By T. Scott Boatright
Considered the slowest of the team sports, things can still change in a hurry during a baseball game.
Grambling State University’s baseball team found that out the hard way Friday afternoon.
Having led off the game with a pair of singles and holding off Texas A&M’s batting attack in the bottom of the first inning, the Tigers seemed to be on the right track.
But the GSU hardball train derailed in the bottom of the second as Texas A&M took early control en route to an 8-0 over the Tigers in the opening game of the College Station Regional of the NCAA Baseball Championship Tournament.
The Aggies plated seven runs in the bottom of the second inning off five hits and a walk aided by a pair of wild pitches and a throwing error by the Tigers that gave Texas A&M a 7-0 advantage heading into the top of the third.
“We were hitting and were feeling good and then it suddenly got away from us,” said GSU coach Davin Pierre. “As a team we talked about it coming into this game —- we couldn’t give up a big inning because that’s what cost us multiple games this season. But against a good team like Texas A&M, it still happened.
“The strike zone was a little different than it is in the (Southwestern Athletic Conference), and we’ve got to get used to that. We hit the ball but left too many base runners stranded. We’ve got to take advantage of the opportunities we’re given, and today we didn’t do that.”
GSU totaled nine hits on the day while leaving 14 runners on base.
Grambling led off the game with a pair of singles from Tiger Borom and Kyle Waker before Aggies pitcher Tanner Jones retired the Tigers’ next three batters.
GSU starting pitcher Mason Martinez gave up a pair of walks in the bottom half of the opening stanza, but a double play by the Tigers followed up by a strikeout to close out the inning kept things scoreless moving to the top of the second.
The Tigers managed another pair of hits in the top of the second inning before the Aggies ignited in their next at bat.
Two of Texas A&M’s runs in the bottom of the second were scored off wild pitches, and GSU coach Davin Pierre made the move late in the stanza to pull Martinez and send Javier Martinez to the mound.
Mason Martinez finished with seven runs (six earned) charged to him with five walks and two strikeouts to earn the loss that dropped him to X-X on the season.
Javier Martinez allowed one earned run over the next 4.1 innings on the mound, holding Texas A&M to four hits and one walk while striking out four Aggies.
Three of those hits given up by Javier Martinez came in the bottom of the fourth and allowed Texas A&M to score its final run of the contest.
Jeremiah Newman pitched the final two innings for GSU, giving up only one hit while fanning three Aggies.
“Javier and Jeremiah came in and pitched well, but it had already gotten away from us even though we kept on hitting. We just didn’t score.”
Catcher DeMarckus Smiley led GSU with a 2-for-4 plate performance while Borom and Ashton Inman each went 2-for-4.
The Tigers will return to action in a loser’s bracket elimination game at 2 p.m. Saturday.
