Fresh off winning the series against then-No. 1 Tennessee, Texas A&M baseball took on a different shade of orange for its midweek matchup. The Aggies traveled to Huntsville to face the Sam Houston Bearkats at Don Sanders Stadium, on Tuesday, April 8, emerging with a 14-1 victory.
“It’s obviously great to beat teams like Tennessee,” sophomore designated hitter Caden Sorell said. “It’s great to do that, and it definitely gives us a lot of momentum, but it’s an expectation.”
Starting on the mound for the Maroon and White was freshman right-handed pitcher Gavin Lyons. The former No. 1 player in Connecticut made just his second start and fourth appearance as an Aggie.
Despite sending back the first two batters, things completely changed when three-hole hitter, senior right fielder Brady Christensen, stepped into the batters box. The Bearkats’ best hitter smacked the ball 375 feet over the right field wall, with an exit velocity of 101 mph.
It was an up-and-down outing for the first year orthodox arm. Lyons lasted 2 ⅔ innings and recorded two strikeouts, albeit while also allowing three hits and giving up an early run.
“The Tennessee series is over,” coach Michael Earley said. “No one cares. The most important thing is, what we’re doing the next day, whether it be practice or the game … started off a little slow in the first two innings, but never stopped, never wavered.”
Despite still trailing after two innings, after getting back to the top of its lineup A&M’s bats finally started heating up as senior third baseman Wyatt Henseler and sophomore catcher Bear Harrison each recorded RBI singles, giving the away team its first lead of the day, 2-1.
Diaz was pulled off the mound after surrendering the lead, but his replacement, junior RHP Garrett Baumann, just made things even worse for the Bearkats. The Aggies loaded the bases early in the top of the fourth and proceeded to churn the Sam Houston defense like butter.
Two straight RBI singles, followed by a junior shortstop Kaeden Kent sac fly to center field, added three more runs to the scoreboard for A&M. The Fightin’ Farmers weren’t done stacking it on, as sophomore first baseman Blake Binderup smashed the ball into the gap in left-center field for a two-run double. The Aggies went through their entire lineup in the inning and led 7-1.
Stepping in for Lyons on the mound for A&M, freshman LHP Caden McCoy held his own until the bottom of the fourth. With two outs and two men on, McCoy committed a crucial error that loaded the bases and forced Earley to end his day after only one inning pitched.
Sophomore RHP Clayton Freshcorn made a brief appearance and turned the Bearkats into decorative rugs from the mound, striking out three of the four batters he faced.
“He’s had a little bit of struggles, but coming in with the bases loaded and and, you know, the game was still in reach at that point, and he came in and got the job done,” Earley said.
A&M increased its lead even more in the top of the fifth, when freshman RF Terrence Kiel II hit a single to right-center field. However, a pair of errors by freshman center fielder Parker Blackman allowed the Atlanta native to run his way around the bases, and tack on another run for the Aggies.
Adding another run for the Aggies was Sorell who beamed an RBI double down the right field line that snuck right past the first baseman. The Maroon and White failed to secure the run-rule victory in the fifth, and inched even closer in the top of the sixth after a wild pitch allowed Kent to reach home from third base, 10-1.
Much to the joy of the Aggies who made the trip to Don Sanders Stadium, A&M earned a run-rule victory in the top of the seventh. The deciding run was brought home after a walk with the bases loaded, 11-1.
The Aggies added on three more for insurance — unlike dire wolves, the Bearkats remained extinct, suffering their fourth 1-2-3 inning of the occasion. The final score was 14-1 as after dropping some midweek games earlier in the campaign, A&M seems to be picking up the pieces of what’s left of the 2025 season.
“It’s not a relaxed feeling, but it’s just a sense of like, let’s go play baseball,” Earley said. “Let’s just play our game. … you don’t play the scoreboard. You play pitch to pitch, at bat to at bat, and then you look up at the end of the day, if you play clean baseball, you’ll do well.”
The Aggies head back home for a Southeastern Conference matchup against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Olsen Field with Game One set for Thursday, April 10.
