Baseball is a game that can change as each day passes, and good teams can lose on any given day due to varying circumstances. After taking the first two games and the series against Fordham, the winningest program in NCAA history, Texas A&M didn’t change much in the series finale on Sunday, Feb. 20.
Jim Schlossnagle earned his first series sweep as head coach with an exciting 5-4 win over the Rams thanks to a walk-off home run off the bat of sophomore center fielder Logan Britt. It was the first sweep for the maroon and white since March of the 2021 season against Samford, and A&M is now a perfect 7-0 overall versus Fordham.
Schlossnagle said it was definitely more enjoyable to be a part of the magic instead of against it, and that Fordham’s pitching gave the Aggies a challenge.
“It certainly feels a lot better on this side of the field,” Schlossnagle said. “Our at-bats weren’t very good early in the game; some of that’s baseball, and obviously give credit to Fordham. Thankfully it was a south wind today and not a north wind.”
Britt said he was ready for his opportunity and was anticipating the one missed pitch he needed to allow him to take the ball for a ride.
“I knew [graduate righty Joseph Quintal] could not make that pitch consistently, and that he was going to make a mistake eventually,” Britt said. “I had to be on time and hammer it.”
Freshman southpaw Ryan Prager made his first collegiate start, worked a 1-2-3 first inning and, with the help of a few standout defensive plays, proceeded to go 4.1 innings on 74 pitches. He allowed only two hits, struck out three and was responsible for one earned run.
Prager said it was a special first outing, and experiencing the home A&M crowd was unlike anything else.
“[My] first time out here at Olsen in a live game setting was awesome,” Prager said. “It was an awesome chance to feel the 12th Man behind you and really experience what it is all about. It was unbelievable.”
Fordham managed to get its first scoring threat in the top of the fifth after Prager hit the leadoff man, which led to a successful sacrifice bunt. After walking the subsequent batter to put men on first and second with one out, Schlossnagle went to his bullpen and brought in graduate lefty Jacob Palisch, who also made his A&M debut after transferring from Stanford.
He proceeded to allow a run-scoring single to the first batter he faced, which broke the scoreless tie but induced an inning-ending double play to keep the score 1-0, advantage Fordham. Palisch had a much cleaner second inning of work with a pair of punchouts and a lineout.
Then in the bottom of the sixth, junior outfielder Brett Minnich drove a 1-0 pitch out of the park 407 feet to straightaway center field that tied things back up at one run apiece. It was the second home run of the season for the Aggies and the third of Minnich’s A&M career.
The Rams threatened again in the top of the seventh by loading the bases with two outs, which brought in sophomore righty Walker Zander. He was the third Aggie pitcher to make his maroon and white debut, and Fordham capitalized with a three-run pinch-hit double to take a 4-1 lead.
But A&M returned fire with back-to-back run-scoring at-bats from graduate second baseman Kole Kaler and junior left fielder Austin Bost that brought the Aggies back within one run going into the eighth inning.
The pinch-hitting graduate outfielder Dylan Rock singled to leadoff the bottom of the ninth, representing the tying run.
Then, the fabled Olsen magic made a return in a big way, sending Blue Bell Park into a frenzy of emotions and bubbles.
Sophomore center fielder Logan Britt battled off several pitches until finding the perfect one to lift 411 feet to left center field and walk it off with a final score of 5-4.
“It was electric, Olsen Magic,” Britt said. “It was the first taste for the new guys, and I’m glad they got to experience that.”
A&M will return to action on Tuesday, Feb. 22 against Lamar at Blue Bell Park. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. and the game can be watched on SEC Network+. The Aggies are 8-0 against the Cardinals dating back to 2001.