Britt's walk-off blast completes Texas A&M's sweep of Fordham, 5-4

Game #3: Texas A&M 5, Fordham 4
Records: Texas A&M (3-0, 0-0), Fordham (0-3, 0-0)
WP: Chris Cortez (1-0)
LP: Joseph Quintal (0-1)
Box Score

A magical finish to the first weekend of a new era.

Down a run in the bottom of the ninth, Logan Britt launched a two-run home run to left field as Texas A&M completed the sweep of Fordham, 5-4. The walk-off win gave Jim Schlossnagle his first taste of Olsen Magic as the Aggies’ head coach.

“It certainly feels a lot better on this side of the field,” Schlossnagle said. “Thankful it was a south wind today, not a north wind.”

Following a Dylan Rock pinch-hit single to open the ninth, Britt — the nine-hole hitter — stepped in for a lengthy battle with Joseph Quintal. After fouling off three 3-2 pitches, Britt crushed the ninth pitch of the at-bat off the scoreboard as the bubbles rained down.

“Finally, he made a mistake, and I connected,” Britt said. “It was a crazy feeling.”

Britt had previously doubled off of Quintal in the seventh.

“Super proud of Logan,” Schlossnagle said. “The first two games, he was pressing a little bit. We had a good, long conversation in the cage today, and I’m just glad to see him happy.”

The rally was required after pinch-hitter Sebastian Mexico hit a bases-clearing double off reliever Walker Zander in the seventh, staking the Rams to a 4-1 led.

“That’s the inexperience of our bullpen,” Schlossnagle said. “How do you get experience? You pitch them. A month from now, we’ll know who can come in in those roles.”

Still, the Aggies responded immediately with an RBI groundout by Kole Kaler, followed by an Austin Bost run-scoring single.

“That really was the hit that got us feeling better,” Schlossnagle said. “I know that hurt (Fordham) a little bit.”

Utilizing his 97 mph fastball, Chris Cortez worked a 1-2-3 eighth and a scoreless top of the ninth to keep the Aggies within striking distance. The freshman from Las Vegas earned his first victory in the process.

“I’m really fired up about Chris Cortez coming in and throwing strikes,” Schlossnagle said. “Had I known that, he would have come in with the bases loaded [in the seventh].”

In the bottom of the eighth, Trevor Werner led off with a double but was called out after a long video review for removing his right hand from the bag. It appeared that Werner was pushed by second baseman Jack Harnisch.

Jamie Maury, TexAgs

Britt’s two-run home run marked the end of a nine-pitch battle, completed the Aggie comeback and sealed the series sweep.

“Even the corner umpires talked about that he was forced off the base, and that’s why it took so long,” Schlossnagle explained. “In the crew chief’s judgment, he didn’t feel that he was pushed off the base.”

Britt’s blast not only negated the controversy but made up for A&M’s early offensive struggles as the Aggies failed to solve Jack Popolizio for five innings. Only Jack Moss registered hits off the Fordham starter with a pair of singles.

“It’s good — especially with a mixture of new guys and younger guys — to have that adversity as a team early,” Britt said. “It helps you build a stronger bond with each other.”

Ryan Prager kept it scoreless in his first collegiate start before exiting with the bases loaded with one out in the fifth. Reliever Jacob Palisch limited the damage to a single run.

Despite providing Prager with no run support, A&M’s bats awoke just in time to break out the brooms.

“It’s electric, Olsen Magic,” Britt said. “It was the first taste for some of the new guys, and I’m glad they got to experience that.”

The Aggies return to Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park on Tuesday to host the Lamar Cardinals at 6:32 p.m. CT.