College Roundup: Texas A&M Stuns LSU
.@mr_mitches closed the door on the Aggie Win & got some help from @NickChoruby with this play for the final out of the game. #12thMan pic.twitter.com/D7lJuGesrD
— Texas A&M Baseball (@AggieBaseball) April 1, 2017
Strike One: Texas A&M Stuns LSU
Going into the ninth inning at Louisiana State’s Alex Box Stadium, No. 9 LSU held a three-run lead against Texas A&M. The Tigers were three outs away from closing out a series win against their Southeastern Conference West Division rivals.
| How the Top 25 Fared |
| (1) Oregon State: won, 15-7, at (15) Stanford |
| (2) Louisville: lost, 11-2, at (19) Virginia |
| (3) Texas Christian: won, 1-0, at Kansas State in 10 innings |
| (4) Texas Tech: won, 9-4, at (17) Oklahoma |
| (5) Clemson: lost, 5-1, at Georgia Tech |
| (6) South Carolina: won, 7-0, at (18) Auburn |
| (7) North Carolina: won, 5-2, at (12) Florida State in 11 innings |
| (8) Florida: won, 2-1, at Missouri |
| (9) Louisiana State: lost, 4-3, vs. Texas A&M |
| (10) Cal State Fullerton: won, 6-1, at UC Riverside |
| (11) Florida Gulf Coast: lost, 10-5, vs. Jacksonville |
| (12) Florida State: lost, 5-2, vs. (7) North Carolina in 11 innings |
| (13) Arizona: won, 5-1, vs. Southern California |
| (14) St. John’s: won, 4-1, at Hofstra |
| (15) Stanford: lost, 15-7, vs. (1) Oregon State |
| (16) Kentucky: won, 7-4, vs. Vanderbilt |
| (17) Oklahoma: lost, 9-4, vs. (4) Texas Tech |
| (18) Auburn: lost, 7-0, vs. (6) South Carolina |
| (19) Virginia: won, 11-2, vs. (2) Louisville |
| (20) Mississippi: lost, 2-1, vs. Mississippi State |
| (21) Arkansas: lost, 7-1, at Alabama |
| (22) Baylor: lost, 6-0, at Washington |
| (23) Houston: won, 3-1, at Central Florida |
| (24) Wake Forest: lost, 5-1, at Miami |
| (25) East Carolina: lost, 3-2, vs. Connecticut in 10 innings |
The Aggies, however, did not go quietly. They scored four runs off sophomore righthander Caleb Gilbert to come back for a 4-3, series-clinching victory. It was Texas A&M’s first SEC series win after getting swept at home by Kentucky and losing two of three games at Vanderbilt.
All four of the Aggies’ runs came with two outs in the ninth. Hunter Coleman opened the scoring for Texas A&M with an RBI single, and Walker Pennington followed with a three-run home run that proved to be the game-winner.
“I’m very proud of our guys,” coach Rob Childress said. “We lost a tough one (Friday). Corbin (Martin) came out and had a great performance. He kept it close and gave us a chance there at the end. You know it’s never over until that get that last out. And our guys believed that today.”
Texas A&M (19-10, 3-6 in SEC) got a strong start from Martin (3-2, 3.90), who moved from the bullpen to the rotation last week. The junior righthander pitched a career-high eight innings, struck out five and held the Tigers to three runs on four hits and two walks. He threw just 99 pitches.
The loss is the fifth in the last seven games for LSU (19-10, 5-4), which will need to get back on track quickly. The Tigers are now in the middle of a tightly packed SEC West, with first and seventh place separated by just four games.
“We have no choice but to pick ourselves up by the bootstraps and get ready for the second half of the season,” coach Paul Mainieri said. “The calendar turned to April today, and that’s usually when we play our best baseball. This is a tough one, but we’ve got to digest it and get rid of it.”
Strike Two: North Carolina Rallies Late
For eight innings Saturday, No. 7 North Carolina was stymied at No. 12 Florida State. The Seminoles held a two-run lead going into the ninth inning, and lefthander Tyler Holton and righthander Drew Carlton had held the Tar Heels hitless.
But UNC rallied in the ninth, opening the inning with a walk, an error and a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to one run. Carlton got the next batter, but freshman Michael Busch delivered a pinch-hit, RBI single to tie the game. The Tar Heels went on to score three runs in the 11th inning to defeat the Seminoles, 5-2, and clinch a key Atlantic Coast Conference series.
UNC (21-6, 8-3 in ACC) has won 13 of its past 16 games and its first four ACC series. The Tar Heels have grabbed a three-game lead in the Coastal Division and climbed to No. 3 in the the RPI, according to WarrenNolan.com.
