Good baseball teams know how to play well in their home ballpark.
Great baseball teams know how to carry that success on the road.
No. 3 Texas A&M put itself in the latter category with a 9-2 win over No. 22 South Carolina on Friday, April 5 in Columbia, South Carolina. The Aggies banged out 13 hits for seven early runs as the team picked up its seventh consecutive win and fifth in SEC play.
The Maroon and White have proved their bats aren’t limited to Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park this season, with nine runs or more in four of their six away matchups. That offensive success has translated to a 4-2 record in true road games, with each victory seeing A&M put up nine runs or more while scoring in the first inning.
Furthermore, in four road games, the Aggies’ pitching staff has limited opponents to four runs or less. In its latest contest, the team got the best of both worlds at the plate and on the mound.
Redshirt sophomore LHP Ryan Prager bounced back from a 4.1-inning showing against Auburn last week, adding 6.1 frames with two runs allowed as he improved to 6-0. The Dallas product held the Gamecocks to just four hits while striking out 12 with no base on balls to the nation’s most-walked team at 7.55 per game.
A&M’s bullpen preserved Prager’s quality start with 2.2 scoreless frames and five punchouts to raise the team’s total to 17. Coach Jim Schlossnagle turned to a trio of the Aggies’ most-used relievers, between junior RHP Brad Rudis, senior LHP Evan Aschenbeck and senior RHP Brock Peery.
The Aggies wasted little time setting the tone of the game with a four-run first that saw the lineup bat around. Sophomore CF Jace LaViolette’s walk kickstarted a run of seven players reaching base safely, including five hits. Senior C Jackson Appel’s RBI single put A&M on the board first before a two-run double off the bat of graduate DH Hayden Schott and junior SS Ali Camarillo’s RBI single.
The Gamecocks chipped into the Aggies’ lead with a solo shot by junior 3B Talmadge LeCroy in the second, but the visitors responded with a three-spot in the third. Senior 2B Ryan Targac extended his hit streak to four games with an RBI single before freshman 3B Gavin Grahovac’s 10th home run of the season, a two-run blast to left field.
Schott struck again in the sixth, adding insurance to A&M’s lead with an RBI single that marked his 11th hit over his last six games. Senior 1B Ted Burton’s RBI fielder’s choice put a cap on the scoring with a lead firmly in hand.
The series between A&M and South Carolina continues at Founders Park on Saturday, April 6 at 3 p.m. Junior RHP Tanner Jones will toe the rubber for the Aggies bearing a 2-1 record and a 4.87 ERA, while the Gamecocks will trot out freshman RHP Tyler Pitzer at 4-0 and a 1.99 clip.
