March 21, 2026, 10:23 a.m. CT

On Friday night, Longhorns baseball started its weekend with a brutal loss to Auburn. The Longhorns entered the ninth with a 3-1 lead over their SEC rival before things started to unravel. While Texas has gotten off to a red-hot start, its latest loss provided a reminder that the regular season is far from over. 

The night started out well for Texas as Aiden Robbins set the tone offensively with two home runs that were no-doubters. Longhorns ace Ruger Riojas continued to impress, allowing one run in 6.1 innings of work. He also struck out six batters and frustrated the Auburn hitters all night. However that was not enough as things fell apart with Texas less than three outs from a win.

After Auburn started the ninth with a double and a walk, Haiden Leffew was lifted for left-hander Ethan Walker. The redshirt junior was able to force a grounder to Adrian Rodriguez, who was unable to field the ball cleanly. While Rodriguez didn’t get the out, he didn’t let the ball get too far away, preventing Auburn from scoring. Then disaster struck with the bases loaded. 

Walker was able to get a strikeout before Auburn center fielder Bristol Carter hit a line drive to center. Aiden Robbins tried to field the ball quickly, but it got under his glove and rolled all the way to the wall. That allowed all three runners to score, giving the Tigers a walk-off win. 

While it was a disappointing ending, Texas will have a shot at redemption Saturday night. They will need the offense to emerge from its mini-slump and the bullpen to avoid free passes. If they can do that, then the No.2 team in the nation should quickly be back in the win column. 

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With conference wins at a premium, Texas will need to put Friday’s ending in the rearview mirror quickly.