Coming off a series loss to Kansas, TCU had to rebound quickly as they crossed the metroplex to take on No. 19 DBU. The Horned Frogs capitalized on several Patriot mistakes to walk away with a 9-6 victory.
A sac fly put DBU up first, but the Frogs responded in a big way in the top of the third. A bad throw at the plate allowed Karson Bowen to score to tie it up. The next hitter, Logan Maxwell, singled up the middle to make it 2-1, and just as he's done a lot this season, Kurtis Byrne opened things up with a two-RBI double.
A Chayton Krauss solo shot cut the deficit to two in the bottom of the third. Ben Hampton drew the start for the Horned Frogs. His day was done in the third as he went 2.1 innings giving up four hits on one earned run with a strikeout.
The man in relief, Louis Rodriguez, would be the big story on Tuesday. Rodriguez picked up his second win of the season going 3.2 innings without allowing a run on four hits and a career-high seven strikeouts.
Several DBU errors allowed the TCU lead to stretch to 9-2. Four of the nine TCU runs were unearned. The Patriots plated four runs in the eighth and the ninth inning but it was too little too late, as Kyle Ayers recorded the final three outs.
The heart of the order with Maxwell, Byrne, and Anthony Silva each recorded multiple hits this game. This game simply came down to the Horned Frogs taking advantage of the DBU mistakes. Nonetheless, it's a great resume builder for this TCU team and some good momentum heading into this weekend.
The Horned Frogs will be back at Lupton this weekend starting a three-game series with Oklahoma. Game one will be on Friday at 6:30 p.m.
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