Miami rocks Texas A&M 14-1 despite rain delay

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — A cluster of palm trees beyond the right-field fence of Alex Rodriguez Park took a beating Saturday evening.

Partly from rain and wind that swept through the area late in the Texas A&M-Miami game. But mostly from baseballs the Hurricanes hammered into that grove.

Top-seeded Miami pounded second-seeded A&M 14-1 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, leaving the Aggies in a must-win state of mind the rest of the regional.

“They don't stop coming at you,” A&M coach Rob Childress said of Miami's lineup.

As lightning and rain closed in on the stadium, the public address announcer implored fans to “please take cover.”

Lawson hits three homers

The Aggies had already spent much of the night ducking, after the Hurricanes crushed five home runs to right, including a trio by first baseman Scott Lawson of Grapevine to tie a school record.

“Lawson hit three home runs against his home boys from Texas,” Miami coach Jim Morris said, smiling.

The Hurricanes (42-17) snapped a seven-game winning streak by the Big 12 tournament champions. The Aggies (41-20-1) must now win three consecutive games to advance to a super regional for the first time in two years.

“We had a bad day,” Childress said. “We can't have another one.”

The Aggies will face fourth-seeded Dartmouth, 15-9 winners over Florida International earlier Saturday, at 11 a.m. today in an elimination game. Childress said he'll turn to Clayton Ehlert (4-6) against the Big Green. The winner will then face Miami at 3 p.m. The last two teams will play a final game Monday night, if necessary, in the double-elimination tourney.

“Hopefully we'll be here for 18 innings (today), and get to stay for another night,” said Brodie Greene, who collected half of A&M's hits with two.

Fans of the fastball

The Aggies scored their lone run following a 2½-hour weather delay that took place in the seventh inning, and were shut down by Miami ace Chris Hernandez (9-3), a lefthander who struck out seven over six innings.

“He was as good as we've seen all year,” Childress said.

Meanwhile, A&M starter Ross Stripling (6-4) struggled from the start, in allowing eight hits and six runs over three innings.

“It seemed like they were on every single pitch I threw,” Stripling said. “I don't know if I was tipping my pitches, and I was having trouble throwing my curveball for a strike. It seemed like every time I threw a fastball, they were sitting on it.”

The Aggies last won three in a row to close out a regional three years ago, when they defeated Ohio State and Louisiana-Lafayette twice before advancing to a super regional.

“We've been in this situation before,” said Greene, then a freshman