The Horns try to maintain their 10-game winning streak.
Under first-year head coach Jim Schlossnagle, the No. 12 Texas Longhorns are off to a strong start, winning 10 straight games after opening the season with an extra-inning loss to the Louisville Cardinals in Arlington.
Prior to the start of SEC play, there’s one final non-conference weekend series for the Longhorns as the Santa Clara Broncos come to UFCU Disch-Falk Field in the only matchup between the two programs since 1962 when they played in the College World Series, a 4-3 win in 10 innings by Santa Clara.
First pitch on Friday is at 6:30 p.m. Central, followed by 2 p.m. start on Saturday and a 1 p.m. start on Sunday. All three games air on SEC Network+.
For the Texas pitching staff, senior left-hander Jared Spencer and redshirt junior left-hander Luke Harrison have both been off to hot starts with Spencer’s ERA at 1.12 and Harrison’s ERA at 1.23. Mostly a reliever at Indiana State before starting in nine of his 18 appearances last year, Spencer’s rise to Friday starter has been impressive, but not as surprising as the resurgence of Harrison, who underwent Tommy John surgery two years ago. The Friendswood product is now reaching into the low 90s with his fastball, which features three variants to keep hitters off balance.
The new addition to the rotation this weekend is freshman left-hander Dylan Volantis in a move that Schlossnagle has foreshadowed since the season started. The 6’6, 212-pound Californian was a late flip from USC last summer and replaces sophomore left-hander Kade Bing, whose reputation as a strike thrower hasn’t matched up to his on-field performance in three starts, which have included two hit batters in each game, three wild pitches, a 1-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and a 6.23 ERA.
Out of the bullpen, Volantis has been excellent — he allowed a home run and two earned runs in his first appearance against Oklahoma State, but hasn’t allowed an earned run over two appearances and 7.2 innings since, striking out 13 batters in 9.2 total innings and allowing opponents to hit just .200. The home run by the Cowboys is the only extra-base hit Volantis has allowed in facing 38 batters.
Beyond the struggles by Bing and some rough moments from the bullpen, the Texas staff has performed well, particularly areas emphasized by pitching coach Max Weiner, who wants his pitchers to win 0-0 and 1-1 counts while maximizing their strikeout-to-walk ratios. So far, Texas has a 65-percent strike rate overall, including 64 percent in 0-0 counts and 67 percent in 1-1 counts with a 2.6 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Picked to finish fifth in the nine-team West Coast Conference, Santa Clara enters the weekend at 7-4 overall, including a 4-2 road record with wins over UC Davis, San Jose State, and Cal, taking a weekend series from the Golden Bears by winning the first two games in Berkeley and another at home.
Preseason WCC selection Ben Cleary, a sophomore shortstop, has been struggling, hitting just .205 for a team that is batting .240 overall with a .326 slugging percentage and two home runs. Only one player is batting over .300.
The pitching staff hasn’t been much better, posting a 5.63 ERA with 14 home runs allowed as opponents bat .261 against the Broncos.
