former team, TCU. The Aggies moved through the winners bracket of the regional, defeating Oral Roberts 8-2 and Louisiana, led by former A&M assistant Matt Deggs, 9-6. A&M needed a late-game rally, sparked by a home run from transfer outfielder Dylan Rock, to down the Horned Frogs 15-9 and advance to the super regionals. No. 9 Louisville, with their own potent offense, traveled to Blue Bell Park in what projected to be a firework offensive series. However, the Aggies proved they could win tight ballgames with 5-4 and 4-3 wins. A five-game walk through the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament were exactly what A&M needed for a deep postseason run. Though Schlossnagle was able to pull Texas Tech transfer Micah Dallas into the fold to join returner Nathan Dettmer in the starting rotation, the Aggies were short in starting pitching depth. A&M made a trip to Omaha for the first time since 2017 and were in search of its first College World Series win since 1993. That ever-elusive win was put on the line after A&M dropped a 13-8 opener to Oklahoma, who entered the tournament as one of the nation’s hottest teams. The loss was soothed by the opportunity to face rival Texas in Omaha for the first time in the two program’s storied histories and, ultimately, gave the Aggies the long-awaited win in a 10-2 victory in Charles Schwab
Field. Dallas gave the Aggies five innings of work, allowing one earned run with three strikeouts. Bost provided an RBI with two doubles in the game. “At the end of the day, It’s really just playing the game and playing a nameless opponent, but there is a little extra behind everything, especially when it’s Texas, because if you just look at the fan bases, there’s a lot of genuine hate between each other,” Dallas said after the game. “We kind of feed off it. It’s a lot of fun.” The Aggies doubled up their College World Series win total two days later with a 5-1 win over Notre Dame, punching a ticket to the semifinals and a rematch against Oklahoma. A three-run first for the Sooners in the semifinal matchup proved too much for the Aggies to overcome, in the 5-1 loss, but the Aggie’s ahead-of-schedule trip to the College World Series was the best springboard Schlossnagle could have hoped for in his first season in Aggieland. “They will forever be remembered as the team that reignited Texas A&M baseball and it’s our job now, mine included, to honor what they’ve started and continue to build on it,” Schlossnagle said. “It’s not going to be easy to repeat. I don’t care how many talented players you recruit. It’s hard to create the kind of synergy and leadership that this team was and we’ve got to start back at Ground Zero, starting right now.”
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