AUSTIN, Texas – Junior right-hander Caleb Kilian and redshirt freshman Clayton Beeter combined for a one-hit shutout as the No. 7 Texas Tech baseball team took a 3-0 victory at No. 10 Texas on Saturday at UCFU Disch-Falk Field to even the three-game series at one game apiece.

The Red Raiders (12-4, 1-1) broke a scoreless tie in the eighth on a sacrifice fly from junior second baseman Brian Klein, and sophomore designated hitter Cody Masters delivered a clutch two-out single later in the inning that sent Tech to its sixth win in Austin in its last seven games.

Kilian (1-2) went a career-long seven innings in the start, allowing only three base runners with a hit and two walks while striking out four. Only one Longhorn was able to reach scoring position against Kilian, doing so in the second inning before he got a called third strike to end the frame.

Beeter came on to close out the final two frames and earned his third save of the season, collecting a career-high four strikeouts in the process. The combined one-hit shutout is Tech’s first since Kilian and Ryan Shetter did so at TCU on April 28, 2018.

The Longhorns (14-7, 1-1) made it interesting in the ninth, drawing three base-on-balls to load the bases, but Beeter got a fly out to left field to end the game.

Sophomore Gabe Holt initiated the offense for Tech in the eighth, drawing a leadoff walk. Sophomore Dylan Neuse, who went 2-for-3 on the day to lead the Red Raiders, followed with one of his two base on balls for the day. Holt and Neuse then stole second and third to setup the sac fly from Klein to put the Red Raiders in front, 1-0.

With two away in the frame and runners on second and third, Tech then got a big two-out single from Masters, who went the other way on a two-strike pitch to find the hole on the left side of the infield and score two more to make it 3-0.

Tech has now outhit the Longhorns 14-6 in the series. Saturday’s shutout came in front of a Texas regular-season single-game record of 7,879 fans. It marked Tech’s first shutout of Texas since a 1-0 win in 2013 and ensures the Red Raiders have a chance to win the series in Austin for the fourth straight time on Sunday.

–TECH–

Ty Parker

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