The Longhorns stay unbeaten as Ruger Riojas fans 11 and Temo Becerra’s two blasts headline a dominant top-10 victory in Houston.
No. 3 Texas baseball didn’t just beat No. 9 Coastal Carolina on Friday night ... it made a statement to the entire college baseball world.
Inside Daikin Park at the BRUCE BOLT College Classic, the Longhorns flexed their muscle with four home runs and a relentless pitching performance in an 8-1 takedown of the Chanticleers.
The win pushes Texas to 9-0 and delivers its first ranked victory of the 2026 season, a result that will echo in the latest college baseball polls.
Temo Becerra turned the bottom of the lineup into headline material.
The eight-hole hitter delivered the first multi-home run game of his career, launching a solo blast in the fourth inning before hammering a two-run shot in the eighth - both disappearing into Houston’s famous Crawford Boxes.
Ashton Larson followed Becerra’s second bomb with a no-doubt drive of his own to the opposite field, marking his first home run in burnt orange and igniting the Texas dugout.
Earlier in the night, Aiden Robbins electrified the crowd with a 466-foot missile that rattled the Phillips 66 Home Run Train beyond the left-field wall. He later added a sacrifice fly, capping a well-rounded performance from the Texas offense.
On the mound, Ruger Riojas was just as dominant.
The right-hander improved to 3-0 after carving through Coastal Carolina with a career-high 11 strikeouts across five innings, allowing just one hit and one walk.
The bullpen quartet of Max Grubbs, Ethan Walker, Brett Crossland and Hudson Hamilton slammed the door, combining for six shut-down frames with 17 total strikeouts recorded by the staff.
Now the focus shifts to Baylor. The rivalry renews Saturday at 7 p.m., and Texas baseball suddenly looks every bit like a national title contender.