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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (May 5, 1986)
Monday, May 5, 1986/The Battalion/Page 7 Sports Ags ‘horn in’ on SWC title with TCU sweep Houston helps A8cM by tripping UT By Tom Tagliabue Spoi ls Writer Stranger tilings have happened during a Southwest Conference baseball series, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find one as odd as the series between Texas A&M and the TCU Horned Frogs at Olsen Field. The 2-1,7-5 and 5-3 sweep by the 14-ranked Aggies gave them a share of the confer- ence title with the Texas Long- BQSOl>Oll horns, who failed to get two wins wmmmmmmmmmtmm over Houston which would have given them sole pos session of first. Even though it was the Frogs who helped the Ags, 39-21 and l(i-5, in the win column, it was the Houston Cougars who did A&M the biggest favor, upsetting conference leader Texas 5-3 and 4-2 Sunday in the fi nal games for Houston Head Coach Rolan Walton, who announced his retirement earlier this season. It was not an easy road for the Aggies, who had to come back from a five-run deficit early in the first game of Sunday’s double-header. A&M’s Darryl Fry started the Sunday opener and lasted only '/» of an inning, giving up all five TCU runs on four hits, including a two-run home run by former Aggie Bubba Jackson. Pat Wernig was called on to quell the rally after Fry faced the first seven TCU hitters and managed only one out. Wernig picked up the last two outs in the first and held the Frogs scoreless the rest of the way, scat tering six hits through 6% innings. A&M picked up one run in the third and moved within one of TCU on Jeff Schow’s three-run round- tripper in the fourth. It was Schow’s 10th homer of the year. A&M took the lead and the game in the fifth with a three-run rally. TCU starter Dwayne Williams came out after he is sued Pat James and Fred Gegen back-to-back walks. Don Wren greeted reliever Chris Cauley with an RBI single and Maury Martin followed with a two-run dou ble. TCU Coach Bragg Stockton yanked Cauley and hvought vu jhu Blune to finish the game. Wernig improved his record to 6-2 overall and 3-1 in the SWC, while Williams took the loss, dropping to 7-4 and 2-4. Again, the finale started out with a first-inning TCU I rally, but A&M starter Gary Geiger allowed only one run on an RBI double and picked a runner off first roll j base. A&M moved ahead in the second with a three-run rally. With one out in the second and James on third, Robi Chandler took two balls from TCU starter Kerry Knox and drove his third offering over the left-field fence f or his fourth homer of the year. Andy Duke, starting in place of Scott Livingstone at third base, singled to chase Knox. Tim Mauser came in, walked Wren and gave up an RBI single to Ever Magallanes. Both teams went scoreless until the seventh, al though the Ags did threaten in the fourth, when they left the bases loaded, and in the fifth, when a missed squeeze bunt turned into a rally-ending double-play. TCU cut the score to 3-2 in the seventh on Darren T horpe’s RBI double. The Aggies answered the TCU threat with a two- run seventh to make it 5-2. Mike Scanlin doubled off the wall in dead-center field and scored on Gegen’s RBI double. Mauser left in favor of Glenn Serviente, who picked up an out before Martin singled to center to score Ge- gen. TCU mounted a threat in the ninth against Geiger, but he allowed only one run in the final inning to hold of f the Frogs and give the Aggies their first conference title since 1978. Geiger, 6-4 and 4-1, scattered eight hits and struck out five batters in the complete game effort. Knox fell to 1-4 and 0-2. A&M's second year Head Coach Mark Johnson praised his team’s effort. “No question, Houston helped us,” Johnson said, “but I don’t want that to overshadow what these guys have done. Our guys had enough courage to get it back up. We did talk about (the possiblity of Texas los ing to Houston), but we talked about it being a long shot. “It would be tragic for us not to take care of our business here if it did happen. The guys got ready — and I don’t want to be an T-told-you-so,’ but I told them, the first game against Texas and the last game against TCU may be just as equally important. “It was kind of a little surprise this week. We didn’t anticipate having that much help from Houston. It feels really good, but the championship goes to the players." Senior captain Mike Scanlin, who won the Saturday series opener with his two-run homer, said the sweep of TCU and winning the conference title is exciting. “(The wins) brought out the little kid in me again,” Scanlin said. “I went out there and just started having fun again, remembering how much fun it was to win, to hit, to make catches and to be with the guys. I think that’s been the whole key, is that we’ve gone out there and had fun together as a group.” But the player who got the most satisfaction from the series was Chandler, who had struggled at the plate all year. “I have been struggling and you just have to get the confidence going,” Chandler said. “I know I can do it. I know I can hit the ball as hard as anybody. I just have A&M’s Robi Chandler throws to first to complete a double play as TCU’s Drew Watkins slides into to get up there and tell myself, T want to hit the ball hard and I’m going to.’ “I belted it. I hit that ball as hard as I could hit it. I knew it (was gone) right when I hit it.” Johnson said the pitching staff deserves a lot of credit for keeping the Ags in the games throughout the year. “The pitchers are really the ones who have kept us second. Chandler also cracked the winning home run to take Game 3 from the Horned Frogs. in the games every weekend,” Johnson said. “We’ve gotten clutch hits out of different people, but the pitchers are the ones that always gave us a chance to win. Coach (Jim) Lawler’s done a tremendous job and deserves a lot of credit, but the bottom line is, cham- ; pionships are won by the players and they’re the ones who have had to get ready to play and got it up and did it.” DEADLINE! Faculty advisors and students should make sure that their stu dent organizations are participat ing in 4r MSC OPEN HOUSE 4r 4-8 p.m. Sept, 7, 1986 MSC Open House is the four hour I showcase of over 200 student or- ganizations. It traditionally has been the best way to recruit new members. Make sure your group is registered before the August 15 deadline. Applications are avail able in room 216 of the MSC. For more information, call Ruth Franks, Open House Chairman or Terry Marsaw, program advisor, at 845-1515. BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL? Qtudy QpeciaQ Domino’s Pizza has a special for you! Anytime, day or night, during dead week and finals week you can get a small one-item pizza for only $4 95 !! Our campus stores will stay open one hour late during both weeks for your studying convenience. Remember— Domino's Pizza Delivers® Free! No coupon necessary. Not good with any other offer. 693-2335 1504 Holleman South Campus 260-9020 4407 Texas Ave. S. North Campus