The Daily Texan 2018-06-19

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TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

VOLUME 119, ISSUE 2

JUNETEENTH

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Cover Story Austin community comes together for Juneteenth celebration.

PAGE 6

News Pre-trial for Meechaiel Criner begins, attorneys discuss DNA testing and software.

(512) 471-4591

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Liza Anderson (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com

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Catherine Marfin (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com

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PAGE 3

Opinion Activists should use Pride Month to push for true equality beyond corporate fluff.

PAGE 4

The Texan strives to present all information fairly, accurately and completely. If we have made an error, let us know about it. Call (512) 232-2217 or e-mail managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com.

Life&Arts

AUSTIN WEATHER

Find out if the Pixar superhero family flix is as incrediple as you’d hope

TODAY June 19

PAGE 8

Sports Texas falls to Arkansas, 11-5, after a lightning delay and a disastrous sixth inning.

HI LO

TOMORROW June 20

78º 73º

HI 81º LO 75º

Sometimes people just aren’t funny.

PAGE 10

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LISA NHAN NEWS EDITOR @THEDAILY TEXAN

TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

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CRIME

Pre-trial hearing held in Weiser case Experts testify on DNA evidence ahead of murder trial of Meechaiel Criner.

By Megan Menchaca @MEGANMENCHACA13

D

uring a pre-trial hearing on Monday, attorneys discussed DNA testing in the murder case of dance freshman Haruka Weiser.

In the 167th District Court of Judge David Wahlberg, lawyers for the prosecution argued for the admittance of DNA evidence analyzed by the Department of Public Safety.

Lawyers for defendant Meechaiel Criner, who was indicted on capital murder charges for Wesier’s death in 2016, argued that the results of the DNA analysis should be tossed out because the procedures used to test the DNA were flawed.

The DNA mixture testing software, STRmix, used to test the DNA evidence gives a different type of statistic than other DNA

carlos garcia | the daily texan staff Meechaiel Criner’s defense team argues the DNA results should be dismissed because it would be difficult for the jury to understand them. Criner’s pre-trial began June 18 and continues on June 19.

testing softwares also used in a typical courtroom.

In his opening statement, Criner’s defense attorney Ariel Payan said STRmix’s results should not be used, because its results are too complex for a jury to understand. Instead of the typical practice of giving the probability of a suspect’s DNA being in an evidence profile, the STRmix software uses likelihood ratios to compare two scenarios to determine whether a particular DNA genotype is in the evidence profile, Payan said.

“Juries are not going to be able to understand this,” Payan said.

“The likelihood ratio, which is the basis of these mathematics, is extremely different than programs seen in the past. It is the antithesis of our court system which protects the people who are accused.”

Chase Baumgartner, one of two lead forensic scientists for a DPS Austin crime laboratory, testified for the prosecution about the DNA interpretation software.

“STRmix has about 20 articles

PRE-TRIAL page 5

NATIONAL

Women of color earn less across higher education jobs

EARNINGS page 5

Men of Color

White Women andrea d’mello

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$

$ Women of Color

$

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$.72

$.67

$.81

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$1.00

Source: College and University Professional Association for Human Resources

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Women of color earn 67 cents on the dollar compared to white men in higher education, according to a new study.

The study, published in May, comes from the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources.

The study analyzed data about women who identify as either black/African-American or Hispanic/Latino in all higher education positions as compared to men of color, white women and white men.

In all higher education positions, women of color earned

Median Pay Compared to White Men

$

@EVOSULLIVAN

often the primary caregivers in families, which may slow their career advancement and could lead to smaller salaries.

“Women are also subjected to implicit biases which devalue their research and academic worth at hiring and do not reward their contributions to the University community once hired,” Watson said.

Jasper McChesney, a data visualization researcher at CUPA-HR who wrote the research brief, said the findings were a confirmation of trends he saw, which included underrepresentation and underpay for women and minorities.

“You have to look at data

$

By Eilish O’Sullivan

less than white women, white men and men of color, according to the study.