Holton (4-0, 2.31) threw seven sparkling innings, striking out eight and walking one batter. He threw 109 pitches, however, and the Seminoles turned to Carlton, their closer, for the final two innings. He nearly finished the combined no-hitter, but instead was saddled with the loss.
Beyond the mound, Florida State was disjointed Saturday. Preseason All-American shortstop Taylor Walls was removed from the game after the first inning and, after the game, coach Mike Martin told reporters in Tallahassee that the junior was suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules. The Seminoles also made six errors in the game, leading all five of the Tar Heels’ runs to be unearned. They also collected just five hits, none coming after UNC righthander Luca Dalatri was relieved in the seventh inning.
Florida State needs to find a way to break out of its funk quickly. The Seminoles (18-10, 6-5) are 7-8 overall since ACC play started and still have series against No. 2 Louisville, No. 5 Clemson, No. 19 Virginia and No. 24 Wake Forest in the season’s second half.
Strike Three: Minnesota Rolling In Big Ten
Minnesota won last year’s Big Ten Conference regular season championship and has picked up this season right where it left off. The Golden Gophers swept a doubleheader Saturday at Michigan State to improve to 5-0 in Big Ten play this season.
Minnesota (17-8) extended its winning streak to eight games, all of which have been on the road. The streak dates back to March 17 and includes victories against Sacramento State, Ohio State, Kansas and Michigan State.
The Golden Gophers defeated the Spartans (15-8, 3-2 in Big Ten) in the first game of the day, 3-2, and won the nightcap, 4-3. Righthander Brian Glowicki closed both games to earn his 10th and 11th saves of the season. Second baseman Luke Pettersen led the Gophers’ offense with three hits and an RBI in the two games.
Minnesota is one of two undefeated teams in the Big Ten. Nebraska started conference play this weekend at Indiana and won the first two games of the series. The Cornhuskers defeated the Hoosiers, 3-1, Saturday to clinch the series.
The Lineup
Nine newsmakers from Saturday’s action
Pavin Smith, 1b, Virginia: Smith, a lefthanded hitter, hit a grand slam against lefthander Rabon Martin to help spark No. 19 Virginia in an 11-2 victory against No. 2 Louisville. The junior went 2-for-3 with a double, two walks and five RBIs.
K.J. Harrison, dh, Oregon State: Harrison (4-for-5, 4 RBIs) led No. 1 Oregon State’s offense in a 15-7 victory at No. 15 Stanford. The Beavers’ winning streak reached 18 games, matching the longest in program history.
Keaton Kringlen, of, Brigham Young: Kringlen (4-for-5, 3 R, 7 RBIs) hit three home runs to lead BYU to a 14-5 victory against St. Mary’s to complete a sweep. The sophomore is hitting .356/.405/.584 with five home runs this season.
Drew Lugbauer, 3b, Michigan: Lugbauer (3-for-4, 4 R, 4 RBIs) homered twice to help Michigan to a 15-2 victory against Penn State. The junior is hitting .288/.387/.577 with a team-high eight home runs and 32 RBIs this season.
David Banuelos, c, Long Beach State: Banuelos (4-for-5, 2 R, RBI) led Beach’s offense as it defeated UC Santa Barbara, 9-3, to even the series. The junior is hitting .329/.392/.576 with a team-high 18 RBIs this season.
Anthony Herrera, rhp/ss, Louisiana-Monroe: Herrera (2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K) moved from shortstop to the mound to finish ULM’s 5-4 victory at Georgia Southern. The senior recorded his third save of the season and the 20th of his career, tying the program record.
Chase Chambers, 1b, Tennessee Tech: In an 11-4 victory against Eastern Illinois, Chambers (3-for-4, 3 R) hit two home runs and drove in five runs. Chambers (.304/.410/.625, 9 HR) helped the Golden Eagles (22-7) improve to 11-0 in Ohio Valley Conference action.
Carlos Cortes, dh, South Carolina: Cortes, a freshman, hit his first career home run and drove in five runs to help No. 6 South Carolina defeat No. 18 Auburn, 7-0, to even the series. Cortes (2-for-3, 2 R, 3B) is hitting .282/.326/.436 this season.
Nate Harris, rhp, Louisiana Tech: Making his first career start in the second game of a doubleheader, Harris threw a four-hit shutout in a 6-0 victory against Texas-San Antonio. The senior, a San Antonio native, struck out eight batters and walked none to salvage a win in the series.
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