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Dominant 25th-ranked Aggies run-rule Houston in six frames, 9-1
No. 25 Texas A&M returned to Davis Diamond on Wednesday for the first time in nearly three weeks and secured a 9-1 run-rule victory over Houston in six innings.
“We’ve been on the road the last two weekends, coast to coast,” A&M head coach Trisha Ford said, “We harped hard on our ability to stay focused and to come out here and take care of business.”
Take care of business they did.
The Aggies started hot in the first inning with Koko Wooley, Star Ferguson and Trinity Cannon combining for five stolen bases. After Riley Valentine earned a walk, Morgan Smith came up to the plate and smashed a three-run homer to left-center field to put the Aggies up, 4-0.
“We like to strike first, so seeing my teammates on base, I knew if I got a good pitch, I just wanted to drive it,” Smith said.
In the third inning, the Aggies restarted their order again after Smith walked and Amari Harper was hit by a pitch. Both soon reached home on Wooley’s triple to right-center, extending their lead to 7-0.
Standout pitcher Emiley Kennedy earned three strikeouts through five innings of work, only giving up one run in the top of the fifth inning. She also yielded just three hits, all of which came in the top of the fifth.
Madison Preston relieved Kennedy in the sixth but was pulled after four pitches. Emily Leavitt finished off the game for the Aggies.
“I was planning on bringing Leavitt in regardless, but I wanted Preston to get a lefty-on-lefty matchup,” Ford said. “Obviously it didn’t go like either of us had hoped.”
After Leavitt made quick work of the Cougars, the Aggies headed into the bottom of the frame looking to end the game in a big way.
Grace Uribe did just that.
Pinch hitting, she hammered her first hit of the year to left field to seal the walk-off win and send the Cougars packing.
“The next couple of days, we really are going to focus in on Baylor and Sam Houston and taking care of that business,” Ford said.
The Aggies will travel to Waco to battle No. 19 Baylor and Sam Houston in a pair of doubleheaders starting Saturday at 12 p.m. CT.