Flores, Schuessler Shine as Longhorns Get 12-5 Win in First Round of College Station Regional

Help From the Bottom of the Order and Stable Pitching Brought Texas One Step Closer to Super Regional Baseball.

Texas Longhorns infielders Jalin Flores (1) and Jack O'Dowd (27) celebrate a double play during the game against Kansas at UFCU Disch–Falk Field on Saturday, May. 18, 2024 in Austin. / Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman /

In the span of just two innings, No. 3 seeded Texas Longhorns baseball took a deficit and turned it into a triumphant lead off the back of the bottom of the batting order. 

In the Longhorn's first game of the College Station regional, Texas took a comfortable 12-5 victory over the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns. The win clinches a birth in the second round of the regional, where they will face its hosting rivals Texas A&M at 9 P.M. on Saturday, June 1. 

Texas brought out sophomore Max Grubbs to start the regional, and the ground-ball pitcher worked efficiently early. But after two separate hung off-speed pitches, Louisiana had jumped out to an early 2-0 lead after three innings. Even after falling behind early, the back of the Texas order made quick work of turning the game around.

DH Kimble Scheussler hit his second double of the day to lead off the top of the fourth inning, igniting the start of the first Texas rally. The former Texas A&M Aggie finished the game having gotten on base in five of his six at-bats, two for extra bases, and three runs, an elite performance ahead of a matchup with his former school.

Scheussler was then followed by senior Porter Brown, who worked his way into a strong count and put a grounder into the perfect spot, registering an infield single and putting runners on first and third. Brown entered the postseason on a 1 for his last fifteen batting streak, and his two hits are a fantastic sign for the hopes of Texas continuing on in the regional.

Next to step to the plate was catcher Rylan Galvan, whose RBI single out of the seven-hole brought the Longhorns its first run of the game. After a single from freshman centerfielder Will Gasparino, fellow freshman Dee Kennedy, another player on a late-season slump, stepped up to the plate.

Kennedy laced a ball to the left side of the infield, scoring two and giving the Longhorns the lead. The back of the Horns' order, a weakness coming into the tournament, had flipped the lead almost as fast as it was lost. But the floodgates hadn’t even opened yet.

Scheussler got on base again in the top of the fifth on a sacrifice bunt that was placed so perfectly no one could make a throw, giving the Horns runners on first and second. Two walks, a strikeout, and an error by Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year Kyle DeBarge at short brought the score to 5-2, and a single from first baseman Jared Thomas put the Longhorns up another run and in the driver's seat. With just one out and the bases loaded, shortstop Jalin Flores stepped up to the plate.

Flores, who had already hit two grand slams on the year, crushed senior relief pitcher David Christie’s first pitch, sending a missile way over the left field fence, ending the day for the reliever and putting the Horns up 10-2. Texas looked confident, filled with the swagger of streaky offense, good base running and fantastic plate discipline.

Even though Texas was up six after the Ragin Cajuns added two in the fifth inning, the game was not over yet, and the bullpen had to get through the game with as few arms as possible. When Grubbs exited the game after the fifth inning, the sophomore had thrown five innings, giving up five hits and four runs on four strikeouts. A solid outing for the Friday starter that set the rest of the team up for success.

Head coach David Pierce turned to sporadically used Cade O’Hara, a two-way player with just over 18 innings pitched over the entire season. Between O’Hara and Andre Duplantier Jr., the Horns were able to mow through the final four innings, giving up just one run on three hits, with Duplantier striking out four of his nine batters faced. Duplantier looks locked in ahead of the post season, and the Horns not having to use star closer Gage Boehm is a good sign for the games ahead.

The story of the Horns' success came from a few major points, but none more important than the contributions of Scheussler and the players behind him in the order. Entering today, the top four of Thomas, Flores, Peyton Powell and Big 12 Player of the Year Max Belyeu was seen as the strongest aspect of the Longhorns roster, but it was the bats of those behind them that truly showed out. 

In total, the 5-9 batters had a combined for nine of the team's 15 hits as well as scoring all but three runs. They also reached on 8 walks and knocked in seven RBIs between Galvan, Gasparino and Kennedy. The team as a whole was active on the basepaths and walked 10 times, showing their ability to not only earn free bases but take them as well.

The Longhorns will face the Aggies, who shut out Grambling in an earlier game, at 9 P.M. on Saturday, with each team just two wins away from Super Regional baseball.