Too Early to Tell

Five wins, zero losses. Not a bad beginning to a season for a team starting so many newcomers including several freshmen and transfers. A lot of times in sports, confidence is such a vital thing to any team that starting out well is essential to their success. But what happens when a team plays well against lesser opponents, and then gets beat twice in a row by teams supposedly at their same level? Interestingly enough, we get to find out this year.

After winning their first five games (in convincing fashion I might add), Texas went on to lose to Tennessee 5-4 before being soundly beaten by Rice, 10-4. Texas played well against Tennessee with seven extra-base hits but couldn’t capitalize on their runners in scoring position, only scoring four runs. After a teams’ first loss, it’s often the case that a second loss is coming soon due to the inability to regroup. That’s exactly what happened on Saturday as Texas faced a very good Rice team. The Horns were outclassed in every aspect of the game. Rice had more than twice as many hits and committed only one error to Texas’ five.

So, how does a young team refocus after back-to-back losses to quality teams? After their confidence was dealt a lethal blow and their immaturity on full display during the Rice fixture, the best thing would be to go out and beat the next team on their schedule. Next up for the Horns was a solid Houston ball club, with a record above .500. Texas started out strong with four runs in the first, then took a 6-1 lead late on. Houston came roaring back with four unanswered runs to cut the deficit to 7-5 going into the ninth inning.

What ensued could have been very damaging to the Texas’ morale if it were not for the heroics of one unknown freshman. Houston’s Jimmy Cesario drew a leadoff walk before big Bryan Pounds blasted his second home run of the game to tie the score at seven. Texas had to be feeling the pressure at this point. Was the season going down the drain this quickly? Could they possibly lose three in a row after starting out so well?

After a single to right centerfield, a hit batter, and a sac bunt in the bottom of the 10th inning for Texas, Connor Rowe hit a single to center scoring David Hernandez to give the Horns an 8-7 win, and lifting the spirits of the players and fans alike. Texas badly needed the win. After dropping two games to talented teams, losing a third could have put the young team into a downward tailspin.

It will be interesting to see how the Horns regroup before facing Stanford for three games next weekend. Stanford (6-2) is in the Top 25 in several polls and just swept perennial power Cal St. Fullerton over the weekend. Whatever is in the heads of the Texas players is anybody’s guess, but how they respond this weekend to another good team could determine their future success.

It’s all about the confidence.