Issue date: 2/25/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Jeremy Northum Freshman starter Ross Hales pitched five innings against Centenary Tuesday, holding the Gents to one run and two hits. [Click to enlarge]

Media Credit: Jeremy Northum Freshman shortstop Adam Smith makes a throw to first base in Texas A&M's game against Centenary on Tuesday at Olsen Field. Smith struck out four times during the game, but recorded four assists. [Click to enlarge]

The Texas A&M baseball team took advantage of an early Centenary error to take a 6-1 lead in the first inning in route to an 11-1 victory on Tuesday at Olsen Field.

The Aggies were coming off a 4-0 series against Wright State in which they had to come from behind in two of the games. A&M Head Coach Rob Childress said he was happy the team came out and took control early rather than having to respond to the Gents.

Freshman Ross Hales took the mound for the Aggies for his first career start. Hales gave up a home run to the second batter he faced, Gents' senior shortstop Ricky Imperialli, but then settled in for 4.2 scoreless innings of work. Earning the win, Hales struck out four and walked one.

Senior outfielder Kyle Colligan led off the first inning with a walk. Junior right fielder Brodie Greene was then hit by a pitch and both runners advanced one base when junior left fielder Dylan Petrich reached base on an error by Imperialli.

Imperialli had all three of Centenary's errors in the game.

After the error, senior first baseman Luke Anders hit a double to drive in Colligan and Greene. Petrich then scored on a sacrifice fly to right field from sophomore designated hitter Nick Fleece.

After a second out, sophomore third baseman Caleb Shofner was hit by a pitch and sophomore catcher Kevin Gonzalez hit a 419-foot home run over the centerfield wall to score Shofner and Anders.

"I'm feeling pretty confident," Gonzales said. "At the beginning of the season you always get those jitters and you just don't know what's going to happen. Lately I've just been real confident that I'm going to do whatever I can to get a hit."

Gonzalez is batting .333 and went 2-for-3 against the Gents, driving in four RBIs and scoring one run.

Shofner, who is wearing the No. 1 this season, is batting .917 after five games and has a .947 on base percentage. Shofner started wearing the number after former player Parker Dalton and Dane Carter had success wearing it.

The Aggies struck again in the third and fourth innings, posting two and three runs respectively.

Petrich hit a double in the fourth inning to move Greene to third base after he reached base on a lead off error. Petrich and Greene both scored when Anders hit a single up the gap.

"The coaches completely changed my stance and my swing," said Petrich, who is batting .600. "It's really been amazing the gains I've seen from it."

The Gents pulled starter Dakota Robinson after Anders' single. Robinson gave up 11 runs, five earned and eight hits to the Aggies. Centenary brought in reliever Boone Whiting, who shut down the Aggies in the next four innings, striking out 10.

"We struck out 15 times tonight, that's way too many," Childress said. "Against a good team in a tight game we're not going to come away with wins very often striking out that much."

A&M brought in freshman reliever Ross Stripling to close the game. Stripling struck out the side in the top of the eighth inning to improve the Aggies' record to 5-0.

The baseball team will play Centenary again Wednesday. The Gents will send right handed pitcher Joe Hagen to face junior right hander Scott Migl. Migl was 3-3 with a 4.62 ERA in 2008.

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