Women of color are at the intersection of gender and race discrimination, so it’s not surprising that they earn 67 cents for every dollar earned by a white man, said Del Watson, director of faculty affairs and liaison for the University Faculty Gender Equity Council.

“There are a number of equity issues that contribute to this gap,” Watson said.“The underrepresentation of women of color (and) women in general, in higher-paying disciplines such as those in the STEM fields, contribute to the overall pay gap.”

Watson said women are

White Men | the daily texan staff

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LIZA ANDERSON EDITOR-IN-CHIEF @TEXANOPINION

TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

O

opinion

COLUMN

Speak out against discrimination this Pride Month

By Elizabeth Braaten @ TEXANOPINION

SENIOR COLUMNIST

With June comes Pride Month. For the millions of Americans that identify as part of the LGBTQ community, this marks the beginning of a monthlong celebration of being open and proud of their sexual orientations and gender identities.

There are 32 official Pride celebrations happening across the United States this month, including celebrations in Houston and San Antonio. With corporations increasingly embracing Pride Month as a marketing tool, our exposure to pro-LGBTQ imagery is more mainstream than ever before.

While this symbolizes great strides on the road to equality, it often distracts from the lack of legal protections multitudes of LGBTQ individuals face on a daily basis. In Texas, notoriously one of the worst states in which to be a member the queer community, this discrimination is amplified. While we celebrate, we must look past the corporate fluff and use this month’s increased attention on the LGBTQ community as a platform to push for true equality under the law.

In Texas, anti-LGBTQ thinking still dominates the political arena, making discrimination against people on the basis of their sexual orientation and gender identity legal across the state.

The implications of this are grim. A 2015 survey of queer youth found that 78 percent of Texas respondents had experienced verbal harassment for their sexuality at school, while 18 percent had experienced physical assault for the same reason. Troubling still are the 64 percent of transgender Texan students who report being unable to use their preferred names or pronouns at school.

Because the Civil Rights Act

doesn’t include protections for sexual orientation or gender expression, it’s still legal in Texas to fire an employee on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity. A recent study of transgender Texans found that 79 percent of respondents had been harassed in their workplace, and 26 percent reported having lost a job due to their gender identity.

A law passed by Governor Greg Abbott in June 2017 allows adoption agencies f to turn away proaf st n xa spective gay couples e t y il da on the basis of their he |t n sexual orientation. su e an The lack of legal protections di for the queer community in Texas also

extends to housing accommodations, as 22 percent of transgender people report having been evicted or denied housing on the basis of gender identification.

The list goes on. Despite marriage equality, Pride celebrations and corporate support of the queer community within our state, there are nearly a million queer Texans still vulnerable to legal discrimination for being who they are.

Pride Month must be heralded as a means for progress alongside celebration. While it’s true that Texas communities have taken significant steps towards LGBTQ equality, we must acknowledge that we still have a long way to go. It’s our responsibility to be vocal about these issues. And there’s no better time to raise awareness than Pride Month.

“We must continue telling our stories when it is safe for us to do so, if we are willing, because that’s the only way that anything ever really changes,” says Kathryn Gonzales, operations and programs director of Out Youth. “What often convinces people of others’ humanity is hearing their story.”

So speak up. And most importantly — be proud to do it.

Braaten is an international relations and global studies senior from Conroe.

COLUMN

UT deserves a comprehensive mental health report

By Spencer Buckner @ TEXANOPINION

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Former Chancellor William McRaven unapologetically took the lead against campus sexual violence — his greatest accomplishment as chancellor.

His successor must do the same for mental health.

The “Cultivating Learning and Safe Environments” survey on sexual violence, which McRaven spearheaded, has not only given us a better understanding of the inexcusable state of assault across the UT system, but has also raised the bar for scientific reports nationwide. Our mental health surveys, on the other hand, leave much to be desired.

