Ford's No. 5 Ags bring 'relentless' approach into Texas A&M Invitational

After a 5-0 weekend at the JoAnne Graf Classic, Trisha Ford and the No. 5 Aggies return to Davis Diamond to host the Texas A&M Invitational. The head coach joined TexAgs Live to detail A&M's 15-1 start and preview the Maroon & White's upcoming six games in four days.

Key notes from Trisha Ford interview

• It's been good. We had a great weekend. I feel like we are finding ways to win. We obviously didn't execute everything, but we found a way to get wins.
   
• I think Koko Wooley was available if we needed her, but I'm not risking it. It's a lower leg issue. She should be good to go this weekend. I could see myself being cautious, but she might hurt me at this time if I let her sit anymore. KK Dement has been steady and not acting like a freshman. I think what helps is Wooley is Dement’s No. 1 supporter.
   
• This is why I came to A&M because I felt like we could win at a high level. At the end of the day, it is going to be May and June that matter. We are still trying to figure it out. We have always been the hunter, so we have to find out how to be the hunted and how to play with that. Really, you just find ways to be the hunter. You can kind of figure out nuggets to get you in the right mindset. We have a lot to prove still. We have a tough weekend ahead of us before we start conference play.
   
• Mya Perez had great at-bats. She took her walks. When you know that kids are doing well, they have middle-to-opposite-field power, and they take their walks when they need to. She has been doing a great job of taking advantage of pitches that she can do damage with and not being too anxious. She was doing it on all sides. I know this is what she is capable of doing. This is why we brought her to Aggieland. Happy for her that things are falling into place.
   
• Sydney Lessentine is doing a heck of a job. We still have things to tidy up. For a freshman, she's lighting it up.
   
• We talked about two-out hitting at practice. From a pitching standpoint, when you get to two outs, you are like, “Alright, the inning is almost over. Let's go.” When you are scoring and making it tough, those are really stressful, high-leverage pitches that you are making and forcing that pitcher to make. We are just doing a really good job of being relentless. Gritty. Being a pain in the butt. And that's why you are seeing us score runs at the end of the game because of that process at the beginning.
   
• What I'm most proud of about the pitching staff is Emiley Kennedy and Grace Sparks. If you watched that game against Florida State, I think the highest velocity they hit was 53 mph to 55 mph, but right in spots where we were not. We had talked prior to that game that Kennedy was going to start, that we were probably going to put somebody in the middle and then she was going to be ready to close. She closed the second game, but she did a great job of keeping her composure. A younger Kennedy would've gotten mad and just let things spiral out of control.
   
• Sparks did a tremendous job. She came in and shut them down. Florida State is one of the most high-powered offenses in our game. She kept those bats at bay. She came out and executed her pitches. Obviously, in game two, Sidne Peters finally worked in the correct zone. Kennedy came in and shut it down, so it was a good game.
   
• We talked about how confident they are. Playing the opponents we have is why they are so confident. They feel as the game goes on that they are figuring things out. We are in year three, so I think there are some pieces to that, but sometimes I don't know that my heart loves all of that. It's getting us ready for the conference. We are about ready to enter into the every single weekend grind, and I think we are going to be very prepared for that.
   
• I think you can know pieces of a team's identity. I think we are still going to hit some bumps. It's going to showcase how we respond to it. I will say we bounced back really well. I still talk about that Oklahoma State-to-Virginia bounce back. Virginia, if you watch, at the end of the year, they are going to make some noise. That Southeastern Louisiana game, you talk about a track meet. You play Florida State at their home in a doubleheader. That was a nightmare. Then you come back and play Southeastern Louisiana. You went extra innings against Florida State.
   
• Texas State is a rivalry game. They are always a thorn in our side. They are coming off a good weekend. All of our team and theirs have played each other growing up, so there is familiarity.
   
• We have the million-dollar arm coming into town with Texas Tech’s NiJaree Canady. You are going to see high velo. She works high in the zone and has lots of strikeouts. We are going to have to be really disciplined in order for us to break through this weekend. Idaho State is having a good season so far, and Princeton normally wins the Ivy League.
   
• We are excited to be in front of the 12th Man. I hope we make it a very hostile environment and get after it.