Missouri
Texas A&M
Mizzou Downs Aggies in Twelve-Inning Classic
3/19/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 19, 2006
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - - Mizzou scored a run on a wild pitch in the top of the 12th inning to take a 6-5 win over Texas A&M on Saturday night in College Station, Texas. After the Tigers came from behind to take the lead in the ninth inning, the Aggies scored one in the bottom of the ninth to force the game into extra innings.
Tied at four in the 12th inning, the Tigers scored the go-ahead run without a base hit in the inning. Sophomore Brock Bond drew a one-out walk, advanced to second on a passed ball and moved to third on a balk. He then scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch.
Freshman David Cales then retired the Aggies in order in the bottom of the 12th to seal the victory. Cales pitched the final four innings, striking out six batters to take the victory, his first as a Tiger.
"The bottom line is this was a great team effort," Mizzou Head Coach Tim Jamieson said. "We were good up and down the lineup and the pitching staff was good. This is a real character builder. You have to like how we battled to come from behind and never gave up. This will give this team a lot of confidence."
Trailing 4-1 after eight innings, the Tigers scored four times in the ninth to take the lead. Senior Trevor Helms led off the ninth with a single and after a fly out, junior Gary Arndt reached safely when the Aggie third baseman threw the ball away, trying to throw out Helms at second. Sophomore Evan Frey then singled down the left field line to drive in Helms.
Senior Zane Taylor then delivered a double over the centerfielder's head, driving in Arndt and Frey to tie the game at four. Then with two outs, junior Hunter Mense sent a single through the right side to drive in Taylor with the go-ahead run.
Texas A&M loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth and forced the game to extra innings when Jose Salazar singled to drive in Blake Stouffer.
Taylor matched a career high with four hits, finishing 4-for-6 with two RBI and extending his hitting streak to six games. Sophomore Evan Frey had three hits to extend his hitting streak to seven games.
The first two Aggies to the plate on Saturday night singled to start the bottom of the first inning. Stouffer would score on a one-out base hit by Austin Boggs and Adam Hale came around to score on a double by Craig Stinson.
Mizzou cut the lead in half with a run in the top of the fourth inning. Three Tiger singles followed a one-out walk by sophomore Brock Bond. The second of the three singles came off the bat of Helms and drove in Bond for the Tigers' first run.
Texas A&M added a run in the bottom of the fifth as Stouffer led off the inning with his second single of the night. He was driven in when Boggs singled, driving in Stouffer for the second time in the game. The Aggies would add a run in the bottom of the eighth inning as Stinson scored on a base hit by Ryan Hill to make the score 4-1, which is where it stood until the ninth.
Freshman Aaron Crow started on the mound and went 6.1 innings for Mizzou, striking out four and walking none. He allowed three runs, all earned, on 11 hits. Crow has not allowed more than three earned runs in any of his five starts this season.
The series will conclude at 1 p.m. on Sunday at Olsen Field. The game can be heard on KTGR 1580-AM in Columbia and on the World Wide Web at KTGR.com.
