The last time that Ryan Prager started a game in the College World Series, it resulted in an elimination for Texas A&M in 2022. So as the Aggies pitcher was determined to come out strong as he prepared to start Monday’s contest against Kentucky.
It certainly showed as Prager came out with a vengeance to set the tone for A&M’s defense. He pitched a no-hitter through the first six innings before giving up a pair of hits in the bottom of the seventh and ending his day.
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He earned the win as the Aggies emerged with a 5-1 victory to advance to the winners bracket and earn an extra day off before their next game. The pitcher joined ESPN for a postgame interview, where he explained what it meant for him to play the way he did given how his last game in Omaha ended.
“It meant a lot,” Prager said. “I kind of had a sour taste after last time here. So to toe the rubber here at the Chuck was awesome.”
Prager finished the contest with four strikeouts and still did not give up a run during his time in the game. Kentucky was held scoreless up until the ninth inning when it finally managed one run, but overall it was a solid outing for the A&M defense.
Prager admitted his performance wasn’t perfect, and actually said he felt like he took a bit to settle in. Once he did, however, it was smooth sailing.
“I thought early I didn’t really have feel for a lot of stuff,” he said. “That’s how it goes sometimes. I thought we competed well through it and eventually got everything good enough to have some success and overall as a group had a lot of fun.”
The Aggies themselves were scoreless through the first five innings before an explosion in the sixth in which they scored all five of their runs. Hayden Schott drove in the first two runs with a two-RBI double and finished the game 3-for-5 at the plate.
With the win, Texas A&M is now just one more victory away from punching its ticket to the College World Series final. Knowing the way things ended before, Prager is soaking in every moment.
“Just a lot of gratitude,” he said. “We’re super grateful to be here in this position. To have that and come off and have our fans cheering, that was really special.”
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