Skip to main content
Texas
Join Now

Trey Faltine's walk-off homer helps Texas scrape by Air Force, 12-10

Joe Cookby: Joe Cook04/21/22josephcook89

The No. 10 Texas Longhorns scored six runs in the second inning against the Air Force Falcons to take a seemingly safe 8-1 lead. With the way the Longhorn pitching staff has performed this year, especially on Tuesday in a 14-2 loss, even seven runs can’t be considered safe.

[Get four months of Inside Texas Plus for just $1]

It wasn’t, but the massive Falcon comeback was one of several bizarre events that littered the second game of the midweek series. After normal pitch-caller Sean Allen was hit in the cheek with a foul ball on Tuesday, Longhorns head coach David Pierce, who had taken over pitch-calling duties, was ejected in the seventh inning.

The home plate umpire was forced to leave after taking a ball off the mask in the eighth. Outfielder Eric Kennedy, who was injured on Tuesday, coached first base in the next half-inning after assistant Phillip Miller moved to the third base box. AFA mounted a two-run comeback in the top of the ninth versus the struggling Aaron Nixon, capped by a perfectly executed safety squeeze to tie it.

With all that in mind, the way the game ended may have been the most normal thing that took place. With a runner on and one out in the ninth, Trey Faltine stepped to the plate with two hits and a RBI to his name. He worked a 2-2 count, then swung at a high fastball. The wind from the southeast carried it, and carried it, and carried it over the fence. Texas 12, Air Force 10.

“I knew I hit it high,” Faltine said. “I was just hoping the wind would take it. I saw the left fielder kind of shade, and I thought ‘please go out, that would be a terrible fly ball.’ But it went out, so it’s all good.”

The homer capped a 3-for-5, three RBI day for Faltine, who seemed to be sporting a slightly altered stance at the plate. The initial returns were obviously positive, and helped Texas stave off a double-midweek sweep that likely would have been agonizing to ponder until the Friday’s game arrived.

“They’ve got a lot of compete in them, and they obviously proved that in two games out here,” Miller said of Air Force. “We knew we had our hands full, but just keeping our guys to play every pitch. Just staying with it, and Trey obviously came through big in a big spot right there. It was fun to see our guys staying with it and competing.”

Pierce was not available as a result of his ejection.

After an 11-0 start, Texas had been the epitome of up-and-down ever since losing the Sunday game at the Shriners Children’s College Classic. Power conference pitching ability was sporadically provided by Texas hurlers in the following 15-12 stretch.

But according to Miller, the end result was a display of the private effort given by the No. 10 team in the land even amidst the public disappointments.

“Winning’s not easy, know what I mean?” Miller said. “You’ve got to take every one.”

Texas of course has a plethora of problems, specifically on the mound. After a bullpen day yesterday surrendered 11 hits, the Falcons tallied 17 hits on Wednesday. Eight of them came in the first three innings against Travis Sthele, including six earned runs. One came in the first, and five came in the third when Falcon hitters went single, RBI double, two-run homer, single, two-run homer.

It erased much of a seven-run margin built by run-scoring hits from Faltine, Mitchell Daly, Silas Ardoin, and Skyler Messinger, though the Longhorns responded with two runs in the fifth and sixth.

Outside of the ninth-inning squeeze, perfectly laid down by Trayden Tamiya to bring home the tying run, Texas’ grooved pitches that Falcon hitters smacked out of the park. Paul Skenes and Jay Thomason went back-to-back in the seventh. Jake Greiving hit his second of the day to lead off the ninth.

There seemed to be little resolution of continued miscues from Sthele, Nixon, and Coy Cobb, though Josh Stewart, Luke Harrison, and Jared Southard pitched scoreless outings. That juxtaposition indicative of the up and down nature of the staff.

In spite of all the issues on the bump, Texas can hit. The Longhorns have a team average of .311 after 40 games, and a team OPS of .931. Four Horns recorded extra base hits, including Faltine with two. The entire starting lineup save for one player added base knocks, Faltine and Murphy Stehly leading the way with four.

And to their credit, after seemingly laying down last night, the Longhorns stampeded back for a needed confidence boost.

“Right now, we know we’re not playing how we want to play or how everyone expects us to play,” Faltine said. “But that’s just fine. We’re a tough-ass team. We’re competitors. We’re equipped for it, and that’s what we told each other today. We like to be in this spot. Everyone’s doubting us. Back is against the wall. We know what we can do, just come out and play the game every day no matter what.”

Miller often works without much fanfare, but the offense he and assistant Troy Tulowitzki oversee have carried Texas throughout the middling stretch.

And on Wednesday, in one of the wildest games of the year for the Horns, it helped Texas end a crazy mid-week college baseball game with a happy ending that almost slipped out of their hands.

“Every one is like a little story, and each one is different,” Miller said. “The guys staying with it, competing, and playing every pitch is definitely encouraging to see. Seeing those guys rally around each other right there and celebrate the victory is huge for us.”

You may also like

Arch Manning
Inside Texas

A Field With A Ball

RT Young•07/31/25

I wrote this article last summer, but with fall camp underway and college football just 30 days from kickoff, it felt fitting to run it back. A lot...