Month: March 2025

Early Houston Lead Erased as TCU Takes Series

Andres Perez pitched against TCU Sunday at Schroeder Park

Houston let an early lead get away on Sunday afternoon as TCU took the deciding game of their weekend series 16-5 at Schroeder Park.

Tre Broussard for the second game in a row started things off with a single, this one into left-center field . . . A failed pick-off attempt at first base allowed Broussard to motor all the way to third base on the throwing error . . . Moments later, Kenneth Jimenez grounded out to first base, but it worked as well as a sacrifice bunt as Broussard scampered home as Houston took the early lead.

Xavier Perez then walked and a wild pitch moved him to second base, where he was when Aaron Lugo (3-for-5) singled into center field giving Houston a 2-0 lead . . . Cade Climie was hit by a pitch and TCU went to the bullpen with two runners on base and one out trailing by two . . . With two outs, Jackson LaLima worked another walk, the third free pass of the inning, this one loaded the bases.

Shortstop Tyler Cox delivered a single into field field to score Lugo and Climie for a 4-0 lead going to the second inning.

Trailing 6-4 to start the bottom of the fifth inning, Jimenez reached base when he was hit by a pitch . . . One out later, Lugo delivered again, this time with a triple into the right field corner scoring Jimenez from first base, but it was to be the only run of the inning, but Houston trailed by only a run, 6-5.

The game got away from the Cougars after that as the TCU offense had four-run sixth and ninth innings, and a two-run seventh inning on their way to a 16-5 victory.

Lugo accounted for three of the seven Houston base hits on Sunday, with four other hitters each getting a hit.

Houston is off until Wednesday when they play their final game of the current homestand before heading to Waco for a Big 12 road series next weekend . . . The Cougars will welcome Texas A&M Corpus Christi on Wednesday night at Schroeder Park with first pitch scheduled for 6:35pm.

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Houston Blanked by TCU to Even Series

Houston and TCU played the middle game of their series Saturday night.

Houston could not counter the onslaught TCU brought to Schroeder Park Saturday night as the Cougars fell 12-0 to even the weekend series.

Tre Broussard led off the bottom of the first inning with a single, it was the first of only three hits in the ballgame and the only one until Cade Climie hit a two out in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Carsten Sabathia picked up the third and final Houston base hit leading off the bottom of the ninth inning, the start of what looked to be something positive until three consecutive strikeouts ended the game and completed the shutout.

Houston used eight pitchers in the Saturday loss, which has its good and bad . . . Several arms got some rare throwing opportunities so as to show what they could do against a solid offense that can attack . . . Diego Luzardo was hit hard and left with a possible injury, which may have been part of his mound difficulties, further details on the injury when they become available.

The Cougars walked 10 batters in the defeat, three of them eventually crossed the plate, including a fourth one which was hit by a pitch.

Malachi Lott was also part of a great defensive gem in the top of the fifth inning when he threw in from left field and found Tyler Cox in stride who was able to get the ball to Cole Carbone at the plate to prevent a run from scoring.

Not to be left out, Broussard, in addition to being one of three Cougars batters to get a hit, also made a couple of great running catches in center field, and he made a terrific play in the top of the eighth inning when he picked up a batted ball and hosed a runner at third base who was trying to advance all the way from first base . . . Broussard’s throw to Aaron Lugo at their base was a strike and it ended the inning.

The Cougars and the Horned Frogs will play the deciding game Sunday afternoon at Schroeder Park . . . First pitch is set for 1:05pm and Houston has not announced a starting pitcher at this time.

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Houston Tops TCU 3-2 to Open Home Series

Paul Schmitz delivers the first pitch against TCU Friday night.

Houston defeated TCU 3-2 at Schroeder Park on Friday night to open the Big 12 weekend series with a victory.

A triple and a single helped the Horned Frogs to a quick 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning Friday night, a lead they held until the bottom of the third inning.

Tre Broussard drew a two-out walk before stealing second base to get the third inning rally started . . . The stolen base made Broussard a perfect 17-for-17 in stolen base attempts this season, which is the fourth-most stolen bases without being caught in school history . . . Kenneth Jimenez walked right behind Broussard to put two runners on base with two outs . . . Xavier Perez lined a double into the right field corner scoring both Broussard and Jimenez and giving the Cougars a 2-1 lead.

