Rain or Shine: How Texas A&M Battled Through Weather, Extra Innings to Secure Victory Over Arkansas

Despite inclement weather leading up to their first pitch, the Texas A&M Aggies endured an 11-inning game against the Arkansas Razorbacks and eventually came out victorious in dramatic fashion.

May 16, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies outfielder Jace LaViolette exits the dugout prior to his team's game against the Arkansas Razorbacks. / Matt Guzman - AllAggies on SI

"A little rain never hurt nobody."

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COLLEGE STATION — Three kids leaned over the railing at the bottom of the hill where the third-base bleachers are located at Olsen Field.

To their left, a security guard watched as they yelled out to Texas A&M Aggies players emerging from the dugout for the first time of the evening. In front of them, a slew of the roster had already begun throwing and getting warm. That's when Jace LaViolette began his trot over to them.

"Jace! Jace!" they yelled. "Can we take a picture with you?"

As the Aggies' sophomore made his way to the railing, he told them to take the photo "quick," as he had to begin warming up himself, so they obliged. LaViolette threw a signature thumb-up for the photo, smiled and joined the rest of his teammates.

On any other gameday, an interaction like that was normal. Expected, even. But for LaViolette — and the rest of Texas A&M's roster — it was a sight to behold. They were just glad to see fans in person.

"We were all sitting [around] at like 5 p.m. (a few hours prior to what was supposed to be first pitch on Thursday evening) not knowing what the crowd would look like," Aggies pitcher Ryan Prager said following the game. "[We thought] people were probably going to be at home. Maybe [they'd] just watch from their couch, but that the crowd is elite. That might even be an understatement."

A rain delay stemming from a downpour in College Station throughout the day Thursday kept the Aggies from playing the Arkansas Razorbacks at the agreed-upon start time. By 7 p.m., they had hoped to see a packed Blue Bell Park awaiting the first pitch to kick off a top-five matchup.

May 16, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies pitcher Ryan Prager winds up before a pitch. / Matt Guzman - AllAggies on SI

Instead, the stadium was sparse, rain lingered in the air and the start time was unclear.

Rumor had it that Aggies coach Jim Schlossnagle was willing to delay the first pitch all the way until 9:45 if it came to that. Just a few weeks prior, his squad — due to inclement weather — had to play a doubleheader against the Georgia Bulldogs, which ended up being a 2-1 series in favor of the Aggies amid some controversial pitching antics from their visitors.

Despite the win, Texas A&M knew it wanted to avoid another two-game day with Arkansas in town.

"When you're told that you're going to play or you're going to pitch on this day, you want to play," Prager stated simply. "The competitive spirit in me wants to play, wants to compete."

Luckily, Schlossnagle, Prager and the rest of the Aggies got to play.

And it payed off, too.

Rain or Shine: Walking-Off The Hogs

It didn't take long for the rain to kick back up after it had been mostly clear an hour prior to first pitch.

As camera crews rushed from the sidelines to cover, fans pulled out their rain jackets to keep themselves as dry as they could be, but the Aggies never faltered. Granted, the rain didn't last for long, but in the moment, there wasn't any telling how long it would stay. Both teams had to be prepared for anything, though that wasn't anything new.

In fact, the Aggies had been prepping for what would become a "weird" day and game from the moment they woke up.

"We knew weather would be at play," Prager said. "We knew that even going to bed last night, but when I woke up this morning, the day just kind of felt weird. ... We got [to Olsen] at about 3 p.m., and we were told that we wouldn't start before 8 p.m."

May 16, 2024; College Station, Texas; USA: Texas A&M Aggies infielder Jack Bell during warm-ups prior to facing the Arkansas Razorbacks. / Matt Guzman - AllAggies on SI

So, as the team awaited final word on the game's status, they relaxed. Turned baseball "off."

"I went upstairs and laid on the couch," Prager explained. "Then, I started moving around as [if it were] an 8 p.m. game ... but then, we were told they were going to push back to 8:30, so [we were] just constantly adjusting."

Whatever the start time was, however, Prager made sure to be ready when it finally was time to throw the first pitch. And as he took the mound for the first time in the evening, everything came to fruition.

The Aggies were not only playing, but they were playing at home in front of a crowd that hadn't seen them in a conference series since April 27.

"To be able to be a little more comfortable in front of a crowd that's probably the best fan base in the country [was nice]," Prager said following the game. "Just to be able to stay in our normal routine that we would follow [for] ... midweek games was super nice."

Prager threw his first pitch: a ball hit foul. Then, his second: a ball. Two more fouled-off pitches followed by another ball led to a 2-2 count. That's when the pitcher notched his first strikeout.

May 16, 2024; College Station, Texas; USA: Texas A&M Aggies pitcher Ryan Prager winds up for a pitch in the fifth inning. / Matt Guzman - AllAggies on SI

Two more batters followed suit — completing a three-up, three-down for Prager — to send the top-of-the-order for the Aggies up to bat, but it became clear rather quickly that pitching was going to tell the story of the entire game. Texas A&M's bats had been dormant compared to its start to the season, so whether or not it could hold Arkansas to minimal runs was going to be a big priority.

The Aggies gave Hagen Smith three strikeouts back to conclude the first inning. From there, the All-American MLB prospect continued to tear through the Aggies' offensive order, ultimately finishing the game with 14 strikeouts and a shutout while on the mound.

"I've coached the only college pitcher to pitch in the College World Series and the Major League World Series (TCU alum-turned Kansas City Royal Brandon Finnegan) in the same year," Schlossnagle said of facing a prospect like Smith. "We said in the locker room that Smith is going to be pitching in October."

