Late-game rally not enough for Aggies to overcome Duke, 8-5
A&M’s offense has finally come to life!
Unfortunately, the usually-reliable Aggie pitching staff couldn’t hold up their end of the stick.
In the Morgantown Regional opener on Friday afternoon, Texas A&M fell victim to Duke by a score of 8-5. A pair of big innings for the Blue Devils was enough to survive a ninth inning rally from A&M. The Aggies now have their backs up against the wall in the tournament’s double-elimination format.
Texas A&M’s John Doxakis and the Blue Devil’s Ben Gross duked it out on the mound over the first three innings of play. However, the Blue Devils would finally break through in the top of the 4th inning.
Back-to-back one-out singles from Michael Rothenberg and Kyle Gallagher set the table for Erikson Nichols’ big blow – a three-run homer off Doxakis to put Duke up 3-0. Chris Crabtree then followed up with a double. After a wild pitch advanced Crabtree to third, Duke added another on an ill-advised fielder’s choice by A&M’s second baseman, Bryce Blaum.
“[Doxakis] made mistakes and Duke’s hitters didn’t miss it there in the 4th,” Texas A&M head coach Rob Childress said during an in-game interview on ESPN2.
After the rough patch in the 4th, Doxakis would not allow another run. He would depart following the conclusion of the 7th having allowed six hits while striking out nine.
Duke’s offense would turn the ballgame into a rout later on. The Blue Devils would again put up a four-spot, this time in the 8th inning, which would again be highlighted by a three-run bomb with the pinch-hitter Rudy Maxwell playing the responsible party. Eight runs in the ballgame would be enough to down the Aggies.
The Aggie bats were kept quiet for most of the contest. Ben Gross turned in an outstanding performance on the hill for the Blue Devils, lasting seven complete innings and only allowing one run on four hits while striking out five Aggies.
Texas A&M’s offense was held off the board until the 5th. It was then that a Braden Shewmake sacrifice fly would finally snap A&M’s 22 inning stretch of scoreless ball. At the time, A&M trailed 4-1.
In the bottom of the ninth, A&M would attempt to pull off a miracle. They would cut the Duke lead from 8-1 down to 8-5. The Ags would eventually get the tying-run to the plate with two outs. Ultimately, A&M could not complete the comeback.
Texas A&M falls into the loser’s bracket of the Morgantown Regional. The Aggies will face either West Virginia or Fordham on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is slated for 1:00 p.m., and Asa Lacy is expected to get the start for the Aggies.