FORT WORTH — The swings were loud. The response wasn’t enough.

Houston got a career night from senior slugger Cade Climie, but Houston Cougars baseball couldn’t keep pace with TCU Horned Frogs baseball, falling 8-3 Friday night at Lupton Stadium to open the weekend series.

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Climie delivered the headline performance, going 2-for-4 with a pair of home runs, two RBIs, and two runs scored, a veteran presence trying to will Houston back into the fight. The multi-homer showing marked just the second by a Cougar this season and pushed him to 50 career multi-hit games. Five of his six home runs this year? All have traveled on the road.

But baseball doesn’t wait, and TCU answered every punch.

Houston struck first — again. Climie’s solo shot in the second inning gave the Cougars an early edge, the 25th time this season they’ve opened the scoring. The momentum lasted only minutes. TCU responded immediately with a three-run blast in the bottom half, flipping the tone and seizing control.

From there, it became a slow bleed.

Sophomore Kendall Hoffman battled through six innings, striking out a season-high seven, but the Frogs capitalized on traffic and timing, tagging him for six runs. TCU starter Trever Baumler steadied things on the other side, limiting Houston to two runs across 5.2 innings and keeping the Cougars from stacking pressure.

Climie struck again in the sixth — another solo shot, another jolt — but TCU kept its foot on the gas, adding insurance in the sixth and eighth innings to stretch the margin to 8-2.

Houston showed late life. Riley Jackson—who reached base in multiple ways—came around to score after a double, walk, and hit-by-pitch sequence, and Antonelli Savattere drove him in with a clean RBI single. But the rally never built into a threat. TCU closed the door, clean and controlled.

The Takeaway:
Houston’s power showed up. The consistency didn’t. When the Cougars hit, they flashed. When they needed shutdown innings or momentum swings, TCU answered first.

Up Next:
The series continues Saturday at 2 p.m., with the finale set for Sunday at 1 p.m. — both streaming on ESPN+. Houston will look to flip the script before this one gets away.