Two Aggies' strong showings will carry over to regionals

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Positives in the Kansas loss take the form of Juengel & Stripling

Despite the 5-3 setback, Matt Juengel and Ross Stripling each put on a strong showing, making it clear that they're ready for the second season that starts next week with the regional round of the NCAA tournament.

Juengel continued to hit the ball hard and, unlike most of his at-bats on Thursday, the ball fell for the senior third baseman. The 2-for-4, one RBI performance continues a run of offense that saw him named Big 12 player of the Week after the three game sweep of Oklahoma State and he has hit safely in his last six games.

It seems to have become simple for Juengel at the plate — see it, and hit it. He only saw six pitches against the Missouri Tigers on Thursday and barreled up each at bat. Against Kansas he was more selective but still laced the ball up the middle for his two hits, the first one driving home the third Aggie run of the game.

“Juengel is hitting the ball about as well as anyone that we have,” Justin Seely said after the game. “We hit the ball about as hard as we can but it didn’t go our way tonight.”

His offense might overshadow his play at third base, but with illness to Blake Allemand following the tender arm that kept Mikey Reynolds on the bench, Juengel has done a great job at third and as his confidence defensively has improved. If he can stay at the hot corner, he might just give the coaches the offensive flexibility back at designated hitter that they wanted at the start of the season.

It was certainly frustrating for the Aggie fans to see the opportunity for him to come to the plate in the ninth inning evaporate when a blistering shot off the bat of Tyler Naquin turned into a 4-6-3 double play. With both Naquin and Juengel hitting the ball as well as they have the past two weeks, the Aggie offense knows the middle of the lineup is ready to produce in the NCAA tournament. Juengel has driven in twelve runs in the past nine games and, like the past two seasons, he's primed for a great run at the end of the season.

Ross Stripling’s performance was nearly identical to Michael Wacha's a day prior — both pitchers had command and control but were nicked just enough to pick up back-to-back losses in their starts for the first and only time since Baylor’s sweep in April.  

Dakota Smith’s two run shot to left wouldn’t have left the ballpark without help from the strong south breeze and it might not even be a home run at Olsen Field ... but it was deep enough to land in the Kansas bullpen tonight and jumpstart the Jayhawks' confidence in tying the game at two.
 
“You have to credit their guy,” Seely said after the game about Smith two run shot. “He got a fastball with two strikes and he crushed it. It got them right back in the game and when you are playing a team that is playing for (their playoff) lives, when they feel that breath of life, it put a ton of energy in their dugout. They took it and rode with it.”

Jordan Dreiling, who scored on the homerun, tripled home two in the fourth and both times he swung at the first pitch to reach. It was one of several big hits that the left handed hitters took to left field with a good approach against Stripling.

“I felt really sharp, I kinda struggled with my curveball at first then I found it. It was maybe the best it has been all year. There are a couple pitches, two-out pitches, I would like to have back," Stripling noted. "The home run there and the second and a couple pitches in the fourth and the fifth. It was just one of those days where you grind it out. They got a some big hits when I didn’t make the pitches I wanted to make, and they capitalized on it and were able to score five. After that, you try to keep your team in it and see what happens.”

He did just that, and with the help of a lineout double play to Juengel in the seventh he was able to complete the game.