In the second game of their three-game series with Holy Cross, the Aggies took care of business, defeating the Crusaders 16-9.
The Aggies were led by J.B. Moss who went 3-for-5 and had five RBIs.
It was a back-and-forth game with five lead changes, but the Aggies had a will to win, even when falling behind.
“We stayed within ourselves,” said A&M shortstop Blake Allemand. “We got a lot of big hits. We were real tough at the plate. We were resilient. We came back with runs when we needed to and that’s how we won this game today.”
The scoring got started with a two-run single by G.R. Hinsley, which gave the Aggies a 2-0 lead in the second. A sacrifice fly and an RBI single by Mitchell Nau made it a 4-0 lead for A&M at the end of the second inning.
Holy Cross came back with its own attack.
In the top of the third, the Crusaders loaded the bases three times. They capitalized on the runners in scoring position and brought in four runs to tie the game at 4-4.
The lead continued to bounce between teams. In the bottom of the sixth, A&M scored on a wild pitch to tie the game. Ronnie Gideon got caught in a rundown between first and second base, which allowed Nick Banks to score to give the Aggies a 9-8 lead.
Then, the Aggie bats caught fire late.
A sacrifice fly and RBI from Mitchell Nau, Logan Nottebrok, JB Moss and Blake Allemand made it a 16-8 A&M lead after seven innings.
Once the Aggies regained the lead, they held control for the rest of the ball game. Head coach Rob Childress said his lineup is one of the best in the conference.
“We had, I think, seven two-out runs. That is just a relentless lineup,” Childress said. “You have to find ways to win. Winning is tough. Losing is easy. But we found a way to win and found a way to outscore them today.”
In the last half of the game, the defense stepped up. Blake Allemand had a huge diving stop to throw out a Holy Cross base runner. It was a play that shut down a possible comeback attempt. From there, the Aggies held on.
Allemand had a solid game offensively, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs in the game.
“We have a really deep lineup,” Allemand said. “It is a lot of fun to be a part of. Good at-bats are contagious.”
The final game of the three game series will be played Sunday afternoon. First pitch is set for 12:05 p.m.