Fast Start Powers Aggies Past Lamar, 9-3

Tuesday, February 22

Bryan-College Station

6:30 PM

Texas A&M

4-0

Lamar

2-2

Lamar

Texas A&M

Photo by: Rachel Mahan

Feb 22, 2022 | Baseball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Katy Gallaher, Texas A&M Athletics Communications

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M Aggies got out to a five-run lead in the first inning, ultimately leading to a dominant 9-3 victory against the Lamar Cardinals Tuesday night on Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.

A&M moves to 4-0 on the season while Lamar drops to 2-2. The Maroon & White are now 36-7 in the all-time series, advancing their winning streak since 2001 against the Cardinals to nine. This win marks their second-longest of the series, behind an 11-win stretch from 1987-93.

The Maroon & White's first inning was led by Jack Moss, who broke the scoring seal with a sacrifice fly, sending Kole Kaler home. Austin Bost doubled to left center, allowing Dylan Rock to score for the Aggies. Bost joined him after Brett Minnich hit a single to right field. With two outs in the bottom of the first, Ryan Targac hit a two-run dinger, bringing Minnich and himself home to complete the five-run inning. The quick start put the momentum in A&M's hands, outscoring the Cardinals 4-3 the rest of the way.

Targac went 2-for-4 on the night with one run and two doubles. The sophomore's home run in the first inning was his first of the season. Bost was another notable hitter Tuesday evening, racking up a trio of hits in five at-bats, with two doubles and an RBI. The Maroon & White hit 12-for-36 on the night, amassing a .333 average as a team.

Khristian Curtis (1-0) made his Aggieland debut, pitching for 4.0 innings. Curtis allowed three hits and held the Cardinals scoreless, fanning two batters in the process. In relief, the Maroon & White got 5.0 innings of work out of four pitchers, with Brad Rudis collecting 2.0 innings of work and allowing one hit with two strikeouts.

4-0. ??#WhoopCity x #GigEm pic.twitter.com/A0Mcb3457r
— Texas A&M Baseball (@AggieBaseball) February 23, 2022

TOP AGGIE PERFORMERS
Khristian Curtis – 4.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 2 K
Austin Bost – 3-for-5, 2 2B, 3B, 2 R, RBI
Ryan Targac – 2-for-4, 2B, HR, R

GAME SUMMARY
B1 | Kaler reached on a leadoff walk. Rock followed with a double down rightfield line to put two runners in scoring position. Moss broke the scoring seal with a sacrifice fly, sending Kaler home. Bost doubled to left center allowing Rock to advance the score for the Aggies. Bost joined him after Minnich hit a single to rightfield. With two outs, Targac hit a two-run dinger, bringing Minnich and himself home to end the five-run inning. A&M 5, LU 0

B3 | Troy Claunch singled up the middle right after Minnich doubled to left center, sending Minnich home. Logan Britt's RBI grounded out to third base, completing Claunch's journey. A&M 7, LU 0

B5 | Bost tripled to right-center and was sent home by Minnich grounding out to first base. A&M 8, LU 0

T6 | Chase Kemp got out on a leadoff walk. With two outs after Josh Blankenship's RBI double down the left-field line, Kemp arrived back at home plate. A&M 8, LU 1

T7 | Ben MacNaughton singled to second base. With one out after Reese Durand's RBI grounded out to the shortstop, MacNaughton made it around the bases. Kevin Bermudez started with a double to left field and made it to home plate with two outs after Kemp grounded out to third base. A&M 8, LU 3

B8 | Kalae Harrison doubled to right-center and advanced to third on an error by the pitcher, who failed a pickoff attempt. Kaler's RBI singled through the right side, sending Harrison home. A&M 9, LU 3

UP NEXT
Texas A&M baseball is set to compete against the Penn Quakers in a weekend series on Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 25 with the series concluding on Sunday, Feb. 27.

TEXAS A&M QUOTES

Head Coach Jim Schlossnagle
On the team's ability to bat throughout the lineup…
"I was really proud of the way we swung the bat tonight. We had a conversation right after batting practice when the wind changed. The team that hit the ball low and hard, and the team that kept the ball out of the high air would be the team that won tonight. Obviously, free bases play a part in that. (Ryan) Targac and (Austin) Bost, obviously, he's a proven hitter at this level. Targac is a guy just like (Logan) Britt and (Trevor) Werner, he's a guy who is physically talented, it's just a matter of him putting it all together."

On the performance from Khristian Curtis…
"I thought he did a nice job. You have to remember that the guy is a freshman, and that was his first career outing. He did a nice job for the most part of throwing strikes until the one inning when he didn't. He is certainly going to have to be better, land his breaking ball better, land his secondary pitch better. But, he threw strikes. We had another game, knock on wood, where we caught the baseball well. As I said before the season began, if we could keep the right guys healthy, that is going to be the strength of this team. Then its just a matter of throwing strikes on defense and getting timely hits on offense."

Junior designated hitter Austin Bost
On his hitting performance…
"Just seeing it well. I saw some good pitches I was ready to hit. Pitching was good, they came and threw strikes. I saw the ball well tonight and put a good swing on it and good things happened."

Sophomore infielder Ryan Targac
On his home run…
"Seeing the guys beforehand have that big inning putting three runs up, I had full confidence going into the at-bat. I saw a pitch I could handle and drove it out. It was a good feeling."

FOLLOW THE AGGIES
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