With the game still tied at two after the seventh inning stretch, Houston shortstop Tyler Cox was at first base with two outs after grounding into a fielder’s choice . . . Coby DeJesus, in a pinch-hitting appearance, lined a double down the right field line allowing Cox to cross home plate all the way from first base as the relay throw home was to the wrong side of the catcher and Houston took the lead, 3-2.

Right-hander Paul Schmitz made the Friday night start for Houston and took the game into the fifth inning, he departed with two outs having thrown 102 pitches . . . Schmitz left with a runner on base who would eventually come around to score the tying run two batters after he left the game.

Left-hander Antoine Jean reliever Schmitz and after walking the first batter and allowing a one RBI single to the next batter, he settled in to retire the next 11 batters in succession, including three perfect innings, before allowing a two-out single in the top of the ninth inning . . . A walk put two runners on base for TCU and both moved into scoring position on a wild pitch before Jean struck out his fourth batter of the night to end the game.

The Cougars collected six base hits in the game, Perez accounted for two of them with five other hitters each picking up a base hit . . . The Horned Frogs were only able to counter with five hits.

Jean improved to 3-0 with the victory as a result of his 4 1/3 scoreless innings in which he struck out four on 76 pitches . . . Jean has not allowed a run to score over his last 11 2/3 innings of Big 12 action.

Houston (15-10, 3-4) and TCU (19-8, 3-4) will continue the series on Saturday night at Schroeder Park . . . Richie Roman will take the mound for the Cougars . . . The game will get underway at 6:35pm.

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Cougars Take Down Lumberjacks 9-2 in Midweek Win

Alex Solis made the midweek start against Stepen F. Austin Tuesday.

The Houston Cougars returned home and resumed midweek action with a 9-2 victory over Stephen F. Austin on Tuesday night at Schroeder Park.

Houston led throughout after scoring early and never relented.

Tre Broussard led the game off with a double into left-center field before stealing third base, his 16th consecutive stolen base without being caught . . . Kenneth Jimenez singled up the middle to score Broussard and give Houston the early lead . . . After a single and a walk loaded the bases, Carsten Sabathia walked to force in a run giving the Cougars a 2-0 lead.

Anthony Avalos, making his first start of the season, doubled with one out in the bottom of the third inning . . . Tyler Cox singled up the middle to plate Avalos and Houston once again led by two runs, 3-1.

Houston had their first four batters of the fourth inning reach base, starting with Jimenez who reached on an error at shortstop . . . A walk to Xavier Perez preceded a single by Lugo to right-center field . . . Cade Climie doubled home two runs and the Cougars led 5-1.

The Cougars answered a Lumberjacks run in the top of the sixth inning with two runs in the bottom half of the frame . . . Evan Haeger, a mid-game replacement for Climie, walked to reach base in front of a Sabathia single and a walk to Avalos to load the bases . . . Tyler Cox picked up his second base hit of the game driving in two runs and giving Houston a 7-2 lead.

Right-hander Alex Solis made the midweek start for Houston and he looked great as he cruised through six innings striking out eight Lumberjacks batters and allowing just two runs, only one of them earned . . . Solis struck out four in a row at one point in his outing, and he faced the minimum in two separate innings . . . Solis made 78 pitches and earned the Win to improve to 1-0 on the season.

Harrison Boushele followed Solis on the mound and tossed a scoreless seventh inning . . . After a one out walk, Boushele induced a ground ball double play to face the minimum in the inning.

Left-hander Chris Perez worked a scoreless eighth inning, working around a leadoff error behind him to striking out two batters and getting a ground ball out.

Andres Perez pitched the ninth inning and closed out the 9-2 victory with a scoreless inning of work.

After an eighth inning run-scoring single, Cox finished the game 3-for-5 with four RBI . . . Xavier Perez finished 2-for-3 and Avalos was 2-for-4 in a thirteen hit offensive night for the Cougars.

The Cougars will be back in action on Friday when they welcome TCU to town for a Big 12 series . . . First pitch Friday night at Schroeder Park is set for 6:30pm.

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Houston Wins 7-4 Over UCF, Claims Big 12 Road Series

Houston preps before Sunday’s final game in Orlando.

Houston claimed its first conference series of 2025, and its first conference road series since joining the Big 12 a season ago, by defeating UCF 7-4 in Orlando on Sunday afternoon.

