le Battalion
Sports
Page 13 • Tuesday, May 4, 1999
(Aggies
E own
lorns
MIKE FUENTES/The Battalion
Senior first baseman John Scheschuk dives for a foul ball during the Aggies’ game
against the University of Texas Friday at Olsen Field. The A&M Baseball Team
bounced back from Friday’s loss to take both games from the Longhorns in Austin.
BY DOUG SHILLING
The Battalion
For a team to be considered champi-
iship caliber, it has to meet certain re-
lirements — two of the biggest being
well they play on the road and how
^â– ell they bounce back from adversity.
I The top-ranked Texas A&M Baseball
showed it was a championship-cal-
^Her team this weekend, bouncing back
fr n a dismal performance Friday against
( University of Texas at Olsen Field to
t two games from the Longhorns at
:h-Falk Field in Austin to win the series,
t was the first time since 1978 that the
ies (42-11,21-5 Big 12) won two con-
itive games at Disch-Falk.
coach Mark Johnson said win-
l two straight on the road is a testa-
it to the the character of his team.
Well, you wouldn’t have bet the house
t but these guys haven’t let us down
/ear,” Johnson said. “We’ve had bad
sTHEBcMjtingg like everyone else, but we always
returns ftunce back well. The character of this
ijor,ins team has always been good.”
I The teams’ character was definitely
Usted after Friday night’s debacle at Olsen
â– eld. In front of the largest crowd to ever
|*itness an Aggie baseball game, 11,052 in
'TIAInd outside of Olsen, A&M responded was
J bi vn out by the Longhorns 18-6 in sev-
ted w eh innings.
aander. I Senior first baseman John Scheschuk,
1st InfarMho played his final regular season se-
1. against Texas, said the loss was one
lave bee °i the most unbearable things he has
at the: ; been through.
1 detemJi “I was sick,” he said. “It was one of the
/Borst feelings I’ve ever had in sports in a
sperson ling time. They embarrassed us.”
The ’Horns jumped on junior Casey
Possum for five runs in the first inning, and
never let up, scoring at least one run in
every inning played. In his worst outing of
the season, Possum (8-5) gave up 11 runs
on 12 hits with only two strikeouts in 3 1/3
innings pitch.
In the only bright spot for the Aggies,
sophomore right fielder Daylan Holt set
the season home run record for the Aggies
with his three-run home run in the bottom
of the seventh.
Johnson said Texas jumped on the Ag
gies and never gave them a chance to
breathe.
“It was a nightmare,” Johnson said.
“You go out there with your ace on the
mound and then give up five runs in the
first inning. We tried to chip our way back,
but we could never put a goose egg on
them. Things didn’t fall right for us.”
Things almost did not fall right for
the Aggies Saturday night either as the
bullpen blew a 6-1 lead in the eighth in
ning but used a three-run home run by
senior designated hitter Erik Sobek in
the top of the 10th inning to defeat the
Longhorns 10-6.
After junior third baseman Dell Lind
sey hit a two-run double in the 10th to give
the Aggies a 7-6 lead, Sobek came up and
applied the hit that put the game out of
reach.
Lindsey said Sobek’s homer was a
clutch one for the Aggies.
“You gotta love that guy coming
through like that in the clutch,” Lindsey
said. “My hit gave us the lead, but that re
ally boosted us into the win.”
Sobek said he was just looking for a
pitch that he could hit.
“I was just looking to drive a pitch,”
Sobek said. “I wanted to hit something
hard, and I was able to get a pitch to dri
ve. It feels great. I was happy to do it and
happy to help the team out and get a vic
tory.”
In Sunday’s final game, the Aggies rode
senior pitcher Matt Ward to a 10-1 victory.
Ward kept the Longhorn hitters off bal
ance all day as he did not allow a run un
til the eighth inning as the Aggies wrapped
up the series.
Ward (5-0) pitched a complete game
for A&M, scattering 10 hits, with four
strikeouts and no walks.
Scheschuk said the series win by the
Aggies showed what the team is made of.
“What we showed this weekend was
more than I think we could have ever
dreamed of,” Scheschuk said. “We
showed that we could come back in the
toughest of situations, and we responded
by winning two games.
“I don’t care what anyone says, when
we hook up with the ’Horns, it’s different
than any other team. These guys came to
play three times this weekend, and we just
withstood everything they had, and we
were able to get after it.”
A&M javelins soar
at Texas Invitational
BY TOM KENNEDY
The Battalion
The Texas A&M Men’s and Women’s Track
Teams returned from the Texas Invitational in
Austin Saturday after a strong showing which
included numerous qualifying times and win
ning performances.
The meet, which was unscored, was high
lighted by a 1-2 finish from sophomore Esther
Eisenlauer and freshman Katy Doyle in the
javelin throw. Eisenlauer threw for 160 feet and
8 inches to land her fifth NCAA provisional
qualifying mark this season and a win in the
event. Doyle’s toss of 153-5 was good for sec
ond place.
Texas A&M track and field coach Ted Nelson
said he expects to see Eisenlauer and Doyle,
who are both nationally ranked, improve their
distance as they begin to taper their workouts
for conference competition.
“They’re working really hard right now try
ing to peak,” Nelson said. “(Assistant Track and
Field Coach Juan de la Garza and I] think after
they res,t their distance will increase. ”
Senior Kelli Schrader was the top collegian
in the discus with a season-best mark of 161-2,
and sophomore Meshell TVotter placed second
in the hammer throw with a distance of 169-8
to help make the throws a bright spot for the
women.
In running events, junior Ann Dwyer placed
second collegiately in the women’s 800-meter
run with a time of two minutes 10.37 seconds
while sophomore Christina Ohaeri placed sec
ond in the 100-meter hurdles with a provision
al qualifier of 13.46 seconds.
The 1,600-meter relay team, made up of ju
niors Johan Lannefors and TVavis McAshan and
seniors Derrick Woods and Michael Price, pro
vided a spark for the men’s team as they won
their event in 3 minutes 6.01 seconds, nearly six
seconds ahead of second place Brigham Young
University.
McAshan was also the top collegian in the
400-meter hurdles after finishing in 50.82 sec
onds, while Price placed third among college
competitors in the 200-meter dash with a pro
visional qualifying time of 20.84 seconds.
SALLIE TURNER/The Battalion
A&M freshman Erica Boren competes in the
women’s pole vault April 10 at the Texas A&M
Invitational at the Anderson Complex.
The men’s 400-meter relay grabbed second
place collegiately and third overall behind the
University of Texas and second place Team
Canada. They rounded the oval in a provision
al qualifying time of 39.89 seconds.
In field events, senior Kendall Madden
placed third in the pole vault after clearing 16
feet 6 3/4 inches while Bashir Ramzy placed
third in the triple jump with a leap of 50 feet 3
inches.
Sophomore Aaron Smith placed fourth in the
men’s decathlon after racking up 6,787 points
during the two-day event.
Both squads will resume competition this
weekend in College Station as the Aggies host
the A&M All-Comers Meet at the Anderson
Track and Field Complex.
TFYAQ A P, \/4 I_J A Q TWF
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