Tag: Evan Aschenbeck

No. 1 Texas A&M baseball team defeats No. 17 Georgia to begin SEC series in College Station

The Aggies continued to prove why they are the best team in the nation with another win against a ranked opponent to begin the weekend.

The Texas A&M baseball team continued to prove why it is the best team in the nation with another win against a ranked opponent to begin the weekend.

The No. 1 Aggies (37-5, 14-5 SEC) beat No. 17 Georgia (30-11, 9-10) by a final score of 5-2 on Friday night at Blue Bell Park to begin a three-game SEC set.

The Bulldogs took an early lead with 1 run in the top of the first inning. Texas A&M responded with 1 in the second and fourth, respectively, to seize the advantage. Georgia tied the game in the fifth but the Aggies added 2 in the sixth and 1 in the seventh to earn the series opening victory.

Sophomore left-handed pitcher Ryan Prager (8-0) earned the win on the bump by tossing 6.0 frames and allowing 5 hits, 2 runs and 2 walks with 6 strikeouts on 90 pitches. Senior LHP Evan Aschenbeck tallied his 7th save of the season by pitching the final 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up 1 hit and 1 hit by pitch with 3 Ks on 30 pitches.

Texas A&M and Georgia will conclude the series at Olsen Field on Saturday with a doubleheader. Sunday’s game had been moved up due to forecasted inclement weather. Game 2 is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. CST and Game 3 is tentatively set for 5 p.m.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Texas A&M relief pitcher Evan Aschenbeck makes NCBWA midseason watchlist

Texas A&M’s ace relief pitcher Evan Aschenbeck finds himself on NCBWA Stopper of the Year watchlist

Earlier this week the National Collegiate Writer Association (NCBWA) announced their midseason watchlist for their Stopper of the Year award. Among the 59 relief pitchers on the list Texas A&M senior left-hander pitcher Evan Aschenbeck earned a spot again after being named to the preseason before the season.

In 17 appearances Aschenbeck has recorded four wins and six saves across 40.1 innings. He has been head coach Jim Schlossnagle’s go-to arm when he needs someone to get a game back under A&M’s control. His six saves are good enough to have him tied for the No. 1 spot in the SEC and his 1.70 ERA, .190 opposing batting average, with 51 strikeouts cements him as one of the best closers in the business.

Texas A&M will begin a three-game home series on Friday at 6 p.m. at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park versus No. 17 Georgia.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

Texas A&M baseball remains the top dog in the new USA TODAY Coaches Poll

Texas A&M was two runs shy of the sweep over Alabama last weekend, but they keep the top spot after a 3-1 week.

Texas A&M (35-5, 13-5 SEC) is an offensive juggernaut and did something that’s hard to do in SEC play, and that’s going on the road and win a series against a top-25 conference opponent. The Aggie baseball team started the week run-ruling Air Force 15-5 in a tune-up before they headed to Tuscaloosa to face Alabama which just knocked off the No. 1 team the weekend before.

Alabama showed why they are a dangerous team to face putting some pressure on the Aggies in the first two games, but the firepower of the Maroon and White was just too much to overcome. They outscored the Tide 28-14 through those two games to claim their fifth straight conference series win.

There was no doubt after Saturday afternoon that A&M would stay the No.1 team in the country. Even though Alabama did take game three in a 10-9 win the Aggies racked up 52 runs through four games with one run-rule victory during that span. Things are still looking good for A&M, but there is a lot of base left to be played and this sport can be very unforgiving at times.

Here are the complete Week 10 rankings.

Rank Team Record PTS 1st Prev Chg Hi/Lo
1
Texas A&M
 35-5 772 29 1 – 1/10
2
Arkansas
 34-6 735 1 2 – 1/5
3
Tennessee
 33-7 716 1 3 – 3/8
4
Clemson
 32-7 674 0 6
+2
 2/11
5
Kentucky
 32-7 637 0 5 – 5/NR
6
Duke
 29-11 593 0 8
+2
 6/14
7
East Carolina
 31-8 581 0 10
+3
 7/16
8
Vanderbilt
 29-11 513 0 12
+4
 3/14
9
Florida State
 31-8 503 0 7
-2
 7/NR
10
Oregon State
 30-9 497 0 4
-6
 2/10
11
Wake Forest
 26-13 449 0 13
+2
 1/22
12
Virginia
 30-11 426 0 8
-4
 8/15
13
UC Irvine
 28-8 372 0 16
+3
 13/NR
14
North Carolina
 30-10 371 0 11
-3
 7/17
15
Coastal Carolina
 27-12 330 0 20
+5
 15/21
16
Louisiana
 31-11 222 0 15
-1
 15/NR
17
Georgia
 29-10 189 0 23
+6
 17/NR
18
Oklahoma
 24-14 160 0 NR
+10
 18/NR
18
Alabama
 25-15 160 0 14
-4
 10/18
20
Arizona
 24-14 158 0 NR
+6
 20/NR
21
South Carolina
 27-13 146 0 21 – 14/NR
22
Oklahoma State
 26-14 133 0 17
-5
 17/NR
23
North Carolina State
 22-15 127 0 NR
+8
 14/NR
24
Oregon
 27-12 122 0 18
-6
 18/NR
25
Indiana State
 29-8 121 0 25 – 25/NR

