Aggie Baseball Completes Important Sweep

The Texas Aggie baseball team continues its hot pace with an impressive weekend sweep over the nationally ranked Oklahoma Sooners.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The No. 4 Texas A&M baseball team completed a three-game sweep of No. 22 Oklahoma on Sunday by defeating the Sooners 5-3 in front of 4,549 fans on Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.

"I always tell our guys it's not how you start, it's how you finish," Texas A&M head coach Rob Childress said. "Obviously, in today's game that was definitely the case. We were able to get it back together. Pineda was able to get us into the sixth and those guys that came in from the bullpen did a phenomenal job."

The Aggies improved to 26-6 on the season and remained in hunt for the Big 12 title with a 7-2 league record. Oklahoma, meanwhile, fell to 18-14 overall with a 4-8 mark in conference games.

Redshirt sophomore Rafael Pineda (5-0) picked up the victory on the mound as he scattered five hits and just two earned runs in 5.1 innings of work.

Oklahoma jumped out in front during the top of the second inning by scoring on a RBI double from designated hitter Brian Brightwell to make the score 1-0.

During the home half of the frame the Aggies countered as senior first baseman Jacob House, who went 2-for-3 with a pair of runs in the contest, led off with a single and came home to score later on sacrifice fly by third baseman Blake Allemand.

The Sooners quick jumped back on top 3-1 in the top of the third, scoring twice off Pineda, the second tally coming after an A&M throwing error extended the inning.

Junior All-American Tyler Naquin collected his first of two hits on the day during the bottom of the third, singling up the middle to bring home shortstop Mikey Reynolds and cut the Sooner lead down to 3-2.

Texas A&M, who wore their camouflage jerseys which the Aggies don when looking for a sweep, took control of the game with a three-run bottom of the fifth that featured the big hit from senior designated hitter Matt Juengel, who notched a two-run double off OU starter Jonathan Gary (2-4). Sophomore catcher Troy Stein added a sac fly in the frame to give the Aggies a 5-3 advantage.

"It's always fun to come out wearing the camo and trying to get the sweep," House said. "The big thing with baseball is momentum. We were able to keep them from getting too much momentum by answering every time they scored."

Great work from the A&M bullpen kept the Sooners off the scoreboard for the remained of the contest as Estevan Uriegas and Jason Freeman picked up holds before junior Kyle Martin pitched a scoreless ninth for his first save of the year.

The Aggies are back in action on Tuesday when they host UT Arlington in a 6:35 p.m. contest on Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.