On a night where heavy gusts of wind were throwing players off, junior catcher Troy Stein noticed a unique aspect of opposing pitches that could work the unkind weather conditions in his favor. Combined with a shallow outfield due to the wind, Stein was able to kick off the Aggies offense with a triple.
We did a great job all night of fighting off tough pitches and hitting them when we got good ones to hit, but with the wind blowing in, the flat ball pays off, Stein said.
A&M was able to seal the series sweep over Northwestern State with a 2-1 victory over the Demons on Wednesday night at Olsen Field.
Working off Steins leadoff triple, sophomore third baseman Blake Allemand singled to the shortstop, pushing his catcher across the plate to garner A&M a 1-0 lead. Despite Allemand reaching first on a wild throw and advancing to third off a steal and a sacrifice fly, the Aggies were unable to bring him home.
For A&M head coach Rob Childress, Steins hit and follow-up score made the difference for the offense.
It got us going, Childress said. Allemand put the ball in play and we were able to get that first run across the board.
After the Demons knotted the score at 1-1 in the fifth, the Aggies responded with the game winning run off sophomore designated hitter Daniel Mengden, scoring senior shortstop Mikey Reynolds to gain a 2-1 lead.
Northwestern State never responded, failing to match the intensity of A&Ms deep bullpen. The Aggies would use seven pitchers during the matchup with sophomore Jason Freeman (1-0) earning the win.
The bottom line is results, and we found a way to win and play our best, Childress said. We got the win and we made a lot of intelligent baseball plays.