Unlike the CLASE survey, which provided an unflinching look at sexual harassment over its 90 pages, the National College Health Assessment report — the only public report of mental health at UT

— is cursory and unfocused in its categorical assessment of students’ health. Only one of the report’s nine sections of findings focuses on mental health, which means our mental health data is lumped in with questions of drug use, sexual activity and nutrition. While the NCHA can tell us nearly 70 percent of Longhorns felt “very sad” in the past twelve months, it can’t tell us much else — ultimately lacking the depth and scope needed to truly understand the data we have.

Thankfully, the Counseling and Mental Health Center doesn’t have to rely on the NCHA. Katy Redd, CMHC associate director for prevention and outreach, explains that the NCHA is only one component of a much more holistic set of data — data sourced from staff, students and research from other universities. It’s comforting that our campus professionals have an arsenal of information to draw from, but having good data available to the public is equally as important.

LEGALESE | Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the Editorial Board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.

“The CLASE report elevated, for a lot of people, the issues around sexual violence,” Redd explained.

“Anytime we have the opportunity to have a wellresourced study, where we are looking at an issue like (sexual violence), it will elevate the conversation around a particular topic on campus.”

The CLASE report was a wake-up call for the UT System to act on sexual assault, and, through its rigor and methodology, lent irrefutable credibility to a cause long advocated for and long ignored. On a campus where in the last twelve months nearly 60 percent of Longhorns felt “overwhelming anxiety” and 30 percent felt “so depressed that it was difficult to function,” we need the critical eye of a professional study to do for mental health what CLASE did for sexual violence.

That’s where our chancellor comes in.

“Chancellor McRaven’s vision … and support made the CLASE project possible,” notes Margaret Bassett, deputy director of UT’s Institute on

SUBMIT A FIRING LINE | Email your Firing Lines to editor@dailytexanonline.com. Letters must be more than 100 and fewer than 300 words. The Texan reserves the right to edit all submissions for brevity, clarity and liability.

Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault.

Indeed, McRaven’s personal vision and $1.7 million-dollar funding effort for CLASE helped materialize a project so ambitious that campus experts on sexual assault didn’t believe he was serious. With increasing demand continuing to shrink mental health funds, we need a chancellor who is unafraid to fight — and pay — for UT’s mental health research to be as innovative as our research on sexual violence.

A million-dollar endowment has been created in McRaven’s name for future chancellors to pursue their own “strategic initiatives” — just as McRaven did. Be it interim chancellor Larry Faulkner or whoever serves next, our chancellor should use that money to break crucial ground on understanding mental health in the UT System. The gaps in our knowledge of the mental health experiences of Longhorns provide room for a lasting legacy — and impact — to be forged.

Buckner is a Plan II and journalism sophomore from Austin.

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TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

EARNINGS

continues from page 3 and really see what the numbers are, compared to what you think an equitable situation should be,” McChesney said in an interview with The Chronicle of Higher Education.

In February, data produced by UT and The Texas Tribune showed that men and white faculty are paid more, and receive more endowments, promotions and more timely promotions. In July 2017, the average salary for male employees at UT was $62,400, and the average female salary was $52,000, according to the Tribune’s Government Salaries Explorer database.

According to the CUPA-HR study, in higher education fields, women of color are overrepresented in lower-paid positions and

The underrepresentation of women of color (and) women in general, in higher-paying disciplines such as those in the STEM fields, contribute to the overall pay gap.”

Del Watson

underrepresented elsewhere.

The University Faculty Gender Equity Council said they are working to combat such discrepancies. The council advises the provost on matters related to gender issues at UT and makes recommendations for improving the equitable and inclusive environment for faculty, Watson said. “(UT) has been proactive in addressing these equity issues and has seen some positive results,” Watson said.

Watson said in an analysis of gender pay equity by the council, they found that salaries in 2017–2018 for UT female faculty were slightly higher than salaries for men when controlled for discipline, experience and years in rank.

The council will also be performing an analysis of the pay gap for faculty women of color this upcoming fall.

PRE-TRIAL

continues from page 3

supporting it, published in various scientific journals,” Baumgartner said. “STRmix is currently used in dozens of counties in Texas as well as (in) the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Army.”

