Texas loses two in row to exit Big 12
ARLINGTON — Texas came into the Big 12 tournament on a roll, having won 13 of its last 16 games and its last six conference series.
That all changed once the Longhorns arrived at Globe Life Field.
Cincinnati bounced Texas from the tournament Wednesday by handing the third-seeded Longhorns their second loss in as many days. The fifth-seeded Bearcats won 8-7 after 10th-seeded Texas Tech beat Texas 6-4 on Tuesday night.
The Longhorns (35-22) now will await their assignment for the NCAA Tournament, likely as a No. 2 seed in a regional.
Texas took a 3-2 lead on Cincinnati with three runs in the fourth inning, two on a home run by Max Belyeu and one on a double by Will Gasparino.
But the Bearcats countered with two unearned runs in the sixth and four in the eighth, including a three-run homer by Kerrington Cross. They held on after Texas rallied for four runs in the eighth, with two coming on Jalin Flores’ double.
On Tuesday night, Cade McGee hit a two-run home run in the top of the ninth inning to lift Texas Tech past Texas.
Gavin Kash opened the ninth with a single and was sacrificed to second by Drew Woodcox. McGee then drove the next pitch from Dandre Duplantier II (2-1) over the left-field wall for his 15th home run.
The Red Raiders (32-24) faced second-seeded Oklahoma State on Wednesday.
Josh Sanders (5-1), the fourth Texas Tech pitcher, went the final two innings for the win.
Earlier Tuesday, Caedmon Parker and Braeden Sloan combined to pitch a three-hitter and No. 9 seed TCU beat eighth-seed West Virginia 5-2 to begin defense of its tournament title.
But TCU (32-20) ran into trouble Wednesday against top-seeded Oklahoma.
Sooners ace Braden Davis threw his first shutout in a 4-0 victory over the Horned Frogs.
Davis allowed only four hits with nine strikeouts on a career-high 120 pitches to outduel Payton Tolle, the Big 12 pitcher of the year.
Oklahoma (35-18) advances to the winner’s bracket to play Kansas on Thursday.
TCU has lost all four games against Oklahoma this season, getting outscored 27-12. The Horned
Frogs will play in an elimination game Thursday against Kansas State.
Tuesday’s loss to TCU dropped West Virginia (33-22) to the consolation side of the double-elimination bracket and the Mountaineers were sent home by Kansas State 8-4 on Wednesday in an elimination game.
SEC
Jared Jones and Tommy White each blasted a grand slam to set an SEC tournament record and defending national champion LSU beat Kentucky 11-0 in eight innings on Wednesday at Hoover, Ala.
LSU became the first team in 607 SEC tournament games to hit multiple grand slams in a game.
Jones homered in the seventh inning for his first hit of the tournament — and LSU’s first grand slam in the SEC Tournament since Blake Dean on May 24, 2008. Jones has hit 23 homers this season.
White smashed his 24th home run in the eighth for an 11-run lead. Michael Braswell III and Hayden Travinski also homered for LSU.
Luke Holman (9-3) struck out seven in a six-inning start.
LSU (38-20), the No. 11 seed, moves to the winner’s bracket on Thursday against No. 10 seed South Carolina (36-21).
Cole Messina belted a two-run home run in the top of the ninth inning and South Carolina held on to defeat Arkansas 6-5 on Wednesday.
Messina went 3-for-4 with two home runs and five RBIs.
Second-seeded Arkansas (43-14) drops to the loser’s bracket and will face third-seeded Kentucky on Thursday.