Texas blasted Vanderbilt 11-4 on Friday before being shut out 6-0 Saturday, setting up a Sunday SEC series-decider in Nashville.
No. 4 Texas baseball went from power surge to offensive silence in 24 hours, leaving the Longhorns with a Sunday rubber match against Vanderbilt at Hawkins Field.
Texas opened the SEC weekend series with an emphatic 11-4 win Friday, using four home runs and a dominant Dylan Volantis start to overwhelm the Commodores.
Aiden Robbins stayed red-hot, launching two homers for his third multi-homer game in his last seven outings.
Robbins opened the scoring with a solo shot over Vanderbilt’s left-field wall, then added a 406-foot two-run blast an inning later.
He now leads Texas with 17 home runs and has a league-best 10 in SEC play.
The Longhorns broke the game open with five runs in the fifth, highlighted by Josh Livingston’s three-run homer. Adrian Rodriguez added his first home run of the season in the sixth, a 413-foot two-run shot, and finished with three hits and three RBI.
Volantis improved to 6-0 after allowing one run over six innings with 11 strikeouts.
Saturday looked nothing like Friday. Vanderbilt answered with a 6-0 win, handing Texas its first shutout loss of the season.
The Commodores scored three runs in the first inning and never let the Longhorns settle in.
Vanderbilt’s pitching staff controlled the night, combining for 14 strikeouts while holding Texas to five hits. Luke Guth earned the win in relief, and Tyler Baird recorded a three-inning save.
Texas starter Ruger Riojas fell to 5-2 after allowing five runs in three innings. Thomas Burns gave the Longhorns valuable relief work, striking out five over 3.1 innings.
Now Texas, 31-9 overall and 12-7 in SEC play, will try to leave Nashville with a major road series win Sunday at noon.
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