Aggies bounce back, take series from LSU in rubber match, 3-1

GAME #24: Texas A&M 3, LSU 1
RECORDS: Texas A&M 21-3 (4-2 SEC); LSU 16-7 (2-4)
WP: Kyle Simonds (5-0)
LP: John Valek III (4-1)
S: Ryan Hendrix (5)
BOX SCORE

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On Friday night against LSU, the Aggies played poorly in two of the three phases of the game. While the pitching performance was good enough to take home a win, Texas A&M struggled defensively and at the plate.

Saturday was by no means a perfect outing for Texas A&M either, but the Maroon and White saw another good outing from the pitching staff and improved just enough on the dirt to take the rubber match from the Tigers, 3-1.

The beginning of Saturday's contest looked like more of the same from the Aggies. Freshman shortstop George Janca led off the game with an error, throwing wide of first baseman Hunter Melton on a routine ground ball.

Two batters later, the Tigers had runners on the corners with one out, the looming unearned run at third base reminding Aggie fans of Friday night — but it wasn't Friday night.

Aggie starter Kyle Simonds coaxed an infield pop-up out of the next batter then teamed up with catcher Michael Barash to catch the Tigers in a pickle one batter later to get out of the jam. That's how the whole game seemed to go for the Aggies.

In the third, Boomer White made the same uncharacteristic throwing error, pulling Melton off the bag to give LSU another free baserunner. A couple of pitches later, Barash gunned down the runner as he attempted to steal second.

"We made a lot of plays to get off the field (today) and get the lead-off batter off the bases," Barash said. "When we do that, we're going to be really successful on the mound."

The Aggies were just that as Simonds was settled in nicely. Before being relieved in the sixth, the senior threw 6.2 innings, scattering eight hits without walking a man and allowing only one run, a solo homer in the fifth inning that tied the game.

Texas A&M only needed a little bit of offense to take the lead. After scoring a lone run in the fourth by piecing together a couple of singles and a walk, the Aggies took a different tack in the fifth. At least, Nick Banks did.

Having struggled all weekend, Banks dropped to the 7-spot in the line-up on Saturday and responded in a big way, laying into the first pitch he saw in the fifth and blasting it over the wall in right field.

The solo shot gave the Aggies all they needed, though they tacked on an insurance run in the eighth. Brigham Hill and Ryan Hendrix took them mound after Simonds and kept the Tigers in check for the remainder of the game on the way to a series-clinching, 3-1 victory.

All told the A&M pitching staff gave up 9 hits and just two walks over the course of the game, while the Ags did just enough on the dirt and with the bats to get past the Tigers. Head coach Rob Childress shoots for a well-rounded team every year, and feels he has one this time.

"We feel like we can beat you a lot of different ways," he said. "We can beat you with our defense. We can beat you on the mound if we have to, and if we get into a slug-fest, we can out-hit you. That's the mark of a really good club."

The Aggies will need to continue that multifaceted approach as they hit the road for the next week, heading to Houston for a mid-week bout and then to Florida to take on the No. 1 Gators in a three-game series.