Texas softball hopes to stay red-hot in Wednesday's home opener
While inclement weather in Florida may have cancelled three games for the Texas softball team at this past weekend’s Shriners Children’s Clearwater Invitational, nothing has doused the squad’s early optimism.
The Longhorns enter their home debut Wednesday against Houston Christian with as much momentum as any team in the nation. They may not be ranked No. 1 because three-time defending champion Oklahoma has earned that spot until proven otherwise, but they’ve risen to No. 2 in the latest USA Today/NFCA Coaches poll with a 7-0 record and wins over three currently ranked teams.
It’s been, well, a sweet start to the season for head coach Mike White.
“It is like eating a box of chocolates, to borrow a line from Tom Hanks,” White said. “Sometimes, you never know what you're going to get. But right now, we've shown all facets of the game, which is pretty good. We’ll get some really good pitching, good offense, good defense. There’s some new styles coming through, which we really like.”
More: How does the Texas softball team look? Let's examine the roster and the key games.
Citlaly Gutierrez, Teagan Kavan: Young guns in pitcher's circle
Those new styles start in the pitcher’s circle, where White says sophomore Citlaly Gutierrez and freshman Teagan Kavan “are a little bit ahead” of the other starting pitchers: Estelle Czech, Mac Morgan and Sophia Simpson.
More: Texas softball's Mac Morgan throws a no-hitter as Longhorns open season 2-0
Gutierrez has won both of her starts while allowing 12 hits and one earned run with 10 strikeouts over a team-high 14 innings. She also picked up the win in a complete-game effort during Friday’s 2-1 victory over No. 5 Tennessee, the team that eliminated Texas in last year’s Super Regionals.
“Yeah, that felt great,” said Gutierrez, who earned a spot on the Big 12’s all-freshman team a year ago. “I went into the game just cool, calm and collected. Last year (against Tennessee), there were some things we could have done better. And I feel like now, we know what to do and what to expect.”
Kavan has a 3-0 record with 3.23 earned run average but has shown the high heat that made her one of the top recruits in the nation. She has 18 strikeouts in 13 innings of work, including nine strikeouts in four innings in Friday’s win over No. 13 Stanford.
“Teagan has been great,” catcher Reese Atwood said. “Just seeing her mental side of the game, she’s very, very mature. She has it all under control in her head, which isn't something you typically see with a freshman. I think she's going to do great things this year.”
White “likes the options” he has at pitcher but said the way that “Citlaly and Teagan are throwing right now, it’s going to be tough to beat them out.”
More: Fifteen questions Texas softball must answer in 2024 — one for every returning Longhorn
Kayden Henry: Freshman OF second Horn to win honor
The competition looks just as fierce for several spots in the lineup, especially with the emergence of freshman Kayden Henry. The outfielder became the second Texas player to win the Big 12 player of the week award after her performances in the wins over Tennessee and Stanford. Henry led the team in batting average (.833), runs scored (three), home runs (two), RBIs (four), total bases (11), slugging percentage (1.833), on-base percentage (.833) and stolen bases (one) in those two games while joining Atwood as a conference honoree.
Atwood won the Big 12 award after the first week of the season.
“She (Henry) struck out in one at-bat (against Stanford) then came back with a home run,” White said. “You don’t see that happen too often. Sometimes you kind of doubt yourself a little bit when you strike out, but she didn't show any fear. She went right back up to the plate, hit a home run.”
Henry has had plenty of company when it comes to producing at the plate. As a team, Texas has scored 75 runs in 42 innings this season with 14 home runs and a .415 batting average.
“We’ve just been like very explosive,” said Atwood, who leads the team with a .619 batting average, 15 RBIs and four home runs. “We've stepped on the pedal and haven't really let up against any of the teams we've played.”
Wednesday's game
No. 2 Texas (7-0) vs. Houston Christian (4-4), 5 p.m., McCombs Field, LHN
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas softball hopes to stay hot in Wednesday's home debut
