If anyone tries to tell you that the Texas Longhorns’ rivalry with the Texas A&M Aggies is no longer a big deal since the Ags’ recent departure to the SEC, tell them to look no further than to this weekend’s Rice Regional to see that the ill feelings for one another are still alive and well on both sides.
The media couldn’t have asked for a better set up: A decisive game three pitting two historic arch-rivals against one another in their first meeting in two years, and it didn’t take long for those old, buried feelings to find their way to the surface as players from both schools taunted each other with Horns down and lots of trash-talking. Even the fans joined in, bickering back and forth on social media.
After the Horns started the weekend strong with wins over both the Aggies and the Rice Owls in their first two games of the Regional, with a chance to send the Aggies packing on Sunday night, Texas fell short, setting up a winner-takes-all championship game.
After much concern over who would be throwing for the Longhorns, Texas sophomore pitcher Chad Hollingsworth took the mound for his first start of the season.
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photo credit: mysanantonio.com
When the Longhorns took the field, it seemed as though they would continue their lackluster play from the previous game, committing uncharacteristic defensive errors, base running errors, and leaving (not so uncharacteristically) runners stranded. Hollingsworth looked shaky early on as well, struggling with his command.
A couple of innings later, however, Hollingsworth settled in, holding the Aggies at bay. However, the Longhorn offense’s inability to score with runners in scoring position once again reared it’s ugly head. The Aggies were all but daring the Horns to score, yet they couldn’t seem to find a way to get any runs on the board.
It wasn’t until the bottom of the 7th inning, clinging to a one-run lead, that the Horns finally found some offensive mojo, scoring two insurance runs to stretch the lead to three.
With Texas leading 4-1, Hollingsworth continued his dominance for the final six outs, sending the Longhorns to the Super Regionals and the Aggies back home to College Station.
Sure, it may have been ugly at times, but as they say a win is a win, and beating your long-time rival makes the win that much sweeter. This post-game quote from a Texas fan stated it best when he said, “I had almost forgotten how fun it is to beat the Aggies.â€
Fun indeed.
But now, the Longhorns need to look ahead as they continue their journey on the Road to Omaha.
