GREENVILLE — Texas took control early and won a weather-delayed third game of the Super Regional of the NCAA Tournament at East Carolina, 11-1, on Sunday.
The matchup was scheduled to get underway at 4 p.m., but was postponed to 5:06 p.m. due to weather considerations. Play was halted at 5:25 p.m. and didn’t resume until 10:15 p.m.
A crowd of 5,787 was announced with many staying until the last out at 1:25 a.m. on Monday.
The Longhorns (47-20) built a 4-0 lead in the 19 minutes of play that preceded a four hour, 50-minute wait. The stadium was cleared due to the threat of lightning when the delay began.
Texas got an infield single from Douglas Hodo III to lead off the game. Eric Kennedy walked before Ivan Melendez hit his 32nd homer of the season for a 3-0 Longhorns lead.
Murphy Stehly was hit by a pitch to finish the start for sophomore right-hander Danny Beal (5-2).
A sacrifice bunt by Austin Todd moved Stehly to second. Skyler Messinger had an RBI single to left for a 4-0 lead before play was suspended.
Zach Agnos and Lane Hoover had singles for the Pirates in the bottom of the first when play resumed late Sunday night. Agnos came home on a sacrifice fly by Jacob Jenkins-Cowart.
Texas scored five runs in the second. Eric Kennedy had a run-scoring single. Stehly hit a 2-run double. Todd lifted a sacrifice fly and Skyler Messinger contributed an RBI single.
Trey Faltine hit a solo homer in the fifth and Silas Ardoin had a solo shot in the ninth.
The Pirates (46-21) used nine pitchers. Garrett Saylor had the most effective stint, going four innings. He yielded two hits, one run (earned) with no walks and four strikeouts.
Tristan Stevens (7-6) started and went six innings for the win.
The visitors had an 11-5 lead in hits. Agnos had two hits and two walks to lead ECU.
Texas earned a trip to Omaha and a berth in the College World Series with the victory. It will mark the 37th time the Longhorns have played in college baseball’s national championship event.
The Pirates had a school record 20-game winning streak in 2022. ECU won the American Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament championships before hosting a Super Regional for the first time in their home stadium.
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