A quiet start to the weekend series had the 12th Man thinking it would be a long game against the reigning champs in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. But a scoring run in the fifth put Aggies on their toes, as No. 10 Texas A&M baseball began their 10-4 beatdown of LSU in Game 1.
After back-to-back scoreless innings, the Aggies finally got going in the third. With junior catcher Bear Harrison on base via a walk, freshman shortstop Boston Kellner sent a single to center field, advancing Harrison to third. A ground out from junior center fielder Caden Sorrell brought Harrison home to put A&M on the board. But that’s the only run the Aggies mustered, as a ground out to third from junior second baseman Chris Hacopian sent them back to the dugout up 1-0.
A quick top of the fourth had LSU ready to battle, as junior SS Steven Milam sent a home run to left field to tie the game. A double put freshman C Omar Serna Jr. in scoring position, with the Aggies one out away from closing the inning and keeping the Tigers’ scoring at bay. A ground out from sophomore third baseman John Pearson did just that, sending A&M into the top of the fifth, 1-1.
Harrison reached for his second walk of the game, and a single to center field from Sorrell put two Aggies on base with two outs. Hacopian didn’t let that opportunity go to waste, as he singled to center field to bring in Harrison once again and put Sorrell in scoring position. And senior designated hitter Jake Duer didn’t either, as he delivered a single up the middle to add two to the scoreboard, 4-1. A ground out to second base stopped the bleeding for LSU, sending the Tigers into the bottom of the fifth in hopes of closing the gap.
That hope was looking up for the Tigers when singles from sophomore CF Daniel Curiel and junior right fielder Jake Brown put the tying run up to the plate with two outs and forced head coach Michael Earley to look to the bullpen. With sophomore right-handed pitcher Gavin Lyons on the mound, sophomore DH Cade Arrambide fulfilled that hope, singling to right field to bring in Curiel. But a strikeout of Milam kept the Tigers at a deficit heading into the sixth frame, down 4-2.
A leadoff single from sophomore left fielder Terrence Kiel II put one on base before freshman RF Jorian Wilson sent a homer past the left-center field wall to add two to the scoreboard with no outs, forcing LSU to look to its bullpen and bring in fifth-year senior RHP Grant Fontenot. Back-to-back strikeouts looked to be the beginning of the end of the top of the sixth, but before LSU sent A&M back to the dugout, junior first baseman Gavin Grahovac sent one past the wall, extending the Maroon and White’s lead to 7-4.
After a quiet bottom of the sixth and top of the seventh, Lyons delivered a quick three up, three down inning to lead into the bottom of the eighth. The third LSU pitching change of the game came in the form of senior RHP Connor Benge, who looked to be what LSU needed, as he struck out the first two batters he faced. However, with two outs on the board, Grahovac did what he does best and got himself on base, forcing LSU’s fourth pitching change of the night.
That change didn’t prove to be beneficial, though, as sophomore left-handed pitcher Ethan Plog issued a walk to Sorrell to put A&M within scoring position — and sent yet another pitcher to the mound for LSU. The change, yet again, proved to be detrimental, as a hit-by-pitch sent a hurt Hacopian back to the dugout and brought graduate student 2B Travis Chestnut to first to load the bases with two outs, which netted a run on a wild pitch on the following play.
And the bleeding didn’t stop, as a walk issued to Duer loaded the bases for the Aggies. However, a ground out from freshman 3B Nico Partida ended LSU’s nightmare inning with a lot of work to do, down 8-2.
The Tigers came out hot in order to cut the deficit with a single and double to start the bottom of the eighth. A throwing error brought Serna home with two Tigers still on base, meaning it was time for A&M to make a pitching change, which came in the form of senior LHP Ethan Darden. A sac fly to center field put another Tiger run on the board, cutting the Aggies’ lead, but that’s all LSU mustered, heading into the final frame down 8-4.
A double from Kiel kicked off the top of the ninth, before Wilson went yard for his second of the night to extend the lead — and in came LSU’s seventh pitcher of the night — who capped the Aggies score at 10.
But that’s the last runner that crossed home plate, as the Aggies made quick work of the Tigers in the ninth, extending their conference record to 10-5.
A&M will take the field again in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on Saturday, April 18, for Game 2 against LSU with first pitch set for 7 p.m.
