The No. 9 Texas A&M baseball team concluded its nine-game, season-opening homestand in winning fashion Wednesday at Olsen Field, defeating Texas-Pan American 7-0 to sweep the two-game series from the Broncs.
The victory improved the Aggies’ overall record this spring to 8-1, a mark they will carry with them into this weekend’s Houston College Classic at Minute Maid Park. At the tournament the Aggies will face Utah, No. 17 Rice and Houston.
Texas A&M’s offensive attack featured 13 hits on Wednesday, including a season-high five doubles and six players who notched multi-hit games. The top third of the Aggie batting order was especially potent as A&M’s 1-3 hitters (Krey Bratsen, Andrew Collazo and Matt Juengel) all had a pair of hits and combined to go 6-for-13 on the day.
On the mound, sophomore lefty Dylan Mendoza (2-0) was solid in his second straight mid-week start, picking up the win by tossing six scoreless innings. The Lake Travis, Texas, native limited the Broncs to just five hits and walked only one while striking out three. The performance lowering his season ERA to 0.69.
Behind Mendoza, the A&M defenders were solid, turning a double play and extending their errorless streak to 29 consecutive innings. The Aggie bullpen was also a factor as A&M relievers Derrick Hadley, Brandon Parrent and Joaquin Hinojosa combined to keep the Broncs off the board and the shutout intact.
The Aggies struck the first blow in the contest during the bottom of the third when they teamed up to manufacture the game’s initial tally. After doubling to lead off the inning and reaching third on a passed ball, Scott Arthur stood just 90 feet away with one out. Senior second baseman Andrew Collazo was able to convert the opportunity by successfully executing a sacrifice bunt down the first base line that allowed Arthur to score.
Texas A&M struck for four more runs and broke the game open during the home half of the fourth, chasing UTPA starter Cody Plunk (1-1) along the way.
All of the fourth inning scores came with two outs in the frame as freshman catcher Troy Stein singled and stole second to get the rally started. Senior shortstop Kenny Jackson followed with a sharp single that ricocheted off Plunk’s leg into foul territory, putting runners at the corners.
Arthur plated the first run of the inning with a RBI bunt single and quickly rounded the bases himself as Bratsen followed with a two-run double. Collazo put an exclamation point on the inning with a run-scoring single to bring the A&M advantage to 5-0.
Junior first baseman Jacob House added an insurance run with a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the sixth that also extended his career-best hitting streak to nine games. House is the only Aggie to have hit safely in every game this spring as sophomore Tyler Naquin, who had also accomplish the feat entering Wednesday, was given the day off.
Jackson connected on his first double of the year during the bottom of the seventh to drive in the final Aggie run of the day and give the game its final score.