Jody Koehler, former DNA section manager at the laboratory, testified about the multiple DNA lab reports in

the Criner case.

“Based on our findings, Meechaiel Criner cannot be excluded as the male subject whose DNA was found on Haruka Weiser’s thigh … (or as) the male subject whose DNA was found on Weiser’s black-rimmed eyeglasses,” Koehler said.

A second pre-trial hearing date is set for June 19 to further discuss the evidence.

More experts are expected to testify in court about DNA testing.

Criner’s indictment accused Criner of multiple charges, including sexual assault, attempted kidnapping and robbery. If convicted of capital murder, Criner could face life in prison with the possibility of parole in 40 years. Criner, who is now 19, is not eligible for the death penalty because he was under the age of 18 at the time of Weiser’s death.

Criner’s trial is set to begin July 9 and is expected to last two weeks.

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SDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

Juneteenth unite A history of Juneteenth celebrations in the state of Texas.

By Eilish O’Sullivan @EVOSULLIVAN

Each year on June 19, Texans commemorate the day news of the abolition of slavery reached the Lone Star State.

The Emancipation Proclamation, which abolished slavery, went into effect on Jan. 1, 1963.

Texas was the last state to end slavery, abolishing it when Union General Gordon Granger came to Galveston with the announcement more than two years later.

It was not until the end of the Civil War, when the Confederacy was defeated, that Texans learned of the Proclamation, said Benjamin Wright, associate director for communications at the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.

“Juneteenth celebrates when this news came to Texas,” said Wright, a history graduate student. “It’s not just the news of freedom, but actually the reality of it.”

Wright said even though the former slaves were then free, they faced a plethora of other challenges, such as financial hardships and the inability to obtain land.

“In Texas, and in other southern states, there were several generations of slaves working on this land,” Wright said. “It was the sweat of their brows, their broken bodies, that had made the land profitable.”

At the time of Granger’s announcement, there were more than 250,000 slaves in Texas.

Juneteenth is a portmanteau of “June” and “nineteenth,” and the day is the oldest-known celebration commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.

In 1980, Texas became the first state to recognize Juneteenth as an official state holiday through the efforts of Texas state Rep. Al Edwards, D-Houston.

“Every year, we must remind successive generations that this event triggered a series of events that, one by one, defines the challenges and responsibilities of successive generations,” said Edwards, sponsor of the bill, according to CNN. “That’s why we need this holiday.”

People celebrate June-

teenth with parades, rodeos, street fairs, cookouts, historical reenactments and “Miss Juneteenth” contests. Some other traditions include oral histories and readings of the Emancipation Proclamation.

Emancipation Parks, in both Austin and Houston, were purchased specifically for Juneteenth celebrations. Now, Austin’s Juneteenth celebration occurs in Rosewood Park, and the land where Emancipation Park was became the first African-American public housing complex in the country.

“The economic, social and political climate for African-Americans in Texas was precarious and dangerous,” said Nakia Parker, a history and African and African diaspora studies graduate student. “It was a remarkable and brave thing to buy land to celebrate Juneteenth so openly, to say the least.”

Although the day is seen as the end of slavery in the United States, Juneteenth is still not a national holiday.

Parker said she thinks Juneteenth is celebrated more locally than nationally because the conception of slavery being a brutal institution that only occurred in the South.

“The more frank discussions we have about slavery being an integral part of American history … the more Juneteenth will be more likely recognized like other celebrations,” Parker said.

over story

TUESDA

es black Austinites Austin’s oldest black history center connects community to their roots.

By Ruben Paquian @ RUBENPAQ

For some, the annual Juneteenth celebration is more than an excuse for a cookout — it’s an important opportunity to learn and gain understanding from one another.

Located in East Austin, the George Washington Carver Museum, Cultural and Genealogy Center has been preserving the history and culture of Austin’s African-American community since the 1940s through seminars, exhibits and the museum’s annual Juneteenth celebration. Welcoming an estimated 800 guests, last Saturday was the most attended Juneteenth celebration in the museum’s history, said Faith Weaver, arts and educational coordinator of the museum. Patrons of all ages came together to enjoy food and games to celebrate the anniversary of the freeing of slaves in the South, something both organizers and celebrationgoers say is more important than ever.

