Texas A&M
22-0
Prairie View A&M
7-12
Aggies Beat Prairie View 11-2, Win Streak Hits 22
Mar 17, 2015 | Baseball
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M Aggies jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning and coasted to an 11-2 victory Tuesday evening against the Prairie View Panthers on Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.
The victory improved A&M's record to 22-0 on the season, the second-longest win streak to start a campaign in school history. The foundation trails only the 26-0 start in 1989 when the Aggies went on to finish 58-7.
The Maroon and White took advantage of 10 hits, eight walks and five errors to post double digits in the runs column for the sixth time on the year.
Ronnie Gideon and JB Moss each logged two hits. Ryne Birk scored three runs and Mitchell Nau led the squad with two RBI.
The A&M bullpen used six pitchers to work their way through 4.2 scoreless frames, scattering two hits and three walks while striking out six. Ty Schlottmann (2-0) earned the win with 1.2 innings of relief, allowing one hit while striking out one. Jason Freeman (0.2 IP), Blake Kopetsky (0.1), Cason Sherrod (0.2), Andrew Vinson (0.1) and Corbin Martin (1.0) each saw action in relief. Schlottmann and Vinson both entered in bases loaded situations and got out of jams unscathed.
Brigham Hill started for Texas A&M, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out six over 4.1 innings.
The Aggies pounced on the Panthers for five runs in the home half of the first inning, sending all nine batters to the plate. Blake Allemand drew a five-pitch walk to start the frame and came around to score when Birk hit a wall-banger to the right-center game for a double. Nau bounced a single up the middle to plate Birk for the 2-0 lead. Nick Banks outran Panthers' starting pitcher Edward Robledo to first base for an infield single and Logan Taylor hit a fielder's choice grounder to third base, retiring Banks at second and putting runners on the corners. Gideon threaded a double down the rightfield line to push Nau across. Kopetsky drove in a Taylor with a grounder to shortstop and Hunter Melton completed the cavalcade of first-inning runs, with a single to centerfield, staking A&M to a 5-0 edge.
The Aggies took advantage of a Panthers' error in the second to take a 6-0 lead. Allemand started frame with a double down the rightfield line and Birk followed with a seven-pitch walk. Allemand was retired at third when Nau grounded into a 5-3 double play. An error by the Panthers' first baseman on a grounder by Banks allowed Birk to score for the six-run lead.
Prairie View A&M shaved a run off the lead in the top of the third. With one out, Cody Den Beste tripled when the ball popped out of the glove of Aggie centerfielder JB Moss on a diving catch attempt. Walter Wells knocked in Den Beste with a groundout to second base.
The Panthers cut the lead to 6-2 in the fifth. With one out, Kevin Lahaie reached on a single to third base and Josh Jefferson followed with a single to second. After Den Beste was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Hill uncorked a wild pitch to allow Lahaie to score. Hill issued a walk to Wells, reloading the bases and causing Aggie head coach to summon Schlottmann from the bullpen. The A&M left-hander fell behind 3-1 in the count on Anthony Fernandez, but ran a fastball on the hands of the designated hitter and got him to bounce into an inning-ending double play.
An RBI single by Moss and sacrifice fly by Allemand gave the Aggies two runs in the sixth, for the 8-2 lead.
Prairie View A&M loaded the bases with two outs in the eighth, but Vinson got a fly out to leftfield by Jefferson to get out of the inning.
The Aggies added three more in the eighth with bases-loaded walks by Nau and Jonathan Moroney and an error by the Panthers' catcher on a routine throw to the pitcher allowed another run to score.
Robledo (0-2) was saddled with the loss for Prairie View A&M, allowing eight runs, five earned, on eight hits and three walks while striking out two over 6.0 innings.
Den Beste paced the Panthers at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one triple and one run.
The Aggies head on the road for a three-game series starting Friday. The Maroon and White travel to Hoover, Alabama to play the Alabama Crimson Tide. The series was moved to Hoover Metropolitan Stadium as Alabama's home field, Sewell-Thomas Stadium, is currently undergoing renovation.
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head coach Rob Childress
On the first inning…
“It was important to get off to a fast start. We don't want to have any letdowns in midweek games and it's important to keep the momentum from the weekend sweep. We had a good approach at the plate and got some nice hits.”
On the bullpen…
“They've been doing it all year. Ty (Schlottmann) and Vinnie (Andrew Vinson) came in with bases loaded and got us out of jams. The veterans did a great job and we were able to get Blake (Kopetsky) some work. If he pitched like he did today, he can give us another left-hander in the bullpen, which we could use."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Schlottmann, Ty (2-0)
L: Robledo, Edward (0-2)
Batting:
3B: Beste, Cody Den 1
RBI: Wells, Walter 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Beste, Cody Den 1 ; Lahaie, Kevin 1
SB: Wells, Walter 1 ; Dougherty, Grant 1
CS: Dougherty, Grant 1
HBP: Beste, Cody Den 1 ; Wrye, Connor 1 ; Lahaie, Kevin 1
Batting:
2B: Allemand, Blake 1 ; Birk, Ryne 1 ; Gideon, Ronnie 1
RBI: Allemand, Blake 1 ; Birk, Ryne 1 ; Nau, Mitchell 2 ; Moroney, Jonathan 1 ; Gideon, Ronnie 1 ; Kopetsky, Blake 1 ; Melton, Hunter 1 ; Moss, J.B. 1
SF: Allemand, Blake 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Allemand, Blake 1 ; McLendon, Patrick 1 ; Birk, Ryne 3 ; Nau, Mitchell 1 ; Taylor, Logan 1 ; Gideon, Ronnie 1 ; Kopetsky, Blake 1 ; Melton, Hunter 1 ; Moss, J.B. 1
SB: Kopetsky, Blake 1
