One pitch made the difference in the Aggies’ pitching duel against Georgia in round two of the SEC Tournament.
Chris Weber started the game on the mound, and it was clear out of the gates that the 6’4 lefty was on another level. Georgia threatened for the first and only time against the freshman in the third, after a hit by pitch and error from first baseman Will Frizzell set up runners on first and second with only one. The calm and collected Weber worked consecutive routine putouts to end the inning.
The Aggies were able to get intermittent baserunners throughout the contest and got their first opportunity for a big inning in the sixth. Back to back walks to open the inning set up runners on second and third for Cam Blake, who moved both runners up 90 feet with a sacrifice bunt.
Georgia starter Tim Elliott then hit Mikey Hoehner with a 91 MPH fastball on the first pitch of the at-bat, forcing head coach Scott Stricklin to make the move to his bullpen. Bulldog reliever Justin Glover was called upon to face a bases-loaded situation with only one out. Glover did his job and forced a ground ball to the Bulldog first baseman, who successfully turned a 3-2-3 double play to end the inning.
“The sixth inning was huge, especially the way Chris [Weber] was piching,” A&M head coach Rob Childress said of that moment. “For us [being unable] to break the game open...it probably was the difference in the game.”
Holding on to a no-hit bid through seven innings, Weber finally gave up a single with one out in the eighth to end his day on the mound at 106 pitches. The freshman left to a standing ovation from the crowd with 7.1 innings pitched, four strikeouts and two walks. Joseph Menefee was called on out of the pen and sat the next two Bulldog hitters down to end the eighth with the score still knotted up at 0-0.
“It’s something you notice,” Weber said reagarding his no-hit bid. “It’s just like any other game. Your goal is to go out there and keep runs from crossing the plate to give your team a chance.” His 7.1 innings were the longest any pitcher has taken a no-hit bid in the SEC Tournament.
The Aggies went quietly in the ninth, setting up Georgia with a chance to end the game off of Menefee. After a single snuck through the infield due to a shift, Cam Shepherd hit a home run off that went right over the fully outstretched glove of Cam Blake to end the game.
The Aggies went 0-7 with runners in scoring position and mustered just two hits on the day, a double in the first inning from Braden Shewmake and a single from Will Frizzell.
“We had a lot of opportunities to score,” Rob Childress said. “We [couldn’t] cash in... We just didn’t get a big hit.”
Texas A&M will be back on the field tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. They’ll play the loser of the Arkansas and Ole Miss game.
