March 2, 2008

Kendall Rogers
Rivals.com College Baseball Editor

HOUSTON ? The foundation of Texas Baseball was built on the execution of fundamentals. But if how the 'Horns have played the past two days at the Houston College Classic is any indication, the 2008 team hasn't received the memo.

Aided by five Texas errors Saturday night, No. 6 Rice had its way with the Longhorns to the tune of 10-4 in front of an impressive crowd of 13,979.

"Even though it's early in the season, this is still a pretty good RPI win for our team," Rice coach Wayne Graham said. "I thought our team was really ready to play."

Though Texas played atrocious defense, the Rice offense capitalized on UT's mistakes and also used the long ball to help their cause.

The Owls scored 10 runs on 15 hits and were led at the plate by freshmen Chad Mozingo and Rick Hague.

Mozingo opened the Houston College Classic in impressive fashion Friday afternoon, while Hague tallied his first RBIs of the season Saturday night against the 'Horns.

Mozingo finished the contest 3-for-5 with a home run, two runs scored and an RBI. Meanwhile, Hague went 2-for-5 with a home run, two runs scored and two RBIs.

"This game definitely helps my confidence because I had been struggling," Hague said. "We were just trying to swing at the good pitches to hit. He was throwing sliders in the dirt, so laying off those pitches was a key to this game."

In addition to Mozingo and Hague, veteran infielder Jess Buenger had a key at bat in the fourth inning. With hard-throwing UT reliever Casey Whitmer on the mound, Buenger hit a two-RBI single down the right-field line.

Most impressive about Buenger's contribution is the fact that he has been nursing a strained quadricep ? an injury that occurred during last week's Long Beach State series.

Though not able to run without pain, Buenger can swing the bat without pain. Texas found that out the hard way.

"I've been able to swing and keep things pain free that way," Buenger said. "I was put in a hitter's count and succeeded. It was awesome to go out there and help the team tonight."

While Mozingo, Hague and Buenger led the offensive charge; the Owls received a stellar relief performance from senior right-handed pitcher Chris Kelley.

Kelley last faced the Longhorns in a late April midweek bout last season. In that start, the veteran allowed two runs on four hits in six innings of work.

The veteran had more success against UT Saturday night.

"I definitely feel comfortable pitching against Texas," Kelley said. "I knew we'd get some runs, so I went out there and attacked the strike zone."

The Owls did everything they needed to do to capture the win, while Texas put together a dismal performance.

Despite UT's setback, Rice coach Wayne Graham believes they will be just fine.

"Texas is not going to play like that very often," he said. "Based on the players and coaches they have, it's a pretty safe bet to say they'll end the year in Omaha."

For now, the Owls have a leg up on the Longhorns.

TEXAS TECH PITCHING IMPRESSES

That was only the start to an interesting freshman year.

Despite signing with the Longhorns, Karns decided to follow former pitching coach Tom Holliday to North Carolina State.

In his first season with the Wolfpack, Karns had a 2.67 ERA with just nine appearances. As a result, he decided to transfer back to the Lone Star State to play for Texas Tech.

After his impressive performance against Tennessee Saturday afternoon, Karns is glad to be back in Texas.

He helped the Red Raiders to a 7-3 victory over the Volunteers, who previously beat Texas Friday night.

"It's just great to be back in this state and playing in a major league ballpark," he said. "I pretty much based everything off my fastball, but was able to use some off-speed pitches after tripping up in the second inning."

The sophomore righty struck out five and allowed three runs on four hits in five innings of work.

Texas Tech associate head coach Dan Spencer was impressed with what Karns brought to the table.

"I thought he was very good at times, he's a big leaguer walking around in a 20-year-old body," he said. "He doesn't have many innings under his belt and is still learning. But I have a feeling he's going to get better each time out."

Though Spencer was most pleased with Karns' outing, he was also pleased with closer Zach Stewart.

The junior right-hander allowed no runs and no hits in two outstanding innings of work. He also struck out four and walked one to lead the Red Raiders.

LATE RALLY LIFTS SOONERS

They did that and more against the Cougars.

After scoring just two runs on five hits against the Owls, the Sooners scored eight runs on eight hits against UH.

"We didn't get timely hitting on Friday and that hurt us," Oklahoma coach Sunny Golloway said. "The difference today was that we left few runners on base. Our kids are starting to figure out what we need to do to win."

The Sooners left just three runners on base against the Cougars. However, they entered the ninth inning down 5-4.

That's when catcher J.T. Wise and outfielder Spencer Selby went to work.

Wise hit a solo home run to tie the game in the ninth, while Selby ultimately hit the game-winning home run with a three-run shot in the top half of the 10th inning.

Golloway saw the offensive awakening coming.

"You just had a feeling the dam was eventually going to break open and we'd score some runs," he said. "It happened with key hits from Wise and Selby."

Wise finished the game with two RBIs, while Selby went 2-for-5 with two runs scored and three RBIs.

"We came out yesterday and looked really sluggish. We wanted to play our game today," Selby said. "When I hit the game-winning home run, I was just trying to do what I could to help us win the game. I got a little lucky out there."

Though the Sooners are 1-1 entering Sunday's tournament finale against Tennessee, Golloway likes the direction his team is headed.

"We're a little young, but this is going to be a good team," he said. "We thought we'd get some respect after the UCLA series. Hopefully this tournament helps our perception."

Kendall Rogers is the college baseball editor for Rivals.com. He can be reached at rogersk@yahoo-inc.com.