Texas takes home the 2023 Big 12 regular season title
With a 7-3 win over West Virginia on Saturday, the Texas Longhorns won a share of the 2023 Big 12 regular season title. It is the third conference championship of the David Pierce era, and the 10th for the program as members of the Big 12.
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Texas shared the title with its 15-9 record. The Longhorns complete the regular season with a 38-18 record, the fifth full season with 35 or more wins in Pierce’s tenure. The 2023 squad was able to do what the 2022 Longhorns, who reached the College World Series and featured Golden Spikes Award winner Ivan Melendez, could not in taking home Big 12 hardware.
UT was led on the mound by consistent Friday night starter Lucas Gordon and impressive Saturday starter Lebarron Johnson. At the plate, the experienced Peyton Powell, Dylan Campbell, and Porter Brown paced the Longhorns. Freshman Jared Thomas has surged, while transfer Garret Guillemette and senior Eric Kennedy have excelled in their roles.
The defense featured an experienced outfield, and strong play on the corners from Powell and Thomas. Guillemette has continued the string of strong catching on the Forty Acres.
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Texas recovered from an 4-7 start to the season with a 16-game winning streak that included a sweep of Texas Tech and a win at Texas A&M for the first time in over a decade. The Longhorns took conference series from Tech, Kansas State, Baylor, TCU, and Kansas in addition to the three-game sweep of the Mountaineers. Only a dropped series to Oklahoma State and a sweep at the hands of Oklahoma blemish the Texas Big 12 slate.
The Longhorns begin play at the 2023 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship this Wednesday. When they begin, they’ll arrive in Arlington’s Globe Life Field with a bit of hard-earned hardware.
