In Texas A&M baseball’s longest game of the season, the Aggies battled for 13 hard innings before falling 12-6 to the LSU Tigers.
After winning Thursday’s weekend opener, the maroon and white set out to clutch the series, even taking the lead in the bottom of the first. Though multiple opportunities presented themselves to cement the victory, all came up short. The defensive standoff pushed every player to their limits, eventually coming down to a battle of pure grit.
The Tigers opened the scoring in the top of the first with a two-run home run by junior left fielder Gavin Dugas.
Not wanting to be left out of the action, the Aggies fired back just six batters later with a three-run homer from left fielder Austin Bost, driving in graduate Ray Alejo and senior Will Frizzell. In doing so, Bost notched his 10th hit out of the park this season.
The second inning was just as successful for the maroon and white offense. Seniors Bryce Blaum and Mikey Hoehner, along with Alejo, found their way back to home plate to put the Aggies up 6-2. Bost said he loves the adrenaline rush that comes with offensive surges like this.
“Hitting a three-run homerun and getting the momentum back is always exciting,” Bost said.
A four-run fifth inning for the Tigers knotted the scoreboard back at six.
The score remained tied for another eight innings until four deep drives into the outfield scored six runs for LSU. The Aggies failed to recover, finally falling in the 13th inning. While disappointed with the results, Bost said he was impressed with how the Tigers pitched through the entire game.
“They had some good arms,” Bost said. “It kept us off balance, but we still hit them good. It was just bad luck, honestly.”
Overall, the A&M pitching staff recorded 14 strikeouts between the four men who stepped onto the mound, ending with a final average ERA of 3.74. A&M coach Rob Childress said this was exactly the kind of prowess he expected from the pitching rotation.
“It was an absolutely heroic performance out of the bullpen,” Childress said.
With the series-evener in the history books, A&M falls to a 29-26 record and LSU climbs to 33-21 on the season. The Aggies still hold a 27-23-1 all-time edge over the Tigers.
A&M’s Friday loss knocked the team out of contention for the SEC Tournament next week. This means the Saturday rubber match will be the final time the Aggies take the field for the year. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.
Now that a tournament spot is no longer on the line, Bost said the team is ready to give everything they have to ensure A&M’s seniors “end the season with a bang” before moving on from the team.
“We’re just going to go out there and ball as hard as we can to try and get a win for them,” Bost said. “I’m just ready to go out there tomorrow — to watch the seniors do their thing and play for them. We’re going to have fun. We’re just going to go out there and let loose.”