No. 19 Texas A&M conjures Olsen Magic in 8-7 walk-off win over No. 1 Vanderbilt
Game #21: No. 19 Texas A&M 8, No. 1 Vanderbilt 7
Records: Vanderbilt (15-4, 1-1), Texas A&M (16-5, 1-1)
WP: Kasey Kalich (1-0)
LP: Zach King (0-2)
Box Score
Jonathan Ducoff hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth to complete a six-run comeback and lift the No. 19 Aggies over No. 1 Vanderbilt, 8-7 on Saturday afternoon.
Ducoff pinch-hit for Zach DeLoach in the bottom of the eighth and singled to left field with the bases loaded, plating Hunter and Ty Coleman. The fifth-year senior then hit a scorching ground ball in the ninth down the left field line that drove in Ty Condel from second to win the game.
“I was just trying to do something to help the team out — we were really resilient today,” Ducoff said. “Vanderbilt came out and punched us in the mouth, and coming back from 7-2 against a really good ball club meant a lot.”
Blue Bell Park hosted an electric atmosphere with 7,014 fans in attendance — the eighth most since the stadium was renovated in 2012. Ducoff said that the energy of the fans helped stimulate the infamous ‘Olsen Magic.’
“When I was out in right field in the top of the ninth inning in the big situation — we could feel the whole crowd coming in before Kasey struck out the last guy,” Ducoff said. “I would say it’s the best atmosphere I have played in.”
The Aggies’ offensive explosion with runners in scoring position was a stark contrast to the preceding innings, as the home team had trouble plating runs. The maroon and white were 0-8 with runners in scoring position through seven innings but finished the game 3-14 (.214).
“We’ve gotten to the door a lot late in some games, we just haven’t kicked it in,” A&M head coach Rob Childress said. “It was nice to see us get some hits in the eighth and ninth, and once you do it, it’s a good feeling. We’ll be able to draw from that for a while.”
Sophomore reliever Kasey Kalich notched a win in his first decision at A&M. The Blinn transfer found himself in a jam in the ninth inning with runners on second and third with one out. He then fanned the next two batters he saw to get out of the top of the ninth unscathed.
“That was a huge spot. He got a big strike out there in the top of the ninth with one out and then another one to get us off the field,” Childress said. “He kept the game tied and gave us a chance in the bottom of the ninth.”
Asa Lacy started the game on the bump for the Aggies and was dominant with his fastball reaching 97 mph on the Olsen Field radar gun. The strike-pumper retired the first 10 batters he saw before walking a Commodore with one out in the fourth.
The southpaw found himself in some trouble in the fifth after two batters quickly reached base and Vanderbilt shortstop Ethan Paul launched a three-run shot to right field. Childress pulled Lacy in the sixth ending his day with six strikeouts, five earned runs and six hits in 5.0 innings pitched.
A&M RHP Christian Roa will get the nod on Sunday afternoon as the Aggies attempt to notch their first SEC series win of the season. The game will be televised on SEC Network+ with first pitch slated for 1:02 p.m.