(#11) Texas A&M 11, UT Arlington 8

Tuesday, March 24

College Station

6:35 PM

Texas A&M

15-9

UT Arlington

12-11

UT Arlington

Texas A&M

Mar 24, 2009 | Baseball

Box Score

By: Texas A&M Athletics

March 24, 2009

Post Game Audio [mp3]:
Head Coach Childress
2B Shofner

Final Stats

COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Caleb Shofner went 3-for-4 and drove in a career-high four runs, including the eventual game-winner in the eighth inning, to lead No. 11 Texas A&M to an 11-8 win over UT Arlington Tuesday night before 2,686 fans at Olsen Field.

Shofner's base hit in the eighth broke an 8-8 tie in a back-and-forth affair, and the Aggies (15-9) would add runs on a wild pitch and a Kevin Gonzalez single in the frame to pick up their second straight win. The Mavericks saw a six-game win streak come to an end as they fell to 12-11.

Trailing 5-2 entering the bottom of the fifth, A&M batters would record three hits, two walks and be hit twice in the frame to tie the game at five. Gonzalez was hit by a two-out pitch with the bases loaded to cut the lead to one and, after a pitching change, freshman Luke Anders with the game's tying run. Anders had driven in the inning's first run four batters earlier.

Two more would come home for the Aggies in the sixth, as Shofner followed a Colligan walk and Brooks Raley double with a triple off the top of the wall in right field that extended the lead to 7-5.

After A&M added a run in the seventh, UTA would send nine men to the plate in the eighth and tie the game at eight. Back-to-back singles to begin the frame set the Mavericks up for a big inning, but Kyle Thebeau was able to strike out the next two batters. After a high chopper behind the mound loaded the bases, Tim Steggall poked a base hit through the right side to score two and move the tying run to third.

Following a pitching change, a full-count walk to Michael Choice loaded the bases, and another infield chopper behind the mound--this one off the bat of Matt Otteman--would tie the game as it moved to the last of the eighth.

Staked to an 11-8 lead after the Aggies' three-run rally, Nick Fleece (2-0) slammed the door on the Mavericks in the ninth, retiring the side in order to pick up his second win of the year.

Gonzalez and Colligan each went 2-for-4 to lead a 12-hit attack for the Aggies. Raley matched a season high with three runs scored on the night, as the top four in the A&M lineup combined to score nine of the 11 runs on the night.

For UTA, Otteman extended his hit streak to 23 games with a 3-for-5, three-RBI effort, while Evan Raley went 3-for-5 with a pair of RBIs. The Mavericks scored seven of their eight runs on the evening with two outs.

Aggie starter Chad Sherman lasted four innings, giving up four hits, three runs and one walk. He did not strike out a batter.

UTA closer Adam Boydston (0-1) was tagged with the loss, allowing four runs (three earned) and four hits over two innings of relief. He walked two and did not strike out a batter.

A&M returns to action Wednesday at 6:35 p.m. when the Aggies host Northwestern State (10-10) at Olsen Field. Junior Clayton Ehlert (1-0, 6.11 ERA) will take the mound against Demon freshman D.D. Lott (0-1, 6.75). The game will air locally on WTAW-AM 1620 and worldwide on radioaggieland.com, while free live video will be available on aggieathletics.com.

POSTGAME QUOTES

HEAD COACH Rob Childress: "Offensively, I thought our approach tonight was the best it's been in a long time. We only struck out three times tonight, and 10 or 11 times we had positive at-bats with two strikes. I liked what I saw tonight. We gave up the lead a couple of times tonight, found ourselves down, and we answered back every time. I thought we were totally committed to making sure we put the ball in play and make them make mistakes. And a lot of those turned into hits. It was a good night. I was really proud of us."

(on the pitching staff) "I didn't think Chad Sherman was very sharp, he gutted through four innings for us, but our bullpen gave us a really good hold. Hank Robertson and Shane Minks were about as good as they've been all year long, and Nick Fleece did what he did. I'd say right now he's our go-to guy out of the pen."

(on Kyle Colligan's evening) "He really did (have a good night). It's not so much the swings, it's the way he takes pitches. You can tell he's seeing the ball and seeing it with confidence, and he's not up there feeling for things. I think that translates into confident swings."

(on Caleb Shofner) "He had a great night tonight and played great defense for us at second base. He's just a baseball player."

2B Caleb Shofner: "It was a good night, I was seeing the ball well. They left some pitches up in the zone, and I was able to put a good swing on them and put the ball in play."

(on the clutch hitting tonight) "We have left a lot of runners in scoring position. It was big tonight to have guys step up and get big hits in those situations."