Tre Broussard got the game started with a drive into right-center field, and rather than stopping at first base for a single, Broussard hustled into second base for a leadoff double . . . Kenneth Jimenez sacrificed Broussard to third base on the very next pitch with a bunt . . . Connor McGinnis grounded out to first base but picked up the RBI as Broussard crossed the plate for a 1-0 lead.

Aaron Lugo added to the Houston lead in the top of the second inning when he drove the second offering of the frame just over the left field wall and into the Cougars bullpen and a 2-0 lead.

The Knights tied the game in the bottom of the third inning.

The fourth inning began and ended with Xavier Perez highlight reel material . . . Perez (2-for-4) hammered the third pitch of the top half of the inning over the wall in left-center field to give Houston the lead right back, 3-2 . . . In the bottom half of the inning, with Houston protecting the one-run lead, a two-out liner to right field had the potential of tying the game when Perez laid out and made a diving catch for the third out.

Tyler Cox also made a superb play earlier in the frame, diving behind second base to stop a ground ball from rolling into center field, and after fielding the ball he fired across to first base to get the runner in time.

McGinnis got a sixth inning rally started when he grounded a single through the infield and into right field on the 10th pitch of his at-bat . . . Perez singled into right-center field to move McGinnis to third base, before stealing second base to put two runners in scoring position . . . Lugo (3-for-5) then dropped a single into shallow center field to score McGinnis for a 4-2 Houston lead.

With the game tied at four in the top of the seventh inning, Tyler Cox worked a walk to flip the order . . . Broussard was then hit by a pitch before Kenneth Jimenez was walked to load the bases with no outs . . . Pinch-hitter Evan Haeger grounded out but brought Cox across the plate as the go-ahead run . . . Perez then drove a sacrifice fly ball to right field for the second out, but the Cougars took a two-run lead on the RBI . . . Lugo then lined a ball to the wall in right-center field to score Jimenez and Houston had its biggest lead of the day at 7-4 as the game went to the seventh inning stretch.

Left-hander Chris Scinta, who took the mound in the sixth inning with one out, carried the game the rest of the way, finishing with 3 2/3 scoreless innings and retired the only three UCF batters to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning on five pitches . . . Scinta improved to 2-0 this season with the win . . . Malachi Lott also added two innings of scoreless relief in the fourth and fifth innings, he did not allow a hit over those two innings.

The Cougar offense had seven players pick up 10 hits with only five strikeouts . . . In his at-bat in the first inning which earned him the RBI on a groundout, McGinnis saw eight pitches, in the first of two very professional looking at-bats on Sunday . . . Perez, batting right behind McGinnis, was a likely beneficiary of the two long at-bats as he had two hits and two RBI.

Houston returns home after the win Sunday and will face Stephen F. Austin on Tuesday night at Schroeder Park . . . The midweek game is scheduled to get underway at 6:30pm.

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UCF Evens Series Against Houston with 7-1 Win

Houston faced UCF in the middle game of the series Saturday in Orlando.

The Houston Cougars fell 7-1 in the middle game of their weekend series at UCF Saturday night in Orlando.

After a scoreless first inning for both teams, Carsten Sabathia got the second inning started with a leadoff single into center field and he was quickly moved to second base on a Malachi Lott sacrifice bunt . . . Cade Climie was walked to put two runners on base with one out

Aaron Lugo followed by powering a double to the warning track in left-center field, Sabathia scored easily but Climie was out at home plate on a nice defensive relay throw, which also allowed Lugo to stop at third base, but the Cougars had to settle for a 1-0 lead going to the bottom of the inning.

The Knights took the lead in the bottom half of the second inning when they plated two runs against Houston starter Richie Roman . . . The two runs were the only ones allowed by Roman over six innings of work for the right-hander as he left the game trailing 2-1.

Roman’s six innings pitched was his longest outing as a collegian and he finished at 90 pitches.

Right-hander David Stich followed Roman on the mound and pitched a scoreless seventh inning as he continues to impress with his efforts since making his debut on March 5 against Rice . . . Stich has made five appearances and has allowed just one earned run over 8 1/3 innings pitched.

