By: Shelbie Warr
After a 3-0 weekend against Elon and a canceled midweek against McNeese, Texas A&M again puts their No. 1 ranking to the test- this time against 1-3 Cal Poly. The Mustangs are not coming off a great weekend in terms of wins and losses, as UCLA swept them in a three-game set to open the season. The first game was close, a 3-2 loss. However, the next two were not as competitive at 18-2 and 16-0. They did grab a win at LMU on Monday, 9-1 with 13 hits, which shows that they can put up runs in big numbers. The only question is can they do it against better pitching? Now, they look to bounce back at Olsen Field against the top-ranked Aggies.
Texas A&M is coming off a winning weekend against Elon, extending their non-conference winning streak to 33 games dating back to last season in which they swept their non-conference schedule. The Aggies are sticking with the same pitching rotation for the weekend- Prager, Lamkin, and Patton. That starting rotation combined for a 2.57 ERA in 14 innings pitched, along with 25 strikeouts of Elon batters.
The starting nine will likely be close to the same, headlined by junior superstar Jace LaViolette and now, reigning SEC Freshman of the Week Terrence Kiel II, who is replacing injured Caden Sorrell in the lineup. Kiel II finished last weekend 4-for-8 at the plate with three RBI, three runs scored, and three walks. If he can sustain that kind of numbers, he may be joining Jace LaViolette and Gavin Grahovac in the recent line of superstar freshmen to come through Texas A&M.
The first game of the series has been moved up to 4 pm on Friday due to the threat of inclement weather. Saturday's game will begin at 2 pm and Sunday's at 1 pm- unless the weather continues to cause chaos, as it has all week around college baseball. The Aggies will follow this weekend with a mid-week tilt with the ever-exciting, never fully out of the game Texas State Bobcats on Tuesday at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park. It will be interesting to see the Aggies in midweek action since the cancellation of the McNeese game robbed fans of weeknight baseball in Aggieland.
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