The superlative season for senior right-hander Ruger Riojas suffered a big blow caught fully by the No. 2 Texas Longhorns in a 9-1 loss to the South Carolina Gamecocks in Columbia on Thursday, just the second conference win for interim head coach Monte Lee and his team.
Riojas was efficient in the first inning working around a leadoff single, but South Carolina, the worst-hitting team in the SEC, was able to take advantage of a four-pitch leadoff walk by the Texas ace in the second inning. Jumping
on early offerings by Riojas, the Gamecocks followed the walk with a leadoff double on the first pitch of the at bat.
Able to get a strikeout looking, Riojas then traded an out for a run, getting close to escaping the inning without significant damage. Instead, South Carolina delivered that damage quickly with a 1-1 chopped single to shortstop that escaped the reach of Riojas to score a run. On consecutive first pitches, the Gamecocks pulled balls down the third-base line out of the reach of junior Casey Borba for an RBI double and a two-run triple, taking advantage of Borba’s lack of range compared to redshirt senior Temo Becerra.
In the mid-game interview, Longhorns head coach Jim Schlossnagle wasn’t sure if Riojas was tipping his pitches, as the Gamecocks ambushed breaking balls, but the five runs allowed in the second inning came after the UTSA transfer gave up only seven runs in 39.2 innings entering the game, making that frame by itself the worst outing for Riojas in burnt orange and white beyond his late-season struggles last year induced by a serious illness that resulted in dramatic weight loss and dramatically decreased effectiveness.
Riojas himself looked shell shocked in the dugout after the second inning, conferring with pitching coach Max Weiner and settling on a more fastball-heavy approach that still resulted in another run allowed on two hits and a walk in the third inning before giving way to freshman right-hander Brody Walls.
Over the final five innings, Walls and two other relievers, sophomore right-hander Jason Flores and redshirt senior right-hander Cody Howard, combined to give up three more runs. In pitching three innings, Walls turned in the longest outing of his young career, striking out four but also giving up a two-run home run. Flores gave up a solo shot in his inning on the mound.
With six hits and 12 strikeouts, Texas never looked threatening in the batter’s box, scoring its only run on a solo shot by junior center fielder Aiden Robbins, but couldn’t get clutch hits, going 2-for-14 (.143) with runners on and failing to record a knock in five at bats with runners in scoring position as junior second baseman Ethan Mendoza stranded three baserunners and Borba left three more on base.
It was a particularly tough outing for junior catcher Carson Tinney, who looked like he was pressing again with three strikeouts in four plate appearances.
Texas tries to bounce back on Friday at 6 p.m. Central on SEC Network+ with redshirt left-hander Luke Harrison receiving the start.
