Saturday, May 27
Hoover, Ala.
12:00 PM
Texas A&M
36-24
5
vs
4
Arkansas
41-16
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Arkansas
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
3
4
10
0
Texas A&M
0
0
1
0
0
3
0
1
X
5
10
1
Photo by: Rachel Mahan/Texas A&M Athletics
Aggies Headed to SEC Tournament Championship Game
May 27, 2023 | Baseball
HOOVER, Ala. – For the second straight day, the Texas A&M baseball team fought off a late rally to earn a win over a national top-five team as the Aggies topped the No. 4 Arkansas Razorbacks to advance to the SEC Tournament championship game.
With Saturday's win at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, the Aggies became the first team seeded higher than No. 8 to advance to the SEC Tournament championship game.
With Saturday's win, the Maroon & White advance to the SEC Tournament championship game for the second time in school annals. The Aggies won the 2016 SEC Tournament championship game against Florida, 12-5.
Texas A&M led 5-1 with the SEC regular-season champion Razorbacks coming to bat in the top of the ninth. The frame started with Caleb Cali threading a single through the left side of the infield and Peyton Holt getting hit by a pitch. Brandyn Garcia whiffed Hudson Polk for the first out of the inning, before John Bolton scored two runs with a double down the rightfield line.
Troy Wansing, who picked up his first career save, spelled Garcia on the mound. He surrendered a single to Tavian Josenberger to put runners on the corners and Arkansas trimmed the lead to 5-4 as Kendall Diggs reached when first baseman Jack Moss muffed Trevor Werner's throw across the infield.
With the go-ahead run on first base Wansing regrouped and fanned Jace Bohrofen and Luke Wegner, who hit a walk-off home run against the Aggies on Wednesday, to end the game.
Matt Dillard was stellar in his starting stint. He weaved 4.0 scoreless innings, scattering two hits and one walk while striking out six of the 14 batters he faced. Shane Sdao (3-1) earned the win out of the bullpen, yielding one run on five hits while striking out four over 2.2 innings.
The Aggies drew first blood in the third inning with a two-out rally. Hunter Haas singled to leftfield, Moss walked and Werner drove a double to the wall in right-center to break the ice.
Arkansas (41-16) scratched back for a run in the seventh inning, but Brandyn Garcia came up big out of the Aggie bullpen to squash the uprising. With the Razorbacks' leading RBI man Kendall Diggs at the plate and two runners on, Garcia entered the game and induced an inning-ending groundout.
Texas A&M (36-24) got two in scoring position with one out in the home half of the seventh but were unable to pad the lead. Jordan Thompson singled to rightfield and Stanley Tucker doubled down the leftfield, but Arkansas reliever Christian Foutch got out of the frame with a hard groundout on a drawn-in infield and a strikeout.
The Aggies tacked on a fortuitous insurance run in the home half of the eighth. Moss doubled to the wall in right-center with one out. Jace LaViolette pushed him across with two outs, punching a single to rightfield.
TOP AGGIE PERFORMERS
Matt Dillard – 4.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K
Shane Sdao – 2.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Jordan Thompson – 3-for-4, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 HBP
Jack Moss – 2-for-3, 2 BB, 1 R, 1 RBI
UP NEXT
The Aggies play for the SEC Tournament title Sunday when they face the winner of Saturday's semifinal game between Florida and Vanderbilt. Sunday's championship game is slated for 2 p.m. at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium and airs on ESPN2.
GAME SUMMARY
B3 | ARK 0, A&M 1
Hunter Haas lofted a single over a jumping Arkansas shortstop for a single to start a two-out rally. Jack Moss worked a five pitch walk and Trevor Werner drove in Haas with a double to deep right-center.
B6 | ARK 0, A&M 4
Jordan Thompson legged out a one-out single to third base and scored with two outs when Austin Bost rattled a double into the corner down the leftfield line. Brett Minnich and Max Kaufer were issued bases on balls to fill the bags with Ags. Haas and Moss each pushed runs across with walks of their own.
T7 | ARK 1, A&M 4
Caleb Cali tight-roped a leadoff double down the leftfield and scored on a one-out single to left-center by Ben McLaughlin.
B8 | ARK 1, A&M 5
With one out, Moss doubled to the wall in right-center. Jace LaViolette punched a two-out single to right field, scoring Moss.
T9 | ARK 4, A&M 5
Cali threaded a single through the left side and Peyton Holt was hit by pitch to start the inning. With one out, John Bolton plated both runners with a double down the rightfield line. Aggie reliever Troy Wansing relieved Brandyn Garcia on the mound and was greeted by a Tavian Josenberger single through the left side to put runners on the corners. The Razorbacks trimmed the lead to one run with Bolton scoring on a Kendall Diggs grounder to third base. Moss muffed the throw at base, so there was still just one out on the board and the go-ahead runner on first. Wansing regrouped and retired Bohrofen and Wegner swinging to nail down the save.
POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE
With Saturday's win at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, the Aggies became the first team seeded higher than No. 8 to advance to the SEC Tournament championship game.
With Saturday's win, the Maroon & White advance to the SEC Tournament championship game for the second time in school annals. The Aggies won the 2016 SEC Tournament championship game against Florida, 12-5.