Not many people know about Carver Museum, or that it was the community’s first museum to house a Juneteenth exhibit. That’s something Weaver said its staff has been working to change.

“When I was a student at UT, I didn’t know that there was black museum in Austin,” Weaver said.

“There’s still a lot of people that don’t know about the (Carver Museum), so we are making a concerted effort for people to know that this was the first

African-American facility in Austin.”

Through the museum’s increased outreach, the annual celebration has grown. Weaver said the growth in attendance is also a result of the current national and local political climate. With issues such as gentrification and immigration on people’s minds, she said centers focused on the city’s ethnic minorities are more important than ever.

“Saturday was the biggest (Juneteenth celebration) that we’ve had.”

Weaver said. “There are questions and there are concerns that citizens have right now, and it’s important to have spaces where you can talk about those things.

Austin resident Kathy Robinson has been attending Austin’s Juneteenth celebrations for decades. She and her family have deep roots in the East Austin community, and for them, Juneteenth is a way for families to come together and celebrate one another.

“We’re all raised on the east side; we have our family reunion here.

We come every year, we never miss it.” Robinson said. “(Juneteenth) makes us feel closer and (gets) everybody to join in.”

Brandon Williams, another lifelong Austinite, said the city’s Juneteenth celebrations have been a part of his life since childhood. He

remembers being in the Junteenth parade riding in his uncle’s race cars.

“I’ve been in Austin all my life — 34 years.” Williams said. “I (was) maybe about four years old when I started coming out here. We couldn’t sleep the night before … because (we were) just excited to be in the Juneteenth parade.”

Celebrating the nineteenth of June doesn’t just provide a day of family fun for the residents of East Austin, it also presents an opportunity for the rest of Austin to learn about African-American history, something Weaver and everyone at the Carver Museum said is a step toward a more cohesive community.

“Anything that we’re able to do that’s going to have us better understand each other is a very positive and good thing, and it kind of grows all of us. Black history is a part of American history,” Weaver said. “It’s important that we learn about each other, so that we have respect for each other.”

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COLLYN BURKE & RUBEN PAQUIAN LIFE&ARTS EDITORS @THEDAILY TEXAN

TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

MOVIE REVIEW | ‘INCREDIBLES 2’

L&A

life&arts

Pixar does it again; Sequel is ‘super’ ‘Incredibles 2’ hits the notes you’d expect, but keeps it entertaining.

By James Preston Poole @JAMESPPOOLE

F

ourteen years after writer-director Brad Bird’s smash animated hit “The Incredibles” hit theaters, audiences are finally getting a sequel. Unlike the underwhelming “Finding Dory,” however, this is a Pixar follow-up that matches and, in some ways, surpasses

the original.

“Incredibles 2” picks up directly where the first film leaves off.

After defeating Syndrome, a disastrous attempt at fighting a new threat known as the Underminer leaves the super powered Parr family in hot water. Superheroes remain illegal, but charismatic industrialist Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk) and his tech-savvy sister Evelyn (Catherine Keener) have a plan to improve the public’s perception of powered individuals by positioning Helen Parr (Holly Hunter), aka Elastigirl, as the new face of heroes.

As Elastigirl enjoys the thrill of

INCREDIBLES 2 RUNTIME: 118 Minutes MPAA RATING: PG SCORE: crime-fighting, Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) struggles with keeping the household together. The arrival of a mysterious masked villain known as the Screenslaver interrupts their new routine as the Parr family — and old allies such as Lucius

SUPER page 9

copyright disney pixar, and reproduced with permission Pixar delivers with a successful second installment of the highly anticipated superhero film. “Incredibles 2” had the highest weekend opening for an animated movie.

STUDENT ACTIVISM

Students strive to change connotations of word ‘fat’

By Tiana Woodard @TIANAWOODARD

For rhetoric and writing senior Dauphine Sizer, the nicest words can hurt the most.

