, and that is not really up for debate. 

Toeing the rubber for the final time in the regular season, Gordon tossed seven innings of shutout baseball - striking out eight and scattering four hits. His final line on the regular season is a sparkling 6-1 with a Big 12 leading ERA of 2.48, as well as 85 strikeouts to just 28 walks in 14 starts. 

Regional time at Disch-Falk Field?

At one point this season the Longhorns looked locked and loaded to be regional hosts come June, with some projections having them as a national seed in the Field of 64. Then, the sweep at the hands of Oklahoma happened and they were no longer seen as regional host worthy. 

That could have all changed once again, though, following their sweep of West Virginia. Winning the Big 12 is a big step towards doing just that, and a strong performance in the conference tournament could very well lead to yet another regional weekend at Disch-Falk Field. 

What's next for Texas?

The Big 12 Tournament kicks off on May 24 as the No. 1 seed, taking on the No. 8 seed Kansas Jayhawks in the second game of the day at 12:30 p.m. CT. 

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You can find Connor Zimmerlee on Twitter @Connorjz98

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