COLLEGE STATION — Braden Shewmake hit two triples to help the Texas A&M Aggies beat the UIC Flames 4-0 Saturday at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.
Shewmake was 2-of-3 on the afternoon and drove in a run, scored another, and had a walk.
“We did a great job as a team,” said Shewmake. “We started a little slow, [and] didn’t really stick to an approach very much. As the game went on we got a little more aggressive and we started swinging the bat the way we know how.”
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Shewmake hit his first triple to drive in Mikey Hoehner and give the Aggies a 1-0 lead.
The Aggies took it to UIC in the sixth inning with Jonathan Ducoff hitting a sacrifice fly ball to score Aaron Walters and achieve a 2-0 lead. Ty Condel hit an RBI single that drove in Chandler Morris and gave Texas A&M a 3-0 lead.
Shewmake added his second triple in the seventh inning. Walters hit a ground ball that scored Shewmake and established the game’s 4-0 final score.
Asa Lacy earned his second win of the season as he threw six shutout innings, scattered two hits and three walks while striking out 10. It was Lacy’s second straight double-digit strikeout effort. Joseph Menefee and Bryce Miller retired all eight batters faced over 2.2 innings of work.
“I felt like we were more aggressive in the second half of the game offensively, and you know there was just moments throughout the course of the game,” said Aggies coach Rob Childress. “I told Lacy after the game that maybe his last inning was his best. Then again, maybe the first inning was his best with being able to keep them from scoring, and to grab that momentum. The first inning was almost identical for both teams.
“There was plenty of moments for us to crumble on the mound, but we didn’t. We made pitches when we had to, and the bullpen was outstanding. [Christian] Roa, [Joseph] Menefee, and [Bryce] Miller were fabulous. When you can pitch and play defense you got a chance every day. It doesn’t matter who you’re playing against and we’ve certainly done that in the highlight.”
The Aggies finish off the three-game series Sunday with a 1:02 p.m. first pitch at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.