Although typically heavier than her childhood peers, Sizer never saw an issue with her weight until the third grade. As her friends rushed to her aid to dismiss her doubts, Sizer said their denial of her being fat only did more harm than good.

Sizer is one of many students contributing to the ongoing discussion on the connotations of the word fat and its effect on body image.

“I feel like the crises of my self-image really stemmed from that negative connotation (of the word fat),” Sizer said. “If somebody, when I was eight or nine, had just said, ‘Being fat isn’t the worst

thing you could be,’ I wouldn’t have had a lot of issues I ended up having for the rest of my life.”

Now, Sizer does just that, working to erase the word’s negative connotations established by her troubled childhood. But this short-yet-powerful word’s meaning is different for everyone. To English sophomore Andilynn Feddeler, “fat” holds no connotation.

“I’d want (‘fat’) to be used as a neutral word because I see it as an adjective, kind of just like tall or blond,” Feddeler said.

Will Haughey, radio-television-film sophomore, said society problematically attaches “fat” to an overweight appearance. “(‘Fat’ is) subjectively defined by your appearance of being fat, by having excess fat on your body to the point where it’s visible,”

Haughey said.

All three agreed that their changing feelings toward “fat” did not blossom until college.

Feddeler considers the support she’s received from other Longhorns as a foundation for her newfound beliefs.

“When I started seeing new views and perspectives at UT come into play, I was like, ‘Wow,’” Feddeler said. “I started realizing that everyone deserves basic human decency, no matter how they look.”

Students such as Sizer have made good use of such realizations.

Sizer uses social media and her self-run blog, My Friends Call Me Fat, to advance her body-positive ideals.

“My goal is to be there for fat individuals who may feel isolated,” Sizer said. “I hope that, across the internet or

WORD page 9

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L&A SUPER

continues from page 8 Best/Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson) — are forced to save the world again.

“Incredibles 2” makes the smart choice of taking the Parr family’s narrative to its next logical place. Now that the superheroes are comfortable with who they are, the conflict is about fighting against the outside world’s perception of them. This leads to a tight narrative that doesn’t meander, keeping focus and never overexposing fan favorite characters such as Frozone or

TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

Edna Mode.

Unfortunately, the film can be quite predictable at moments. In the first third, it’s fairly easy to guess who the Screenslaver is and, this being a Pixar movie, it’s hard to really believe that the Parr family is in danger. These problems are offset by the film’s secret weapon: Elastigirl.

Helen Parr, who was fairly underserved in the first film, is a more compelling protagonist than Mr. Incredible ever was.

She revels in the opportunity to fight crime, and her enthusiasm and determination is contagious. Her dynamic skill set leads

to a series of really inventive action sequences.

Make no mistake, the animation here is gorgeous all the way through. The film has an appropriately comic book-y style with detailed textures that leap off the screen, although it’s really the action where it comes to life.

From an exhilarating motorbike chase through the city, to a colorful superhero smackdown, Bird directs these with scenes with a smooth, yet kinetic energy that cracks and sizzles. By putting his characters into consistently unique setups, he recreates the feeling of playing with toys as a child.

Not to go unmentioned, the voice acting provides “Incredibles 2” with its soul. Truly, this is a showcase for Holly Hunter’s range, as she manages to portray everything from joy to grit. Craig T. Nelson is a close second, as his single-dad antics provide him with some really funny moments, while newcomers Odenkirk and Keener give surprisingly adult performances here as characters you’re never sure if you can trust.

“Incredibles 2” is another home run for Pixar. With a winning marriage of characters and visuals, it’d be a shame if it took 14 more years for a third.

WORD

continues from page 8

nikole pena| the daily texan staff

Instagram, I can give them that comfort.”

However, efforts to alter the word’s traditional connotations have met opposition.

For instance, a common argument against changing “fat’s” connotation is that it excuses unhealthy habits. Sizer opposes such arguments, citing her clean bill of health as evidence.

