UIC Baseball Defeated By Texas A&M In NCAA Regional Opener

May 31, 2008

College Station, Texas - A pair of rough innings underneath the sweltering Texas sun doomed the UIC baseball team in a 15-1 defeat at the hands of ninth-ranked Texas A&M in their opener of the 2008 NCAA College Station Regional at Olsen Field.


On a day in which the temperature reached as high as 98 degrees in College Station, the bats of the host Aggies (44-16) heated up as the game went along to produce 10 runs during the fourth and fifth innings and quell the early momentum built by the Flames (34-21).


Steve McGuiggan led off the game with a single up the middle after working a full count and advanced to second on Ty Rubio's sacrifice bunt. Cleanup hitter Brett Schaefer smoked a laser to the left side that hopped past the glove of third baseman Dane Carter and into left field as McGuiggan motored home.


Luke Anders evened the contest in the bottom of the second by tagging starter Mike Kool's second pitch of the inning over the right field wall for a solo shot.


The first two Aggie hitters of the fourth reached and moved into scoring position on Brian Ruggiano's sac bunt. Following an intentional walk to Darby Brown to set up the double play, Blake Stouffer hit Kool's 1-2 pitch into right center to double in a pair and end the day for the UIC starter.


Enter Derrick Miramontes in relief, who appeared to have induced the inning's second out when Kevin Gonzalez bounced a grounder to second baseman Andy Leonard. Leonard threw home, but catcher Kevin Coddington juggled and dropped the toss to give Brown enough time to beat the tag at the plate.


UIC faced more bases-loaded trouble in the fifth and could not come away unscathed. Texas A&M batted around during the frame and plated six more runs to chase Miramontes after only one out was recorded.


A two-run shot by Brown with two away in the sixth and back-to-back RBI hits by Ruggiano and Brown in the eighth capped the game's scoring.


After they had starter Brooks Raley on the ropes in the first, the Flames were unable to muster much else as the A&M southpaw allowed just three hits the rest of the way.


Ty Rubio reached twice, going 1-for-2 with a walk.


UIC will play Dallas Baptist in an elimination game at Olsen Field at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.
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