COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The No. 20 Texas A&M Aggies lost an 11-10 decision to the No. 1 TCU Horned Frogs in a bout that lasted 15 innings at the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic at Minute Maid Park Saturday evening and into the morning hours of Sunday.
TCU scored the winning run with one out in the bottom of the 15th when Ryan Merrill doubled to the gap in right-center off Lee May Gonzalez to score Nolan Brown.
Despite a Herculean effort out of the bullpen, Kaylor Chafin (1-1) was saddled with the loss. The southpaw worked 6.1 innings, allowing one run on six hits and two walks while striking out seven.
The Aggies pounced on the Horned Frogs for five runs in the top of the first inning. Nick Choruby drew a six-pitch walk and Logan Foster singled through the left side to start the frame. With one out, Texas A&M broke the scoring seal when catcher Evan Skoug’s pickoff attempt to first base sailed down the line allowing Choruby to score and Foster to scamper to second. Joel Davis kept the rally going by racing out a 20-foot chopper down the first base line for an infield single. Walker Pennington followed by depositing a 3-2 pitch into the Crawford Boxes in leftfield for a three-run dinger, his first of the year. The cavalcade of runs continued with Blake Kopetsky getting hit by a pitch, moving to third on an error on George Janca’s grounder to third and scoring when Austin Homan blasted a shot at the pitcher.
TCU shaved a run off the lead in the home half of the first. With one out, Evan Skoug single through the right side and advanced to second on a wild pitch. After Luken Baker looked at a strike three offering on a 2-2 offering he hammered a full-count pitch into rightfield for an RBI single.
After a three-inning stretch where eight of nine Aggies struck out, the Maroon and White restarted the engine in the fifth. Braden Shewmake started the frame by rattling a triple into the corner down the rightfield line. Davis followed with a single through the right side to plate Shewmake for the 6-1 lead. Davis stole second base and moved to third on a groundout by Kopetsky. With two outs, Davis scored on an infield single by Coleman to inflate the Texas A&M cushion to six runs, 7-1.
The Horned Frogs responded with two runs in the sixth. Baker started the frame with a five-pitch walk and a throwing error after an infield single by Josh Watson put two runners in scoring position. With one out, Cam Warner bounced a single back to the mound to plate Baker and Watson came round to score on a passed ball, trimming the Aggies’ lead to 7-3.
The Aggies pushed another important insurance run across in the top of the seventh. Davis started by drawing a four-pitch walk off reliever Haylen Green and Walker Pennington followed with a five-pitch walk off fellow bullpenner Cal Couglin. Kopetsky pushed both runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt and Coleman knocked in Davis with a groundout to second, staking Texas A&M to an 8-3 advantage.
TCU offered an immediate response in the home half of the seventh. Leadoff batter Elliott Barzilli doubled to rightfield and with one out Baker drew a four-pitch walk. With two outs, Brown singled to leftfield plating Barzilli and Baker came around to score when Pennington misplayed the hit, trimming the Texas A&M lead to 8-5.
The Aggies tacked on two insurance runs in the top of the ninth. Shewmake singled up the middle to lead off the inning and with one out, Pennington was issued a base on balls. Kopetsky struck out looking for the second out of the inning, but Coleman threaded a double down the leftfield, plating both runners for the 10-5 advantage.
The wheels fell off the wagon for the Aggies in the home half of the ninth. Cason Sherrod relieved Corbin Martin on the mound and issued three consecutive walks. Sherrod was lifted for Kyle Richardson and the lefty responded with a wild pitch and two walks, giving the Aggies a precarious 10-7 advantage with the bases loaded and no outs.
Chafin entered the game and fanned the first batter he faced, Merrill. Austin Ingraham plated a run with a single through the left side of the infield to cut Texas A&M’s margin to 10-8, but Chafin bounced back with another striking, getting Austen Wade to strike out looking at a 3-2 pitch. Barzilli drove a first-pitch offering to third base, but the ball trickled past Janca allowing two runs to score, tying the score 10-10. Chafin got the third out of the inning, catching Skoug looking, to send the game to extra innings.
Texas A&M starter Stephen Kolek was left with no-decision for his effort. He gritted through 4.0 innings, allowing one run on five hits and two walks while striking out six.
TCU starter Nick Lodolo was chased in the first frame, allowing five runs, four earned, on four hits and one walk while striking out two in 0.2 innings.
Coleman led the Aggies with four RBI and Pennington chipped in with three. Davis paced the squad with three runs.
The Maroon and White were doomed by a zone that resulted in a school-record 26 strikeouts for Aggie hitters and 14 walks for the Texas A&M pitching staff. The Texas A&M and TCU pitching staffs combined for 46 strikeouts, second all-time in NCAA Division I history behind 51 by North Carolina State (31) and Akron (20) in an 18-inning affair in 2009.
Texas A&M returns to action Sunday with a 5 p.m contest against the Baylor Bears to wrap up their weekend in the Bayou City.
Texas A&M head coach Rob Childress
Aggie 1B Joel Davis
Aggie LHP Kaylor Chafin
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics