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Sports

Cougars to take a swing at Aggies

UH hopes to get back on track after recent setbacks

by LOUIE VERA
The Daily Cougar

The Cougar baseball team starts a nine-game road trip with a matchup against Baseball America No. 16 Texas A&M at 7 p.m. tonight at Olsen Field. 

UH (19-16, 6-3 Conference USA) hopes to bounce back after dropping two of three games to crosstown rival No. 7 Rice in the Silver Glove Series last weekend at Cougar Field.

Freshman left-hander Donnie Joseph (0-0) is scheduled to take the mound for the Cougars. Joseph faced the Aggies on Feb. 10 in the Houston College Classic at Minute Maid Park and posted a solid outing.

He gave up only one unearned run on five hits in five innings of work. Despite Joseph's efforts, the Cougars fell to the Aggies 3-2.

UH senior third baseman Dustin Kingsbury said the Cougars' combination of offense and pitching should bode well against the Aggies and their home crowd. 

"It's like going on the road anywhere," Kingsbury said. "The Aggies play in a tough place. They have a lot of fan support, and (Olsen Field) is not a very traveler-friendly ballpark.

"We've matched up against them already once this year, and had a close game against them. I think our hitting and our pitching match up fairly well against them." 

This will be Joseph's eighth start of the season. So far, he has compiled a 6.25 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 36 innings. He is still in search of his first collegiate career decision through 13 appearances this season.

The Aggies will send senior southpaw Jason Meyer to the mound for his ninth start of the season. Meyer has earned a 4-0 record with a 5.89 ERA in 36.2 innings of work.

Meyer will have his work cut out for him against the Cougars, who have swung the bats well lately.

Sophomore outfielder Jimmy Cesario leads the way with a .368 batting average. He carries a career-high 13-game hitting streak into tonight's matchup.

A&M took two of three games last weekend against Missouri and has improved to 30-8 overall and 8-6 in the Big 12. 

Hot bats or not, the Aggies won't be an easy out for the Cougars. 

"It's going to be tough," sophomore catcher Luis Flores said. "(Today's) a big game.

"We're going to try our best and see if we can come out on top. If not, we're going to fight harder and just keep fighting."

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