The battle between both squads continued well into Thursday evening — even threatening to be a past-midnight ordeal — and neither team was able to score as the ninth inning came and went. Extra innings ensued, giving the Aggies validation for their mindset entering the series.

"We knew [it] was going to be a dogfight," Aggies infielder Ted Burton said. "The series has been anticipated all year long, so [we're] just doing our best not to play the opponent, but play the game.

"That's a big deal with us. We just play our game; we know we can be anyone."

The Aggies did end up beating the Razorbacks, giving them a 1-0 series lead heading into two more games on Friday and Saturday. And it came down to two plays.

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Arkansas had a runner on second and two outs to work with in the top of the 11th inning.

Like Texas A&M, it hadn't been able to find any momentum to get a scoring run going. Sure, it was able to reach base and threaten to do so, but nothing ever came of it. With both teams exhausted, however, that reality was seemingly about to change.

As Ryder Helfrick stepped up to bat, his one goal was to bring in his teammate on second. A few pitches into the at-bat, and that was made clear. He swung at three straight pitches, resulting in three straight strikes to retire him and bring up Jake Faherty — his team's last chance with the same goal.

Faherty nearly did it, sending the second pitch he received far enough to breach the home-run wall, which would have put the Razorbacks up by two runs. He had enough power on it.

But Caden Sorrell had better positioning.

The freshman backpedaled to the warning track as he watched the ball carry to scoring range, putting his glove up in an attempt to save the inning for the Aggies, and as he hit the foam lining, it wasn't immediately clear if he had come down with it or not.

"My hands flew straight in the air," Burton explained, recounting his reaction following the play. "I saw him getting to the warning track over [by] the wall. We expect that out of him now, at this point. He's such a stud out there."

SUPER SORRELL STRIKES AGAIN 🤯🤯🤯 @ESPNAssignDesk #GigEm x #SCTop10 x @CadenSorrell pic.twitter.com/F86KuuKmlH

— Texas A&M Baseball (@AggieBaseball) May 17, 2024

Sorrell did make the catch and give the Aggies one more chance to score, less they risk going into inning 12, and all of a sudden, the atmosphere in the park reached another level.

You could almost feel the collective breathing from each fan watching nervously.

"I just love how knowledgeable the fanbase is," Schlossnagle said of the home crowd. "Like, they can feel when it's a big pitch. They can feel when it's a big moment."

May 16, 2024; College Station, Texas; USA: Texas A&M Aggies senior Ryan Targac tips his hat to the student section at Olsen Field. / Matt Guzman - AllAggies on SI

That it was. The Aggies were about to have their turn on offense — a run winning the game.

To add to the dramatic fashion, they almost didn't get it.

Texas A&M registered a strike-out for their first mark of the inning, followed by Grant Grahovac being walked. LaViolette — fittingly — singled to the left-side line near where he had greeted the three kids prior to the game to advance Grahovac to third, and then stole second as Braden Montgomery struck out swinging. Suddenly, Jackson Appel was up to bat with two outs.

He was intentionally walked — a move Schlossnagle admitted wasn't surprising — sending up Burton for the Aggies' last chance. The game rested on him.

"I had tunnel vision for a quick second," Burton said of his final at-bat. "But then, as soon as I stepped out, it was just like a football stadium. Hats off to The 12th Man ... they stayed through the delays."

May 16, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies infielder Ted Burton steps into the batter's box. / Matt Guzman - AllAggies on SI

With the series opener on the line, what was going through his mind? How big of a moment did he feel it was?

Simply put, he knew it was big. But he'd been in high-pressure situations before.

"I wanted to see his cutter first, so I let him get one over the plate," Burton said. "I [had] also seen him spike a few in warm-ups ... so, I was really selective."

Luckily, the moment seemed to be too big for Arkansas' big-time prospect Will McEntire. After throwing a strike to start off the matchup, he finished with four straight balls. Walking Appel just before loaded the bases, so the fourth ball meant Texas A&M had scored. It had won.

"Teddy put together a really professional at-bat," Schlossnagle said, commending Burton for forcing the walk. "It helped having the bases loaded because there's nowhere else to go."

"That game took years off my life," Burton said with a smile. "Staying locked in for a long time was tough, but as soon as we got rolling, we just did our best to win pitch-by-pitch."

Winning the game completed a day filled with adjustments and uncertainty. It showed the Aggies' resilience and dedication to victory. Sorrell's play showed commitment, Burton's at-bat showed maturity and the dog-pile that followed the walk-off win showed camaraderie.

It was all on display Thursday.

"It comes back to [the fact that] this team is really special," Prager said of his team's efforts. "For us, it's about being the same team. Day in, day out, win or lose ... it's the same group of guys every day. Same character, same personalities. Nothing changes whether the game goes great or the game goes poorly."

And Arkansas amidst all of this?

"We just couldn’t get that big hit," Its coach, Dave Van Horn, said. "We needed a big hit and we didn’t get it. Really, they didn’t get a big hit either. We walked them in. So it was disappointing."

As the Aggies prepare for battle for a second and third time against the Razorbacks, they know it will be a battle of heart, but also details. Getting the small things right will need to sit atop the list of to-dos if they want to knock off Arkansas again and take the series — or twice more for the SEC West.

Everything was laid out for both sides in Game 1. Now, it's up to each squad to capitalize.

Ever the competitors, the Aggies are ready to do that.

"We always say 'Shower well'," Burton said. "Once this game's over — good or bad — shower well. It's over. Head hits the pillow. It's a new day tomorrow."