With a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fifth, junior infielder Braden Shewmake stepped up to the plate with a runner on first and two outs. Shewmake then hit triple down the right-field line, scoring junior catcher Mikey Hoehner from first and breaking the scoreless tie.
The triple opened up the Aggie offense as A&M went on to win the game 4-0 over the Illinois-Chicago Flames on Saturday at Olsen Field.
“We did a great job as a team,” Shewmake said. “We started off a little slow and didn’t really stick to an approach very much, but as the game went on we got a little more aggressive and started to swing the bat like we know how.”
The win came in game two of the three-game weekend series after the Aggies took game one Friday night. Both teams loaded the bases in the first inning, but neither team could get a run in until Shewmake’s RBI triple in the fifth. The Aggies would score two in the sixth, and one in the seventh to put the Flames away.
A&M starting sophomore pitcher Asa Lacy started a bit rough, giving up a single and two walks in the first inning, but eventually settled in to throw six shutout innings, giving up just two hits and three walks, while striking out 10.
At the plate, the Aggies were led by Shewmake, senior first baseman and outfielder Jonathan Ducoff, and freshman outfielder Ty Condel. Shewmake went 2-for-3 with two triples and an RBI, while Ducoff went 1-for-3 with an RBI and Condel went 1-for-4 with an RBI.
“I would say I didn’t have my best stuff today,” Lacy said. “We played great defense and that kind of got me off the hook and we scored when we needed to today. I just had to continue to tell myself let’s not get down 2-0 here and just had to continue to attack.”
UIC’s starting pitcher Patrick Martin stifled the Aggie offense, throwing five innings, giving up just one earned run on three hits and struck out four. At the plate, the Flames were led by junior infielder Matt Bottcher and senior outfielder Dominic Smith. Bottcher went 2-for-4, while Smith went 1-for-4 with a double.
“It felt like we were more aggressive the second half of the game offensively,” A&M head coach Rob Childress said. “There were a lot of moments for us to crumble on the mound, but we didn’t. We made pitches when we had to and the bullpen was outstanding. When you can pitch and play defense, you have a chance every game.”
Game three of the series will be Sunday at Blue Bell Park. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.