When it comes to handling defeats, Texas softball coach Mike White likes to say that there are no losses, only lessons.
If that’s the case following Wednesday’s 5-0 nonconference setback to No. 18 Oklahoma State at McCombs Field, at least White learned something about his pitching rotation after Citlaly Gutierrez impressed before wearing down late in the game.
“She’s actually proven that she's No. 2 on the staff,” White said. “It’s pleasing to see, and I’ve been waiting for somebody to grab that.”
White has spent all season seeking a reliable No. 2 behind ace Teagan Kavan, who has 20 starts. Freshman Hannah Wells has flashed potential while starting eight games and sophomore Cambria Salmon started seven games before falling out of the rotation.
Gutierrez started her sixth game against Oklahoma State and didn’t allow a run until the final two innings, when the Cowgirls connected on a pair of home runs. She also avoided allowing any walks while throwing only 95 pitches in the complete game, metrics White likes to see from his starters.
“Citlaly pitched well enough to win,” White said. “We just didn't give her any offensive support. I was really impressed with the way she pitched. I thought that her stuff was really moving. She was using all the pitches, just, unfortunately, we didn't help her.”
Based on White’s comments, Gutierrez seems in line to get the start in Game 2 of this weekend’s SEC series at Kentucky. For the season, she ranks second on the staff with a 2.46 ERA behind Salmon and issues one walk every 3⅔ innings, the lowest rate on the squad.
When/where: 5 p.m. Friday, 1 p.m. Saturday, noon Sunday in Lexington, Ky.
TV: SEC Network on Friday, SEC Network+ on Saturday and Sunday.
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But it doesn’t matter who’s pitching if No. 7 Texas can't generate runs, and that’s the biggest concern for White entering the final two series of the regular season against Kentucky and Arkansas. The Longhorns managed a season-low two hits against Oklahoma State ace Ruby Meylin and have now been shut out in two of their past seven games. Prior to a 3-0 home loss to Oklahoma on April 10, Texas hadn’t been shut out since a 3-0 loss to Oklahoma State in late March 2024.
White didn’t call out specific players, but he did say that the Longhorns must get more production from the bottom of the order. Over the past seven games, the regular top five in the order of Kayden Henry, Katie Stewart, Reese Atwood, Vivi Martinez and Leighann Goode have combined to hit .345 with 18 RBIs. In that same span, the bottom four spots in the order have hit .220 with six RBIs. Take away Wells’ propensity for power, and that bottom half of the lineup doesn’t have a single RBI in the last seven games.
“We just need some of these players that are there in (the bottom of the lineup) to just kind of give me a little more intensity, a little more, like, ‘I want the spot’ and grab it,” White said. “That's what we're waiting for a little bit. Obviously, we can't just keep going to the well and putting the same people that do the damage all the time. We're reliant on them.”
But what can White and his staff do at this point so late in the season? After amassing just two hits against Oklahoma State, White said his team needs to “do some investigating themselves.”
“We did everything we need to do,” he said, referring to his staff. “We scout everything else, but we're just not following through on those plans in a lot of cases. It looks that way to me. We had some pretty poor at-bats throughout the game, and we've got to be better at that.”
Schedule: Game 1 at 5 p.m. Friday; Game 2 at 1 p.m. Saturday; Game 3 at noon Sunday
TV/radio: Game 1 SEC Network; Game 2 and 3 SEC Network+; texaslonghorns.com