Texas A&M led 5-1 with the SEC regular-season champion Razorbacks coming to bat in the top of the ninth. The frame started with Caleb Cali threading a single through the left side of the infield and Peyton Holt getting hit by a pitch. Brandyn Garcia whiffed Hudson Polk for the first out of the inning, before John Bolton scored two runs with a double down the rightfield line.
Troy Wansing, who picked up his first career save, spelled Garcia on the mound. He surrendered a single to Tavian Josenberger to put runners on the corners and Arkansas trimmed the lead to 5-4 as Kendall Diggs reached when first baseman Jack Moss muffed Trevor Werner's throw across the infield.
With the go-ahead run on first base Wansing regrouped and fanned Jace Bohrofen and Luke Wegner, who hit a walk-off home run against the Aggies on Wednesday, to end the game.
Matt Dillard was stellar in his starting stint. He weaved 4.0 scoreless innings, scattering two hits and one walk while striking out six of the 14 batters he faced. Shane Sdao (3-1) earned the win out of the bullpen, yielding one run on five hits while striking out four over 2.2 innings.
The Aggies drew first blood in the third inning with a two-out rally. Hunter Haas singled to leftfield, Moss walked and Werner drove a double to the wall in right-center to break the ice.
Arkansas (41-16) scratched back for a run in the seventh inning, but Brandyn Garcia came up big out of the Aggie bullpen to squash the uprising. With the Razorbacks' leading RBI man Kendall Diggs at the plate and two runners on, Garcia entered the game and induced an inning-ending groundout.
Texas A&M (36-24) got two in scoring position with one out in the home half of the seventh but were unable to pad the lead. Jordan Thompson singled to rightfield and Stanley Tucker doubled down the leftfield, but Arkansas reliever Christian Foutch got out of the frame with a hard groundout on a drawn-in infield and a strikeout.
The Aggies tacked on a fortuitous insurance run in the home half of the eighth. Moss doubled to the wall in right-center with one out. Jace LaViolette pushed him across with two outs, punching a single to rightfield.
Tomorrow. ESPN2. 2 p.m.
— Texas A&M Baseball (@AggieBaseball) May 27, 2023
?? https://t.co/gGq5JunJra#SECTourney x #GigEm pic.twitter.com/c8JQ3GQytm
TOP AGGIE PERFORMERS
Matt Dillard – 4.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K
Shane Sdao – 2.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Jordan Thompson – 3-for-4, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 HBP
Jack Moss – 2-for-3, 2 BB, 1 R, 1 RBI
UP NEXT
The Aggies play for the SEC Tournament title Sunday when they face the winner of Saturday's semifinal game between Florida and Vanderbilt. Sunday's championship game is slated for 2 p.m. at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium and airs on ESPN2.
GAME SUMMARY
B3 | ARK 0, A&M 1
Hunter Haas lofted a single over a jumping Arkansas shortstop for a single to start a two-out rally. Jack Moss worked a five pitch walk and Trevor Werner drove in Haas with a double to deep right-center.
B6 | ARK 0, A&M 4
Jordan Thompson legged out a one-out single to third base and scored with two outs when Austin Bost rattled a double into the corner down the leftfield line. Brett Minnich and Max Kaufer were issued bases on balls to fill the bags with Ags. Haas and Moss each pushed runs across with walks of their own.
T7 | ARK 1, A&M 4
Caleb Cali tight-roped a leadoff double down the leftfield and scored on a one-out single to left-center by Ben McLaughlin.
B8 | ARK 1, A&M 5
With one out, Moss doubled to the wall in right-center. Jace LaViolette punched a two-out single to right field, scoring Moss.
T9 | ARK 4, A&M 5
Cali threaded a single through the left side and Peyton Holt was hit by pitch to start the inning. With one out, John Bolton plated both runners with a double down the rightfield line. Aggie reliever Troy Wansing relieved Brandyn Garcia on the mound and was greeted by a Tavian Josenberger single through the left side to put runners on the corners. The Razorbacks trimmed the lead to one run with Bolton scoring on a Kendall Diggs grounder to third base. Moss muffed the throw at base, so there was still just one out on the board and the go-ahead runner on first. Wansing regrouped and retired Bohrofen and Wegner swinging to nail down the save.
POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Sdao, Shane (3-1)
L: Brady Tygart (2-1)
S: Wansing, Troy (1)
Batting:
2B: Caleb Cali 1 ; John Bolton 1
RBI: Kendall Diggs 1 ; Ben McLaughlin 1 ; John Bolton 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Caleb Cali 2 ; Peyton Holt 1 ; John Bolton 1
HBP: Peyton Holt 1 ; John Bolton 1
Batting:
2B: Moss, Jack 1 ; Werner, Trevor 1 ; Thompson, Jordan 1 ; Tucker, Stanley 1 ; Bost, Austin 1
RBI: Haas, Hunter 1 ; Moss, Jack 1 ; Werner, Trevor 1 ; LaViolette, Jace 1 ; Bost, Austin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Haas, Hunter 1 ; Moss, Jack 1 ; Thompson, Jordan 1 ; Bost, Austin 1 ; Minnich, Brett 1
HBP: Thompson, Jordan 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
cf/rf
AB
4
R
1
H
3
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
AB
5
R
0
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
INF
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LHP
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LHP
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OF
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OF
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LHP
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UTL
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LHP
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