Justin Lamkin's 15-strikeout masterpiece evens series in Athens, 6-0

Game #52: Texas A&M 6, No. 10 Georgia 0
Records: Texas A&M (28-24, 11-18), Georgia (41-14, 17-12)
WP: Justin Lamkin (4-7)
LP: Brian Curley (4-3)
Box Score

Masterpiece.

Behind a complete game shutout from Justin Lamkin, Texas A&M snapped its four-game losing streak and evened the series with No. 10 Georgia with a 6-0 victory in Athens on Friday night.

Lamkin is draft-eligible this July. With a single-elimination SEC Tournament and an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament still doubtful, the Calallen native may have pitched his last game in the Maroon & White.

If so, what a way to go out.

Callie Garner, TexAgs

Justin Lamkin did not face a single three-ball count as he needed 120 pitches to blank the vaunted Georgia offense on Friday night at Foley Field.

The left-hander struck out a career-high 15 batters, issued no free passes and gave up just three hits while earning his fourth win of the season. Of the three hits, just one went for extra bases — Nolan McCarthy’s two-out double in the fourth.

McCarthy advanced to third on a passed ball in the next at-bat but was stranded as the only Bulldog to reach scoring position.

Further, McCarthy’s two-bagger was the last hit Lamkin allowed as he retired the next 16 hitters in order.

His performance will be hard to top for the SEC Pitcher of the Week award given out on Monday.

Following Friday’s triumph, Lamkin improved his team-leading season ERA to 3.16 and finished the regular season with a team-high 93 punchouts in 79.2 innings of work.

Despite an underwhelming year for the Ags, Lamkin will go down as a major positive when 2025 is all said and done.

Offensively, the Aggies got the job done.

Gavin Kash opened the scoring with a three-run blast in the fourth following a Jace LaViolette walk and a Wyatt Henseler base hit. Bear Harrison made it 4-0 with a solo shot in the eighth that just got over the right field wall.

Though not needing the insurance, the Ags provided Lamkin with extra cushion in the ninth as Kash closed his night with a two-out, two-run single.

Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK

Gavin Kash’s third-inning home run was just his third round-tripper as an Aggie.

Kash finished 3-for-4 and drove in five of the Aggies’ six runs.

The circumstances of the game made Lamkin’s start more critical. Before tonight, A&M was coming off being swept by cellar-dwelling Missouri and a 10-6 defeat in Thursday’s series opener.

While a small possibility, a path to the NCAA Tournament is still possible for A&M, even without an SEC championship in Hoover next week.

It will require the Aggies winning the series on Saturday in Athens to go along with a win or two in next week’s conference tournament.

The uphill climb had to start on Friday, and Lamkin gave the Maroon & White a needed boost and momentum they desperately needed.

If somehow the Ags are still playing in two weeks, you can look back at the junior’s outing as a crucial performance in getting A&M into a regional.

The rubber match (and regular-season finale) between the Aggies and Bulldogs is set for 11 a.m. CT on Saturday.