Things went sideways quickly at Lindsey Nelson Stadium on Friday as the No. 4 Texas Longhorns fell into an early hole and never recovered in a 5-1 loss to the Tennessee Volunteers that included another shoulder injury sustained by junior second baseman Ethan Mendoza.

After spending 15 games last year as the designated hitter following a shoulder injury sustained diving for a ground ball, Mendoza left the game in the first inning on a similar play, leaving head coach Jim Schlossnagle without much optimism that the Arizona State transfer will be able to return to action this weekend.

Without Mendoza in the lineup, Texas struggled at the plate against Tennessee ace Tegan Kuhns, who recorded a career-high 15 strikeouts in seven innings. Throwing 113 pitches, Kuhns allowed just four hits and one walk in his scoreless outing as the Horns ultimately struck out 19 times, leaving the bottom of the order without much production — sophomore shortstop Adrian Rodriguez struck out all four times he came to the plate and junior designated hitter Ashton Larson, junior infielder Casey Borba, and freshman center fielder Maddox Monsour all struck out three times apiece.

Junior right fielder Aiden Robbins did have two hits — a double and a solo home run in the eighth inning — but didn’t receive help from the rest of the lineup.

And sophomore left-hander Dylan Volantis looked human, a rare occurrence in his sterling career in burnt orange and white, allowing RBI doubles in the first and second innings and giving up another second-inning run on a wild pitch. Volantis recovered to throw three scoreless innings before redshirt senior right-hander Cody Howard pitched the final three innings, giving up two runs on two hits.

Texas tries to bounce back on Saturday with first pitch at 5 p.m. Central on SEC Network+.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – State Rep. Antonio Parkinson says Tennessee’s two blue cities, Memphis and Nashville, should break away and form their own state.

“I don’t think the state of Tennessee deserves a Memphis and Shelby County…or a Nashville, Davidson County,” Parkinson said on Action News 5’s A Better Memphis broadcast Friday.

Parkinson proposed creating a new state called West Tennessee, which would span from the eastern border of Nashville’s Davidson County to the Mississippi River.

“I’m not just talking about Memphis, I’m talking about the eastern border of Nashville, Davidson County and everything to the Mississippi River to create a new state called the new state of West Tennessee, the 51st state, West Tennessee,” Parkinson said.

Proposal follows new congressional map

Parkinson’s secession pitch follows the GOP supermajority approving a new congressional map Thursday that splits Shelby County into three districts, dismantling what was the state’s only majority-Black district.

“So this is about accountability. We’re paying all of this money, yet you remove our voice, so that is taxation without self-determination, taxation without actual representation,” Parkinson said.

Tennessee Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton denies race was a factor when Republicans redrew the map.

“Look, at the end of the day we were able to draw a map based on population and based on politics, we did not use any racial data,” Sexton told Action News 5.

Sexton said Democrats did the same thing in the 1990s when they split Shelby County into three different congressional districts.

Secession requires state, federal approval

For Memphis to secede, it requires approval from the State of Tennessee and the U.S. Congress.

Parkinson said he’s willing to fight that uphill battle.

“Why should we stay in an abusive relationship where they’ve shown us the pattern over and over and over…where they do not see our value, and do not care about us,” Parkinson said.

This is not the first time Parkinson has suggested Memphis secede from Tennessee. He made the same call in 2018 after the Republican-controlled state legislature punished Memphis, cutting the city’s funding by $250,000, in retaliation for removing two Confederate statutes.

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SIGNAL MOUNTAIN, Tenn. — A state lawmaker who represents constituents on Signal Mountain is explaining why she chose not to vote yes or no on Tennessee’s controversial redistricting plan.

State Rep. Michele Reneau (R-Signal Mountain) voted “present not voting” as the House approved a new congressional map during a heated special session.

In a statement, Reneau says the decision reflected concerns about both the process and what happened inside the Capitol.

“I had serious concerns about the timing, process, and unintended consequences,” she said.

Reneau also pointed to the tone of the debate.

She said she did not want her vote to be seen as supporting “the messaging, tactics, or behavior being used by protesters throughout this week.”

Rep. Greg Vital of Hamilton County also voted ‘present.’

We have reached out to his office several times. We will share his explanation in this story if and when we hear back.

The redistricting plan, which has now passed both chambers and is headed to the governor’s desk, reshapes districts across the state, including breaking up the Memphis-based district.

The vote came amid protests, demonstrations and intense debate at the State Capitol.

Reneau says her vote was not about avoiding the issue.

“My vote was not a refusal to take the issue seriously,” she said. “It was a deliberate vote reflecting the complexity of the issue.”

The plan has sparked strong reactions across Tennessee.

Some Democrats have filed legal challenges to block the new map before the next election.

Others have raised concerns about representation, while some lawmakers have floated broader ideas, including changes to how regions are governed.

Depend on us to keep you posted.