March 22, 2010
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The 21st-ranked Texas A&M baseball team returns to the diamond on Tuesday when the Aggies play host to a hot Northwestern State team at Olsen Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.
A&M (15-4), winners of 12 of its last 14 games, enters the week off a series victory over Texas Tech to open Big 12 play this past weekend in College Station. The Aggies feature the league's third-best offensive attack, hitting .333 on the year with 14 home runs, 36 stolen bases and an average of 6.8 runs per game. The pitching staff is No. 2 in the Big 12 with a 2.86 ERA and features a league-best .219 opponent average. A&M pitchers are averaging 10.3 strikeouts per game and are on pace to shatter the school record in punchouts, set last season.
The Demons (14-4), meanwhile, have won 14 of their last 16 after dropping the first two games of the season at Southern Miss. NSU is hitting .312 as a team entering Tuesday's contest, averaging 8.8 runs per game, and has hit 14 home runs and stolen 37 bases. The Demon pitching staff features a 4.14 ERA and a .268 opponent average, and has picked up six saves on the year. Northwestern State is coming off a Southland Conference split this weekend in a rain-shortened, two-game series at Stephen F. Austin.
Texas A&M leads the all-time series with Northwestern State, 4-0. The last meeting between the schools came in 2006, as the Aggies swept the Demons in coach Rob Childress' first games at the helm of the A&M baseball program. Last season's game with NSU was washed out twice by weather.
Aggie freshman Michael Wacha (3-0, 0.35) will get the start and will face Northwestern State senior Ryan Zimmerman (1-1, 6.05).
Tickets are available at the Athletic Ticket Office, the Olsen Field ticket office on game day or online at tickets.12thmanfoundation.com. Discounted $4 tickets can be purchased through the Old Army Spirit Company both online and in-store on Harvey Road. For more info visit www.oldarmyspirit.com.
Fans can tune in to the game locally on WTAW-AM 1620. Free live video will be available on aggieathletics.com and free live audio can be heard worldwide on both a computer and mobile devices through radioaggieland.com.
Following Tuesday's game, Texas A&M will return to Big 12 play when the Aggies host Missouri for a three-game set beginning Friday night at 6:35 p.m.