Game #50: No. 6 Texas A&M 10, Ole Miss 5
Facts: Texas A&M (34-16, 18-10), Ole Miss (31-20, 13-15)
WP: Joseph Menefee (5-2)
LP: Dylan DeLucia (5-1)
Save: Will Johnston (3)
box score
The shift and shots lifted number 6 Texas A&M to a controversial 10-5 Southeastern Conference baseball win over Ole Miss in Oxford on Thursday night.
Dylan Rock hit a couple of home runs, Jack Moss added a solo blast and Will Johnston provided some relief pitching to propel the Aggies (34-16, 18-10) to their seventh win in their last eight games.
“I’m really proud of the way the boys competed,” said Texas A&M head coach Jim Schlossnagle. “The two home runs too late, huge.”
The Aggies also tied for first place in the West Division race against Arkansas, which defeated Alabama 7-3.
“We were just competing there. We made good swings on balls, drove them, got guys across the plate. Easy.”
– A&M leftfielder Dylan Rock
“Keep playing baseball,” Schlossnagle said. “We still play for a lot, but you can’t think about external things. You just have to think about winning pitches and playing the game day by day.”
A&M’s victory did not come by accident. There was a lot more drama than the five-point margin would suggest.
The Aggies had a precarious 8-5 lead in the bottom of the eighth. Ole Miss (31-20, 13-15) had two on with two out.
“Even though we won the game, we didn’t feel like we were in control of the game because we didn’t get enough shots,” said Schlossangle. “We’ve run them eight or nine times, so we’ll have to get better.”
Schlossnagle called lefthander Johnston, the third pitcher of the inning for the Aggies, to face the lefthander who hit Jacob Gonzalez.
Gonzalez lined out right off second baseman Ryan Targac, who played the shift into shallow right field.
Moss and Rock then hit back-to-back homeruns in the top of the ninth off John Gaddis, the fourth of five Ole Miss pitchers to make up the final margin.
“We were just competing there,” Rock said. “We made good swings on balls, drove them and got guys across the plate. Easy.”
However, the blasts weren’t nearly as dramatic as Rock’s home run.
Ole Miss second baseman Peyton Chatagnier objected to something Rock did or said and attacked the A&M leftfielder as Rock rounded second base.
Jamie Maury, Tex Ags
A pitch behind Austin Bost in the ninth inning led to some drama when pitcher John Gaddis and head coach Mike Bianco were both ejected.
That situation was quickly defused. But Gaddis threw intentionally behind A&M’s Austin Bost on the next delivery. Gaddis was immediately ejected along with Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco.
Johnston gave up only one hit in the ninth to earn his third save.
Early on, the Aggies seemed headed for an easy win.
Rock hit a two-run homerun and Troy Claunch had an RBI single in a three-run first inning off of Ole Miss-starter Dylan DeLucia (5-1).
The Aggies parried four walks, two errors and a single to four runs in the second when they took a 7-0 lead.
“Obviously, it was great for us to get off to a great start in that first inning,” said Schlossnagle. “We needed it. We didn’t score there for a while.”
But the A&M bats were inactive for the next five innings and the pitching started to get difficult.
Ole Miss scored three runs in the second inning and added another in the fourth to chase A&M starter, Nathan Dettmer.
Joseph Menefee (5-2) knocked out Tim Elko to end the threat and ultimately take the win.
Ole Miss kept up the pressure and pulled within 7-5 in the sixth.
“(Mason) Nichols, the kid who came in there, did a great job for them,” said Schlossnagle. “Unfortunately, we gave up those three runs with two outs to keep them back in the game.”
“We still play for a lot, but you can’t think about external things. You just have to think about winning pitches and playing the game day by day.”
– A&M head coach Jim Schlossnagle
A&M eventually answered with a sacrifice fly by Jordan Thompson to place Bost in the top of the eighth.
But the Aggies couldn’t relax until Targac made his catch in the squad and Moss and Rock hit their shots in the ninth inning.
“We’re going after everyone we’re on the field with,” Moss said. “It doesn’t matter if we’re at home, on the road or wherever. It’s the same mentality every game. We treat every game the same and we will continue that in the future.”
A&M’s series with Ole Miss resumes Friday night at Swayze Field in Oxford. First pitch is set at 7pm
#Mayhem #Mississippi #Ags #wins #dramafilled #opener #Ole
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