Texas A&M (53-13) was on the cusp of winning its first national championship in program history, but due to late home runs from the resilient Tennessee Volunteers (59-12), the Aggies fell 4-1. They will again play for the title in a deciding Game 3 on Monday night.
Entering the game, head coach Jim Schlossnagle knew that after Saturday’s 9-5 victory, A&M’s pitching rotation would have to depend on several young arms out of the bullpen. Senior Chris Cortez may have pitched his last four innings as an Aggie, keeping the Volunteers in check with seven strikeouts and zero runs allowed.
However, after 99 pitches, the veteran made his way to the bench with another standing ovation. His exit led to freshman Kaeden Wilson taking the mound, which led to Tennessee taking the lead. Even though Wilson was impressive for the most part, two fat pitches led to four Volunteer runs, and Brock Perry and Weston Moss finished the final two frames.
With everything on the line, Schlossnagle announced that sophomore lefty Justin Lamkin is ready to go and will start on Monday night in the biggest game in Texas A&M baseball history.
Lamkin’s last two appearances have been nothing short of exceptional, recording 15 strikeouts and allowing four hits in two wins over Florida to make it to the finals. Also available Monday, reliever Josh Stewart and closer Evan Aschenbeck will also be ready to go.
It will be Texas A&M lefty Justin Lamkin on the mound tomorrow, head coach Jim Schlossnagle said. Also noted it was an extra day of rest for Josh Stewart and Evan Aschenbeck.
— ๐๐ฃ๐๐ง๐๐ค ๐. ๐น๐ฃ๐ ๐จ๐ (@Travis_L_Brown) June 23, 2024
Texas A&M and Tennessee will attempt to win their first national championship in program history on Monday evening. The first pitch of Game 3 is at 6 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN+.
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