Despite stellar pitching and a tied game, Spartan bats faltered. Texas' bullpen locked down, sealing MSU's tough 3-1 defeat.
It was as close of a game as one could ask for, but ultimately the Spartans were not able to hold on in the end, losing 3-1 to Texas on Saturday afternoon. The loss marked the second defeat to the Longhorns in as many tries to start this three-game series. It also represented the Spartans' third straight loss after opening the season with two consecutive wins.
The Spartans battled hard in the 3-1 defeat and gave it everything they had. The pitching was stellar, and the bats made more contact than they did in Game 1, but they still fell short too many times.
The Longhorns struck first in the bottom of the first inning, wasting no time putting a number on the scoreboard. Ethan Mendoza led off for Texas and immediately got on base—nothing new for the star Longhorn, who finished 1-for-2 with a walk and a run scored. Starting pitcher Carter Monke induced a ground out on the next play, but the damage was already brewing. Mendoza advanced to second on the out, and the next batter, Aiden Robbins, stepped to the plate. Robbins delivered a single up the middle to score Mendoza. Robbins earned first-star honors from me—he finished 4-for-4 on the day with a run scored and knocked in two of Texas' three runs.
The Longhorns looked like they might run away with Game 2, but Monke settled in for Michigan State. He pitched lights out the rest of the way, finishing with 6.1 strong innings. Monke did leave a runner on base when he was pulled, and that runner eventually came around to score the go-ahead run for Texas. Still, Monke allowed just one earned run overall. He struck out three, induced two fly outs and 12 ground outs, hit one batter, walked two, and gave up seven hits in his 6.1 innings of work. He looked every bit dominant, and the Spartans will need more outings like that moving forward.
Michigan State tied the game in the top of the third. Ryan McKay, who finished 2-for-3 on the day, singled in Isaac Sturgess, who had singled with one out earlier in the inning. Sturgess advanced to second on a passed ball and to third after leadoff hitter Nick Williams flew out. With two outs, McKay delivered a clutch hit early in the game to tie things up and keep the Spartans pounding at the door.
The Spartans chased Texas starting pitcher Luke Harrison after just 4.1 innings of work. But the Longhorn bullpen shut things down from there, holding Michigan State to its lone run for the rest of the game.
For the Spartans, lone reliever Nolan Higgins took the mound. While he may lead the team in strikeouts with his live arm, he's becoming synonymous with allowing runs. Higgins, who had already allowed four runs in four innings entering the game, gave up another earned run over 1.2 innings of work and ultimately surrendered the insurance run that capped the final score at 3-1.
The Spartans are back in action for Game 3 of the series at 1:00 PM EST on Sunday in Austin as they look to salvage one game against the Longhorns.