It was a challenging weekend for Aggie baseball. They dropped two games of their series against LSU in heartbreaking fashion, but on Saturday, they changed that four-game SEC losing streak with a 6-2 victory over the LSU Tigers to avoid the weekend sweep.
Thursday night, A&M tied the game up in the top of the ninth inning, and had an opportunity to take the lead late with the bases loaded, but could not capitalize. The game looked as if it was heading to extra innings, but LSU came through with a walk-off hit to take game one by a 4-3 score.
The Aggies (37-7, 13-6 SEC) notched a three-run advantage by the seventh inning on Friday evening. However, the normally lights out Aggie bullpen sputtered to the finish, allowing seven runs in the final two innings. A&M tried to mount a rally in the ninth inning, but a double play ended the game, and the Aggies fell for the second straight night, losing 9-6 in front of an energized Alex Box Stadium crowd.
Saturday, the Aggies finally bounced back from their slight slump over the weekend to avoid the season sweep.
A&M was first to break through on the scoreboard, and it came with a four-run third inning. After a two-RBI single for Logan Taylor, the Aggies got two RBIs from Hunter Melton and Ronnie Gideon to gain a 4-0 lead after three frames of play.
LSU (37-7, 14-6 SEC) had its chances at a big inning, but Aggie starting pitcher Kyle Simonds worked himself out of it to give up only two runs, one unearned, and after four innings, A&M led 4-2. Simonds was great on the mound all day, as he worked five innings, allowing two runs, one unearned, on eight hits. After having a shaky last two games, the bullpen was brilliant in relief for A&M, as Matt Kent and Andrew Vinson worked through the LSU lineup to preserve the Aggie win.
Ryne Birk provided a bit of insurance for A&M in the sixth. He took LSU starter Austin Bain to right field for a solo shot that gave A&M a 5-2 lead.
Taylor had a fantastic day, both at the plate and in the outfield. He was part of a defense that gunned down two runners at home on the day, and Taylor was the key instigator on both plays. He also had a diving catch in the sixth inning to take away what was a sure double for LSU. Taylor was 1-for-3 at the plate, with two big RBI that helped A&M gain the lead early in the game.
The win on Saturday helps the Aggies avoid their first sweep of the season. A&M will return home on Tuesday night to take on Texas State at Olsen Field.