UCF put the game away in the bottom of the eighth inning when they added five runs to their tally against the Houston bullpen . . . The UCF leadoff hitter reached base on an error, a walk and two batters hit by a pitch added fuel to the fire . . . UCF bats drove in their five runs with two outs.

The Cougars loaded the bases in their final chance at-bat as UCF pitching walked the bases full, but a call the Knights bullpen did the trick, and Houston was dealt the loss to even the weekend series.

Houston and UCF will settle the series Sunday afternoon . . . Look for Graysen Drezek to make the start, though no official announcement has been made as of yet . . . First pitch on Sunday in Orlando is set for 12 noon Houston time.

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Houston Rides Big Inning, Dominant Jean Effort to Big 12 Road Win

The Cougars prep in Orlando before Friday’s game against UCF.

Houston rode a big fifth inning and dominant relief pitching to defeat UCF 7-5 Friday night in Orlando to earn their first Big 12 victory of 2025.

Trailing 5-0 in the top of the fourth inning, designated hitter Malachi Lott (2-for-4) shot a two-out single into right field and Cade Climie (2-for-4) followed by lining a double to the wall in left field allowing Lott to score all the way from first base.

Catcher Riley Jackson led off the top of the fifth inning by hitting the second pitch of the frame over the left field wall and into the Houston bullpen to get the inning started.

Tyler Cox followed by hitting the next pitch into left field for a single . . . After being moved to second base on a groundout, Xavier Perez singled into center field to score Cox and get Houston to within two at 5-3 and the Knights went to their bullpen for the first time in the game.

Connor McGinnis took the first pitch from the new pitcher off his body to reach base . . . After a double steal by Cox and McGinnis, Carsten Sabathia was walked on four straight pitches out of the strike zone to load the bases with one out . . . Lott then lined a 3-1 pitch into the right field corner for a bases clearing triple and a 6-5 Cougars lead.

Climie drove a double into left field to score Lott and Houston took a 7-5 into the bottom of the fifth inning as the Cougars batted around and scored six runs in their half of the inning.

Chris Scinta was the first pitcher out of the bullpen in relief of starter Paul Schmitz in the bottom of the third inning . . . Scinta retired four of the five batters he faced on ground balls and did not allow a hit.

Left-hander Antoine Jean took the mound to start the bottom of the fifth inning and he retired the first eight batters he faced before an error at shortstop allowed a baserunner . . . Jean struck out the next batter, bringing his total through three innings to five.

Jean continued to protect the 7-5 lead and continued to strike out Knights batters . . . One strikeout still yielded a baserunner for UCF as the ball bounced away from catcher Jackson and got trapped between his chest protector and his jersey, such a play is ruled an error and the batter is awarded first base . . . Jean was unphased, he got a fly out to center field and strikeout swinging to send the game to the ninth inning.

In the bottom half of the ninth inning, two UCF singles sandwiched another Jean strikeout, and a third single loaded the bases with one out for the Knights . . . Jean struck out his 10th and 11th batters to end the game and give Houston its first Big 12 victory this season.

Scinta earned the win, his first of the season, to move to 1-0, while Jean earned the unorthodox five inning save, his first of the season . . . Jean’s 11 strikeouts were a season high for him and he did not allow a walk in his five innings of work . . . Houston pitching only allowed three walks in the game, one of which led off an inning and eventually scored.

“Antoine’s performance tonight was as good as I have ever seen out of the bullpen,” head coach Todd Whitting said after the game. “After we scored to go ahead, he literally put the team on his back and carried us to the win.”

The Cougars and the Knights will resume the conference series on Saturday when things get underway at 5pm in Orlando . . . Houston has not yet named a starting pitcher for the game . . . Graysen Drezek, who has been making the Saturday start for the last few weeks, pitched Tuesday against Sam Houston, but that outing was low on pitches for Drezek and it could simply count as a bullpen session.

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Houston Falls to Texas Tech; Two Games Ahead with Sam Houston Tuesday

Connor McGinnis bats Sunday against Texas Tech.

Houston was unable to avoid a weekend sweep at the hands of Texas Tech on Sunday as they fell 11-1 at Schroeder Park.

The Houston offense scored its lone run of the game in the bottom of the third inning when Tre Broussard (2-for-4) doubled with two outs followed by a Connor McGinnis (2-for-3) double, his second double of the day, to score Broussard . . . Broussard and McGinnis were the only Cougars with multiple hits, together they accounted for four of the seven Houston hits.