“I did a health clearance before I left (to study abroad),” Sizer said. “Everything was perfect, but they still felt the need to write ‘obese’ on the health clearance form. I’m healthy, so why is that relevant?”

Although he worries that feeling complacent while being overweight can be detrimental to one’s health, Haughey prioritizes body positivity over the need to lose weight.

“While it is objectively healthier than not losing weight, people should still feel good about themselves and feel like they are beautiful just as anybody else.”

Haughey said.

But for people such as Sizer, such arguments are worth pushing against, if it means steering even one individual’s self-image in the right direction.

“I have one friend who says, ‘I’m okay with identifying as fat now, whereas before, that was the worst-case scenario,’” Sizer said. “‘But now, you’ve made me feel like it was okay to.’”

ALEX BRISEÑO

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SPORTS EDITOR @TEXANSPORTS

TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

BASEBALL

S

sports

Sixth-inning meltdown pushes game out of reach

By Travis Hlavinka @TRAVHLAV

RECYCLE

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Texas stood toe-to-toe with national powerhouse No. 5 Arkansas for five innings. Then the sixth inning started.

The Longhorns and Razorbacks found themselves in a back-and-forth affair in the front half of their opening game in the 2018 College World Series on Sunday. But after a sixth-inning collapse, Texas was run out of TD Ameritrade Park in an 11-5 blowout loss.

This is Arkansas’ third straight win of the season against the Longhorns, which pushes Texas into the loser’s bracket for the rest of the tournament, forcing Texas into a survive-and-advance situation in every game moving forward to keep their season afloat.

“I’m not shell-shocked,” head coach David Pierce said. “It’s just part of it. It’s not the way we wished it had gone. Unfortunately, it got away from us, and we just couldn’t overcome the deficit.”

At the close of the top of the sixth inning, Texas had found itself in the heat of a close 3-2 ball game. Kingham began to find his rhythm, but then the Razorbacks’ offense came to life.

Arkansas ripped off back-to-back singles to start off the bottom half of the sixth, and Pierce decided that was all he needed to see out of his starter. Kingham’s afternoon ended after allowing five runs on nine hits.

After this move, the floodgates opened, as Arkansas plated seven runs after Kingham’s departure.

“We just got there in the sixth, and he kind of unraveled, went back-to-back singles, and at that point, I feel like he just started pitching behind,” Pierce said. “Hindsight’s a beautiful thing. You look back at that and you really say,‘We should’ve stuck with Nolan.’”

Redshirt junior Parker Joe Robinson was the first to replace Kingham and would walk the only two batters he faced. Robinson, the usual rock of the bullpen, struggled with his command and was replaced by the bullpen’s other reliable veteran, redshirt junior Josh Sawyer. Sawyer would also walk the first batter he faced. Shortly after, though, lightning was spotted

anthony mireles | the daily texan staff Redshirt junior Parker Joe Robinson, left, and junior ace Nolan Kingham walk on the field following a 11-5 blowout loss against No. 5 Arkansas.

near TD Ameritrade Park, and the game was delayed.

The unusually long delay lasted two hours and 49 minutes before the teams took the field to resume play. And when Texas finally did retake the field, the floodgates opened once again.

Junior reliever and predicted second-game starter Chase Shugart was next on the mound after the delay, but he was quickly removed after just 11 pitches.

The combination of Kingham, Robinson, Sawyer and Shugart would fail to record an out in the inning. The foursome would also allow four walks and a combined eight earned runs.

It wasn’t until freshman Kamron Fields came into the game in relief that Texas

would record an out, and he would record two before being replaced by redshirt junior Andy McGuire, who would finally finish the inning.

Despite allowing three more runs, the Razorbacks never entertained the idea of a Longhorn comeback, soundly defeating Texas, 11-5.

“Everyone’s down right now,” junior outfielder Tate Shaw said. “It’s baseball– you gotta forget.”

Texas now finds itself in the loser’s bracket and one game away from elimination. The Longhorns have one day of rest before returning to the field to play the loser of the Florida-Texas Tech game. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Tuesday.

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TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 2018

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