No. 15 Texas A&M stuns No. 1 LSU with late rally

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Stanley Tucker delivered a go-ahead single and the No. 15 Texas A&M Aggies scored four times in the bottom of the eighth to come back and take down No. 1 LSU, 8-6, Sunday afternoon on Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.

The Tigers (18-2, 2-1 SEC) were quick to get on the board with four runs in the first inning and another in the second, but freshman southpaw Justin Lamkin stole the show on the mound for the Aggies (14-6, 1-2 SEC) with 4.1 innings of relief to hold LSU where it was and give the Aggie offense a chance to strike back.

Still, the Aggies trailed 6-4 entering the eighth before loading the bases with nobody out against relievers Chase Shores and Christian Little. The latter looked as though he may wiggle out of the jam with consecutive strikeouts, but a bases-loaded walk to Kasen Wells cut the lead to 6-5 and Tucker played the role of hero one batter later with a two-run single through the left side to put Texas A&M in front for the first and final time.

Hunter Haas then capped the inning and a four-hit day of his own with an RBI single to provide some insurance for Will Johnston in the ninth and the junior lefty did the rest, striking out one and coaxing two fly balls to end a scoreless inning and clinch the win.

Johnston finished with three strikeouts and allowed only one hit in 3.0 scoreless innings, upping his record to 2-0 with the win. Little fell to 2-1 for the Tigers and was one of four LSU pitchers to have two runs charged to their ledgers.

TOP AGGIE PERFORMERS

Hunter Haas – 4-for-5, 3 RBI, 2B

Will Johnston – (W, 2-0) 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 K

Justin Lamkin – 4.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K

Stanley Tucker – 2-for-2, 2 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB

Jack Moss – 1-for-3, HR, RBI, 2 BB

GAME SUMMARY

T1 | LSU 4, TAMU 0 Following a fielding error that loaded the bases, Gavin Dugas was granted an RBI walk that allowed Tre’ Morgan to score. Josh Pearson’s two-RBI single sent Tommy White and Dylan Crews to home plate. An additional single by Jordan Thompson sent Dugas to score another run for the Tigers.

B1 | LSU 4, TAMU 1 Jack Moss got the Aggies on the board with a solo home run with two outs in the inning, his first homer of the 2023 season.

T2 | LSU 5, TAMU 1 Tallying his second run on the day, Crews doubled to right center and was sent home by White’s single through the left side.

B3 | LSU 5, TAMU 2 Singles by Kaeden Kent and Haas set the table and consecutive wild pitches from LSU starter Thatcher Hurd brought Kent across the plate for another Aggie run.

B5 | LSU 5, TAMU 4 The bottom of the order got things started with Max Kaufer and Stanley Tucker each pinch hitting and reaching base on a walk and a single to open the inning. Haas then lined a two-run double into the right-center field gap to cut the lead to 5-4. The Aggies continued to threaten to tie it up, but LSU reliever was able to get a key inning-ending double play to keep the Tigers in front.

T7 | LSU 6, TAMU 4 Brady Neal’s sacrifice fly out to left field sent Pearson to finish his journey around the bases.

B8 | TAMU 8, LSU 6 It took just three batters to load the sacks against Shores, starting with a single by Austin Bost, Ryan Targac being hit by a pitch and Jace LaViolette drawing a walk. That prompted the Tigers to turn to Little out of the pen and he responded with consecutive strikeouts of Jordan Thompson and pinch hitter Trevor Werner, however Kasen Wells worked a walk to trim the lead to a run and Tucker followed that up with his go-ahead hit that brought in Targac and LaViolette. A double steal followed and Haas put a ball in play on the next pitch, beating out an infield hit while Wells scored to give the Aggies a two-run advantage.

TEXAS A&M QUOTES

Head Coach Jim Schlossnagle

On the character of the team… “Every single win in this league counts, and we need to avoid sweeps at all costs, especially at home. This says a lot about the character of our team. We were down a bunch of players, and you have guys like Stanley Tucker who give you a little bit of spark and Justin Lamkin who was amazing.”

Junior Stanley Tucker

On moving on with confidence… “The win was important. We are locked into what’s important now and it is important because that game was today. We flushed the two games before that we were not fortunate to win, but we came in today and knew that the game today is what was important. Going in next week we now have a confidence boost, and we are ready to keep going for the rest of the year.”

UP NEXT

The Maroon & White return to action on Tuesday as they take on Rice. The first pitch is set for 6 p.m. on Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.