The Cougars used seven pitchers in the defeat.

Houston (11-7, 0-3) is off on Monday and will resume play on Tuesday at Constellation Field in Sugar Land against Sam Houston . . . The Cougars and the Bearkats will resume this past Wednesday’s suspended game, which Houston is leading 9-6 in the bottom of the fifth inning . . . That game resumes at 4pm on Tuesday . . . The regularly scheduled third and final game of the Don Sanders Cup will begin 45 minutes after the completion of the resumed first game.

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Houston Offense Delivers but Cougars Drop Series to Red Raiders

Graysen Drezek made the start for Houston Saturday night.

Eight runs were not enough for Houston as they fell to Texas Tech 13-8 on Saturday night at Schroeder Park.

The Red Raiders got out to a fast start on Saturday, and they led 2-0 before the Cougar offense had been to the plate . . . A one out walk to Kenneth Jimenez got a rally started in the bottom of the first inning . . . Connor McGinnis then knocked a single into the right field corner to put runners on the corners.

Carsten Sabathia then hammered a ball to center field, the ball hit the wall in flight just to the right of the batter’s eye, Jimenez scored easily on the double . . . Xavier Perez grounded the next pitch toward the Red Raiders shortstop who was unable to field it cleanly, McGinnis scored on the error to tie the game at two apiece.

Perez led off the bottom of the fourth inning with a double to the center field wall followed by a Cade Climie walk with one out . . . The Cougars went to the bench early in this one looking for some production, and Jake Tatom delivered a pinch-hit RBI single into right field . . . Coby DeJesus followed with a pinch-hit double down the left field line to drive in a run and keep the inning going.

Tre Broussard singled up the middle to drive in two more runs and the Red Raiders went to the bullpen for the first time in the game . . . Malachi Lott in a pinch hit appearance, hammered a 3-0 pitch over the wall in right field and the two-run shot got Houston-to within three as a result of the six-run frame, 11-8, and the Red Raiders went to the bullpen once again.

The Houston offense could do no more damage in the final five frames as the Red Raiders got to the Houston bullpen for a couple of runs to create some distance.

Right-hander David Stich tossed two nice innings out of the Cougars bullpen . . . Stich struck out the first four batters he saw and only faced the minimum over the first two innings . . . A leadoff home run in the ninth inning, followed by a walk was the end of the night for Stich who has only pitched in the last couple of weeks with Saturday night being just his third appearance.

Lott entered the game in the top of the ninth inning with a runner on base and no outs, and he retired the only three batters he faced, two of them on swinging strikeouts.

McGinnis and Broussard each had two hits, the only Houston hitters with multiple hits in the game . . . Eight different Cougars collected base hits on Saturday night, one day after two Red Raiders pitchers one-hit the club. 

Houston and Texas Tech will conclude their weekend series on Sunday at Schroeder Park . . . The Cougars have not named a starting pitcher at this time . . . The game will get underway at 1pm.

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Houston Falls in Big 12 Opener to Texas Tech

Paul Schmitz throws the first pitch of the Big 12 season Friday night.

The Houston Cougars had few answers against Texas Tech as they dropped the first game of Big 12 Conference play 4-1 Friday night at Schroeder Park.

Second baseman Connor McGinnis provided the lone Houston hit of the night, a two-out solo home run over the right field wall in the bottom of the fourth inning . . . For McGinnis the home run was his fourth of the season.

The Cougars struggled all evening against the two right-handers that Texas Tech threw against them.

Right-hander Paul Schmitz made the start for Houston and his outing was solid as he allowed three runs over five innings . . . Antoine Jean pitched the final four innings in relief of Schmitz and allowed one run over four innings and struck out six Red Raiders batters.

Houston center fielder Tre Broussard, who has been great defensively all season, made another terrific catch in center field to record the first out of the fifth inning . . . Xavier Perez also made a nice play in right field in which he made a diving catch on his back, moving toward the infield for the first out of the third inning . . . Both catches were made in innings when Texas Tech scored a run, the damage could have been worse if not for the outfield showing the leather.

The Cougars and the Red Raiders will resume the weekend series Saturday night at Schroeder Park . . . First pitch is set for 6:30pm and right-hander Graysen Drezek will be on the mound for Houston, looking to even the series.

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