Schools Dropped Out

No. 19 Dallas Baptist; No. 22 Virginia Tech; No. 24 West Virginia;

Others Receiving Votes

Dallas Baptist 94; Virginia Tech 64; Mississippi State 45; Texas Tech 40; UC Santa Barbara 25; West Virginia 20; Nebraska 18; UNCW 16; Utah 11; UCF 9; Georgia Tech 8; Lamar 5; Louisiana Tech 4; UTSA 3; Creighton 2; Western Kentucky 1; Troy 1; San Diego 1; Illinois 1;

 

Texas A&M will face Houston on Tuesday, April 23, at 6:00 p.m. CST, where the game will air on SEC Network+.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

Texas A&M baseball climb to the top spot in the new USA TODAY Coaches Poll

Texas A&M jumps two spots to No. 1 in the country after a dominating week going 4-0 and sweeping No. 6 Vanderbilt

There’s a new sheriff in town for Week 9 and they reside in the great state of Texas. The Texas A&M Aggie baseball team (32-4, 11-4 SEC) has captured the number one spot in the USA TODAY Coaches poll after going 4-0 during the week and sweeping the No. 6 ranked Vanderbilt Commodores impressively. They hit a total of nine home runs over the weekend outscoring Vanderbilt 36-6 for their sweep of a ranked opponent since 2016.

If their weekly resume wasn’t already ready enough the previous two top teams both lost their series over the weekend. Arkansas dropped two out of three to Alabama and Clemson did the same to NC State.

After those developments it was all but written in stone that A&M would be the new No. 1 team in the country when the polls dropped. There is still a lot of baseball left to be played, but this solidified what a lot of experts have been saying about Jim Schlossnalge’s Aggies.

Here are the complete Week 9 rankings.

Rank Team Record PTS 1st Prev Chg Hi/Lo
1
Texas A&M
 32-4 764 22 3
+2
 1/10
2
Arkansas
 30-5 738 7 1
-1
 1/5
3
Tennessee
 30-6 703 1 4
+1
 3/8
4
Oregon State
 29-5 656 0 5
+1
 2/7
5
Kentucky
 30-5 628 1 8
+3
 5/NR
6
Clemson
 29-6 627 0 2
-4
 2/11
7
Florida State
 30-5 577 0 9
+2
 7/NR
8
Virginia
 28-8 528 0 10
+2
 8/15
8
Duke
 26-10 528 0 7
-1
 7/14
10
East Carolina
 27-8 505 0 11
+1
 10/16
11
North Carolina
 29-7 491 0 12
+1
 7/17
12
Vanderbilt
 26-10 432 0 6
-6
 3/14
13
Wake Forest
 24-11 369 0 15
+2
 1/22
14
Alabama
 24-12 307 0 17
+3
 10/18
15
Louisiana
 28-9 267 0 24
+9
 15/NR
16
UC Irvine
 25-7 264 0 14
-2
 14/NR
17
Oklahoma State
 25-11 258 0 25
+8
 17/NR
18
Oregon
 25-10 235 0 22
+4
 18/NR
19
Dallas Baptist
 26-8 184 0 13
-6
 8/NR
20
Coastal Carolina
 24-11 183 0 20 – 15/21
21
South Carolina
 25-11 172 0 NR
+5
 14/NR
22
Virginia Tech
 23-10 115 0 16
-6
 15/NR
23
Georgia
 27-9 93 0 NR
+6
 23/NR
24
West Virginia
 22-13 81 0 NR
+13
 24/NR
25
Indiana State
 27-7 77 0 NR
+2
 25/NR

Schools Dropped Out

No. 18 Florida; No. 19 UCF; No. 21 Nebraska; No. 23 Mississippi State;

Others Receiving Votes

Arizona 64; Nebraska 40; Oklahoma 27; Mississippi State 23; Florida 22; North Carolina State 21; Lamar 19; Texas Tech 14; Northeastern 13; UC Santa Barbara 11; UCF 10; Campbell 10; Utah 9; Creighton 7; Georgetown 2; Georgia Tech 1;

Texas A&M will face Air Force on Tuesday, April 16, at 4:00 p.m. CT, where the game will air on SEC Network+.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

No. 3 Texas A&M baseball wins the series vs. South Carolina after the defeating the Gamecocks in Game 2

The Aggies continues their impressive win streak, reaching eight games!

