Jace LaViolette robbed Cade Kurland of a go-ahead home run in the ninth inning, Justin Lamkin and two relievers struck out 16 and Texas A&M held off Florida 3-2 in a weather-delayed College World Series opener that ended early Sunday.
The Aggies (50-13) will play Kentucky on Monday night in a Bracket 2 winners’ game. The Gators (34-29), the national runners-up to LSU last year, will meet North Carolina State in an afternoon elimination game.
Texas A&M scored its runs in the first three innings against Liam Peterson (3-5), the first freshman to start a CWS opener for Florida, and then relied on Lamkin, Chris Cortez (10-3) and Evan Aschenbeck to hold down the Gators’ high-powered offense.