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TCU Baseball dropped game 1 on the road against the 7th ranked Texas Longhorns 2-0 in a heated pitch duel.
There really isn’t much to discuss from this game other than Riley Cornelio and Pete Hansen’s unworldly performances on the mound. In his 7th start of the year, Cornelio gave up just 3 hits and 2 runs in 6 innings pitched highlighted by 6 strikeouts.
Hansen on the other hand was lights out from start to finish, putting together a complete game after 114 pitches. He finished the night giving up just 2 hits, 1 batter walked, and TWELVE strikeouts en route to the shutout.
After that performance, I can see why this kid has an undefeated record (6-0) this season.
It’s not so much that Cornelio was outmatched by Hansen, but the Longhorns took advantage of the few opportunities they had while the Frogs left their only baserunners of the game stranded on both occasions.
Throwing close to 100 pitches is a tall task for any collegiate pitcher, so you can’t knock Cornelio and his arm for getting tired over the course of the game. Eventually, fatigue caught up to him in the 7th inning as the Longhorns added their second run of the night and had a bases-loaded situation with just 1 out on the board.
Luke Savage would eventually come in to replace him and squeaked out of the sticky situation to keep the deficit at 2 runs.
Considering UT has the 10th best team batting average in the country, holding this squad to 4 hits and 2 runs in a ballgame isn’t too shabby. Despite their efforts on defense though, the Frogs’ bats simply never found their rhythm.
TCU finished the ballgame with 2 hits, one by Garrison Berkley in the 3rd and the other by Elijah Nunez in the 6th.
If the Frogs want any chance of keeping up with the high-flying UT offense, they’ll need to pick it up in game 2 from an offensive standpoint or hope for a career day from Marcelo Perez on the mound.
Perez will get his first start, but 9th appearance in game 2 against the Longhorns tomorrow. First pitch is set for 5 pm CST and the game will be broadcast live on ESPNU.