The Texas A&M baseball team (28-3) earned the series win vs. No. 22 South Carolina (21-10) on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Gamecocks 6-3 behind an early scoring effort, while Aggies’ star closer Evan Aschenbeck finishing things out in the 9th.

Winning their eighth consecutive SEC game, the Aggies are one of the hottest clubs in the country. They trail only the No.1-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks in the SEC standings but currently lead the conference in wins with 28.

On the day, Braden Montgomery and Jace LaViolette combined four hits. Still, it was the play of the notably clutch Hayden Schott, who orchestrated a three-run scoring effort, aided by freshman phenom Gavin Grahovic’s huge solo home run in the top of the first.

Also, in the bottom of the first, freshman outfielder Caden Sorrell made one of the best catches you will see all year, stealing a Gamecocks home run after elevating at the top of the fence line for the grab. What a catch!

Holding a 4-0 lead in the third, the Gamecocks got on the board with two runs to make things interesting, but thanks to Schott’s RBI in the 5th, the Aggies’ 5-2 cushion who later added another insurance run in the 9th to close things out.

Pitching-wise, starter Tanner Jones gave up five hits and two runs while striking out five. Shane Sdao (2-0) earned the win, allowing only two hits and recording three strikeouts.

Elite closer Evan Aschenbeck pitched two innings and recorded six strikeouts, allowed two hits, and one run on a meaningless solo home run to close things out.

Texas A&M’s critical home series vs. Vanderbilt will start on Friday, April 12, but the Aggies will first take on UTSA in a midweek matchup on Tuesday, April 9, at 6:00 p.m.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.

See what Texas A&M Aggies made the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List

A trio of Aggies find themselves on the 2024 Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List for the best amateur baseball player in the country

Texas A&M is one of two teams that currently have three players on the 2024 Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List. The award is given out near the end of June to recognize the top amateur player in the country. This is the third time in program history that the Aggies had three players on the list during the 2012 & 2013 seasons. Below are the current A&M players that made the list

Outfielder Braden Montgomery

Outfielder Jace LaViolette

Pitcher Ryan Prager

The 2024 Golden Spikes Award timeline is as follows:

  •  May 20: Golden Spikes Award semifinalists announced, and fan voting begins
  •  June 3: Golden Spikes Award semifinalists fan voting ends
  •  June 5: Golden Spikes Award finalists announced, and fan voting begins
  •  June 21: Golden Spikes Award finalists’ fan voting ends
  •  June 22: Golden Spikes Award winner announced

Congratulations to all of the Aggies who have been named to the 2024 Golden Spikes Award Watchlist.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

Perfect Game names multiple Texas A&M Aggies to their midseason All-American teams

Five Aggies make the Perfect Game midseason All-American baseball teams

The Texas A&M baseball team is off to one of its best starts in team history, and they are getting it done in multiple ways. However, outside of the improved pitching, the lineup is full of hitters. Braden Montgomery and Jace LaViolette are probably the best 1-2 punch in the league, and Gavin Grahovac makes his case every game to be named a Freshman All-American by the end of the season.

While the pitching has cooled off since conference play started, coaches Jim Schlossnagle and Max Weiner have used the same starting pitchers for each series, and it’s worked out well overall. Left-handed starting pitcher Ryan Prager has been one of the more consistent starters, boasting a 5-0 record with a 2.21 ERA and 51 strikeouts.

When the Aggies need a closer, they know they can trust Evan Aschenbeck’s arm. He has a 0.94 ERA, a 4-0 record, three saves, and 35 strikeouts. Below are the Aggies who were named to the Perfect Game All-American teams.

Outfielder Braden Montgomery – 1st Team

Pitcher Evan Aschenbeck – 1st Team

Outfielder Jace LaViolette – 2nd Team

Pitcher Ryan Prager – 3rd Team

Third Base Gavin Grahovac – Freshman Team

Congratulations to all of the Aggies who have been recognized to Perfect Games All-American teams.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

No. 6 Texas A&M baseball team earns first SEC series victory with Game 3 win vs. Mississippi State

For the first time in the young 2024 season, the Aggies have earned a three-game conference series victory following a 6-1 win on Sunday.

For the first time in the young 2024 season, the Texas A&M baseball team has earned a three-game conference series victory.

