Game #25: No. 25 Texas A&M 11, Missouri 9
Records: Texas A&M (20-5, 3-4), Missouri (17-10, 1-6)
WP: Juan Vargas (2-0)
LP: Josh McDevitt (3-2)
Save: Clayton Freshcorn (6)
Box Score
From comfortable to near inexplicable.
Despite at one time holding a 10-1 lead, No. 25 Texas A&M held on for dear life to claim the series opener at Missouri, 11-9.
Through the first half of Friday night's ballgame in Columbia, Missouri, the Aggies were coasting and looking like they might open a crucial road series with a run-rule victory.
Jorian Wilson was leading the way as the Aggies spotted a seven-spot in the fourth inning. Wilson led off the inning with a monster blast as the Maroon & White batted around in the frame.
Sandwiched in between Wilson’s damage came a three-run home run from Caden Sorrell, which was his 13th long ball of the season.
In his second at-bat of the inning, Wilson laced a double down the right field line, scoring Nico Partida and Terrence Kiel II, as the Aggies' lead blossomed to 8-1.
An inning later, Kiel hit a two-out single to left field, scoring Sorrell and Chris Hacopian, and the Ags built their “comfortable” nine-run lead.
Which turned out to be nowhere near comfort, as it took just a half inning later for the Tigers to claw back.
Shane Sdao had been cruising through 4.1 innings, allowing just a run on three hits. However, the Missouri bats finally caught up to the junior lefty.
Pierre Seals got the damage started with a two-run single before Jase Woita followed him up with an RBI single of his own. What eventually amounted to a six-run frame was capped off by a three-run homer off the bat of Cameron Benson, ending Sdao’s night and shrinking the deficit to 10-7.
Another blow for the Ags in the bottom of the fifth came when Gavin Grahovac appeared to have his hand stepped on attempting to scoop a one-hop throw at first base. After going down, Grahovac stayed in the game, but instead of leading off in the sixth, Blake Binderup pinch-hit in his place.
The Tigers retired the next six A&M batters, leading to the bottom of the seventh when the situation became dicier. Juan Vargas allowed a solo shot off the bat of Woita before being relieved by Ethan Darden.
Darden faced three batters before Mizzou came within a run as he walked the first batter he faced, forced a ground out and then gave up an RBI single off the bat of Mateo Serna.
After another three-up, three-down inning for the Aggie bats, A&M head coach Michael Earley wasted no time bringing in the Ags’ most reliable arm out of the pen in Clayton Freshcorn.
However, the Maroon & White faced a scare in the eighth as the leadoff hitter Kam Durnin laced a double to right field. Durnin would eventually make it to third after advancing on a groundout, then a wild pitch. Woita was hit on the foot, and the Tigers had the tying and go-ahead runs on the bases with two outs.
The Aggies needed a break, and they got one as Freshcorn forced a ground ball to the right side that went under Binderup's glove at first; however, Hacopian was there to back him up, fielding the ball and retiring Cameron Benson at first.
Insurance came in the ninth, as Bear Harrison scored on Hacopian’s fielder’s choice, as the Ags answered Mizzou’s eight-straight runs.
Freshcorn finished things out in the ninth, striking out Blaize Ward, forcing a groundout from Serna and striking out Donovan Jordan to close the night.
After nearly blowing a nine-run lead, the Aggies could have been feeling much worse tonight. A&M came into CoMo knowing this was a series they could have had.
Losing a game in that fashion would have been soul-crushing with potential ramifications on the rest of the weekend.
Fortunately for the Maroon & White, they will head into Saturday’s 4 p.m. CT first pitch having won their first series opener in conference play this season.
They don’t ask how, they ask how many. And somehow, after flirting with disaster, the Aggies still walked out of Columbia with one that counts.
