College Station, TX- It was a back and forth battle, but the Bulldogs weren't able to come out on top after A&M's big 7th inning.
Senior Brandon Smith got off to a rocky start for the Bulldogs, as A&M propelled themselves to a 3-0 lead in the first inning with a walk, three hits, and a sac fly. The Aggies kept the offense rolling as 3rd baseman Trevor Werner sent one over the left-field wall on the first pitch of the second inning.
After the homer, the Richland, MS native, found his groove and only allowed two more hits through the sixth inning.
Senior 2nd baseman RJ Yeager cut the lead in half in the third with a 2-run shot to left, his 17th of the season and his SEC-leading 13th Yeager Bomb in conference play. The Bulldogs got to Aggie starter Nathan Dettmer again in the fourth, as Logan Tanner led off with a walk and Hunter Hines went the other way for a double down the left-field line. The true freshman from Madison Central extended his hitting streak to 11 games and put two runners in scoring position for Brad Cumbest. Mule knocked in a run on a double off the wall, but Hines had to hold up on the fly ball and only got to third.
Kellum Clark drew a walk to load up the bases with no outs, but the Bulldogs couldn't take advantage. Kamren James hit a grounder to third, A&M got the force at home, and after Aaron Downs struck out and Lane Forsythe grounded out, the inning was over. State got a couple singles from Luke Hancock and Hunter Hines in the fifth, and after the Aggies brought in lefty Joseph Menefee, Brad Cumbest put the Bulldogs ahead with a 3-run bomb, his third hit and fourth RBI of the game, and they didn't stop there as Kamren James led off the sixth with a solo homer to extend the State lead to 7-4.
Brandon Smith lost some of his command as he walked two of the first three batters he faced and would leave the game with one out. KC Hunt came to redeem himself after he couldn't hang onto a tie game against Florida last week but struggled to find the zone, walking two consecutive hitters and bringing in an Aggie run. With two outs and two strikes to A&M catcher Troy Claunch, Hunt thought he was out of the inning as it appeared Claunch had checked his swing on a slider. However, he was able to hold back, and next pitch, he sent a flare into shallow center, Brad Cumbest tried to come up with the diving catch, but he couldn't hang on, resulting in a bases-clearing double to put the Aggies up 8-7.
Drew Talley kept things steady in the eighth and gave the Bulldogs a chance to stay alive in the ninth. RJ Yeager singled into left with two outs, and Luke Hancock was hit by a pitch, putting the tying run in scoring position. Texas A&M would bring in their Saturday starter Micah Dallas, a transfer from Texas Tech, and Logan Tanner was able to draw a walk to load the bases. A&M then brought in a lefty in Will Johnston to face Hunter Hines, and he forced the freshman to roll over a grounder to first base to end the ballgame.