The No. 6 Aggies (21-3, 3-3 SEC) beat Mississippi State (17-8, 3-3) by a final score of 6-1 on Saturday at Blue Bell Park to take two out of three games from the Bulldogs. Texas A&M won 6-3 on Friday but its offense fell flat Friday, losing 5-1. The Aggies scored once in the first, fifth, sixth & seventh, respectively, and 2 in the fourth.

Sophomore left-handed pitcher Justin Lamkin (2-0) earned the win by absolutely dominating in the series finale. He tossed 7.1 innings and allowed 2 hits, 1 run & 1 walk with 12 strikeouts on 104 pitches. Senior LHP Evan Aschenbeck pitched the final 1.2 innings and gave up 1 hit with 2 Ks on 19 pitches.

Junior outfielder Braden Montgomery crushed 2 home runs. Freshman OF Caden Sorrell joined him with two extra-base hits, smashing a solo homer and a double.

Texas A&M continues its eight-game homestand at Olsen Field on Tuesday at 6 p.m. against Houston Christian University before hosting Auburn for a three-game set beginning Thursday.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

No. 6 Texas A&M baseball team doubles up Mississippi State to take Game 1 of SEC series

After losing their first SEC series of the season last weekend in Florida, the Aggies have gotten their second off to a good start thus far.

After losing its first conference series of the season last weekend in Gainesville, the Texas A&M baseball team has gotten its second of the year off to a good start.

The No. 6 Aggies (20-2, 2-2 SEC) scored 5 runs in the fifth inning on Thursday night at Blue Bell Park to double up Mississippi State (16-7, 2-2) by a final score of 6-3. Texas A&M rallied on Wednesday with 5 runs in the eighth frame to defeat Prairie View A&M.

Gavin Grahovac had himself a career day, smashing two home runs to left field, propelling the Aggies to victory. The freshman third baseman led off the game with a solo shot in the bottom of the first inning to give Texas A&M an early advantage. Then with the game tied 2-2 in the fifth, he crushed a grand slam to reclaim the lead for good.

Junior Braden Montgomery returned to right field on Thursday night after starting on the bump Wednesday. He was the other Aggie with multiple hits, going 2-for-4.

Left-handed pitcher Ryan Prager (5-0) continued to dominate and earned the win. The redshirt sophomore tossed 6.1 innings and allowed 4 hits, 2 unearned runs and 1 walk with 8 strikeouts on 91 pitches. Senior LHP Evan Aschenbeck picked up his third save by pitching the final 1.1 frames.

On what will be an extremely busy Friday for Texas A&M Athletics with both basketball teams competing in March Madness against Nebraska, the baseball team hosts the Bulldogs at 6 p.m. for Game 2 at Olsen Field.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

No. 4 Texas A&M baseball team earns redemption versus Florida to tie SEC series

After suffering their first loss of the season on Friday, the Aggies earned revenge versus Florida with a win on Saturday to tie the series.

After suffering its first loss of the season on Friday night in Gainesville, the Texas A&M baseball team earned redemption against Florida with a victory to tie the series.

The Aggies (17-1 SEC) defeated the Gators (11-7, 1-1) by a final score of 10-6 on Saturday evening in Game 2 of the three-game set at Condron Ballpark. With the win, Texas A&M coach Jim Schlossnagle tallied his 100th victory in Aggieland, a few weeks after racking up his 900th overall win.

Junior right fielder Braden Montgomery got the Aggies off to a hot start with a 3-run homer to right field in the top of the first inning. Florida tied the contest in the bottom half of the frame.

Texas A&M scored 5 runs in the top of the third, kick-started by 2 solo home runs to left from underclassmen dynamic duo, freshman third baseman Gavin Grahovac and sophomore center fielder Jace LaViolette. The Gators avoided a shutdown inning by tallying 2 runs in the bottom half but still trailed 8-5 after three innings.

In the top of the ninth, junior shortstop Ali Camarillo hit a 2-run single to right giving the Aggies some insurance. Florida scored once in the bottom half of the inning and ultimately lost 10-6.

Junior right-handed pitcher Tanner Jones started on the bump and got roughed up. He tallied 2.1 innings pitched, 5 hits, 5 runs, 2 walks and 1 hit by pitch with 2 strikeouts on 50 pitches.

Senior left-handed pitcher Evan Aschenbeck (3-0) took over in relief for Jones and earned the victory by dealing. He tossed 4.0 scoreless frames and allowed 4 hits & 1 walk with 6 Ks on 68 pitches. Sophomore LHP Shane Sdao threw the final 1.2 innings to pick up his first save of 2024.

The SEC rivals will battle for the series win on Sunday with first pitch set for 12 p.m. CST.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.