Great team win!!!
Stephen Kolek
Braden Shewmake
Texas A&M Baseball
After back-to-back rough starts, Stephen Kolek got back on track in a big way Sunday, producing a gem on the mound and pitching Texas A&M to a 3-1 win over No. 11 Auburn in front of 5,549 fans at Olsen Field.
He attacked the strike zone from the onset, had all four of his pitches working and was very efficient throughout the game.
Stephen Kolek, timely hits lead Aggies to series win over Auburn, 3-1
Game #33: Texas A&M 3, Auburn 1
Records: Texas A&M 22-11 (5-7 SEC); Auburn 24-10 (8-4 SEC);
WP: Stephen Kolek (2-2)
WP: Stephen Kolek (2-2)
LP: Davis Daniel (2-2)
S: Mitchell Kilkenny (4)
S: Mitchell Kilkenny (4)
After back-to-back rough starts, Stephen Kolek got back on track in a big way Sunday, producing a gem on the mound and pitching Texas A&M to a 3-1 win over No. 11 Auburn in front of 5,549 fans at Olsen Field.
Kolek held the visiting Tigers to six base runners in eight stellar innings as the Aggies captured their first home SEC series of the season and their second-straight conference series.
"He was fabulous today, and I couldn't be more proud of him," A&M head coach Rob Childress said of Kolek. "For him to get us eight (innings) today was a pretty special performance. His stuff was outstanding, and he wasn't going to be denied."
Kolek needed only eight pitches to retire the side in order in the first inning, and that was a sign of things to come for the junior right-hander.
Kolek needed only eight pitches to retire the side in order in the first inning, and that was a sign of things to come for the sophomore right-hander.He attacked the strike zone from the onset, had all four of his pitches working and was very efficient throughout the game.
"I always love quick starts; that's what I'm shooting for every time," Kolek said. "Just trying to get quick innings, see how fast I can get off the field. To start off the game like that was nice."
Braden Shewmake got the Aggies on the board in the bottom of the first with a RBI-single up the middle, plating Nick Choruby, who had started the frame with a single. Shewmake delivered again for the Maroon and White in the fifth, driving a hanging curveball from Auburn starter Davis Daniel into right field to score Austin Homan.
Shewmake, who has had several of his hard-hit balls find opposing players' gloves in recent games, said he has not retreated into panic mode even as his batting average has fallen considerably.
"This game's a grind, (slumps) are going to happen," Shewmake said. "You've got to stick to what you've been doing the whole year, and things will work (themselves) out."
Walker Pennington registered a RBI-single of his own in the sixth, driving home Hunter Coleman from second after Coleman began the inning with a lead-off double.
Kolek, meanwhile, continued to flummox the Auburn hitters. He induced 6-4-3 double plays in the fifth and seventh innings, the last of which ended the inning. He returned to the mound in the eighth with his pitch count at the century mark and proceeded to yield his only blemish of the afternoon.
Tiger Conor Davis led off the eighth with a softly-hit double to right field, and Bowen McGuffin singled him home later in the inning. The run brought Childress out of the dugout for a mound visit, and the crowd gave Kolek a standing ovation like his day was done. But Childress elected to stick with the hot hand.
Kolek, who said he really wanted to stay in the game, promptly got Auburn lead-off hitter Luke Jarvis to ground out to shortstop to end the threat.
"His stuff was good, and it wasn't like they were barreling him up," Childress said of the decision. "I told him that was his last hitter, and he got us off the field."Kolek, who said he really wanted to stay in the game, promptly got Auburn lead-off hitter Luke Jarvis to ground out to shortstop to end the threat and put an exclamation point on his outstanding start.
Mitchell Kilkenny entered the game out of the bullpen in the ninth and threw a scoreless inning to lock down his fourth save of the season.
The Aggies have now defeated top-15 SEC foes in each of the past two weekends and have won seven of their last nine games. They will return to the diamond Tuesday against Abilene Christian as the Wildcats come to Olsen Field for a 6:30 start.
Never miss the latest news from TexAgs!
Join our free email list