Texas A&M (13-13, 1-7 SEC) couldn't outscore visiting Kentucky in Game 2 of the third SEC series of the season, falling 14-11 in a game that lasted over four hours and was filled with exciting offense for the opposing fan base toward the latter half of the matchup.
Due to the harsh winds in College Station, star outfielder Jace LaViolette became Texas A&M's all-time home run leader in his first at-bat of the afternoon, launching a fastball for the 57th time in his impressive and now historic collegiate career. Paired with the return of outfielder Caden Sorrell, luck struck twice as the sophomore hit a 2-run homer during his first appearance of the season.
On the mound, junior Justin Lamkin was shaky throughout and couldn't hold onto the Aggies' 3-1 lead after Cole Hage hit his 2-run homer to tie things up at 3-3. As I stated in the intro, wind was a definite factor in the score, which continued to go back and forth after Wyatt Henseler and Ben Royo hit Texas A&M's third and four home runs of the day to take a 6-5 lead, which ended up being their last.
After Lamkin was relieved for sophomore Clayton Freshcorn, his day was quickly finished after giving up three runs in the top of the sixth, leading to Luke Jackson, Cade McCoy, and Brad Rudis allowing four more earned runs in another poor bullpen performance.
However, the Aggies stormed back to get within one run after catcher Bear Harrison's dazzling season at the plate continued, hitting a grand slam, making it five home runs on the year for the Saint Mary's transfer.
The only bright spot on the afternoon was Texas A&M's offense finding some life after scoring nine runs on Friday, recording 11 hits and five home runs, while Terrence Kiel's bases-loaded walk gave Caden Sorrell a chance to win the game in the bottom of the ninth.
It's now imminent for the Aggies to win on Sunday to gain any momentum heading into next week.
Texas A&M will host Kentucky in Game 3 on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. CT. The game will stream on SEC Network+.
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Texas A&M loses to Kentucky 14-11 in Game 2 on Saturday afternoon
