Howard delivers again as TCU knocks out A&M, stays alive in Omaha

(TNS) — Needing a win to stay alive at the College World Series, TCU turned to Brian Howard, who never loses in the NCAA Tournament.

The senior right-hander kept it that way.

Howard matched a career-high with 12 strikeouts in seven innings, and Omaha native Ryan Merrill homered to lead TCU to a 4-1 victory against Texas A&M in an elimination game, bouncing the Aggies from postseason for a third consecutive year.

The Horned Frogs (48-17) will play another elimination game at 7 p.m. Thursday against the Louisville-Florida loser.

Texas A&M (41-23) lost to TCU for the seventh time in the last nine meetings, including Super Regional losses in 2015 and 2016. That stretch includes a 2012 regional loss in College Station and a regular season tournament loss in Houston this season.

Howard (12-3), an eighth-round pick of the Oakland Athletics last week, won his sixth consecutive NCAA Tournament start and his second in two years at the College World Series. He tied a career high with 12 strikeouts and lowered his career NCAA postseason ERA to 1.87.

In two College World Series starts, Howard is 2-0 with a 1.10 earned run average, three walks and 19 strikeouts in 12.2 innings. He defeated national champion Coastal Carolina last season in Omaha.

Merrill, a senior shortstop, led off the third inning with a home run to the back of the bullpen in right field at TD Ameritrade Park, located 18 miles west of Millard West High School, where he starred before spending two years at Iowa Western and then coming to TCU.

It was the sixth home run of the season for Merrill and gave TCU a 2-0 lead against A&M starter Stephen Kolek.

The Frogs added two more runs in the inning on Evan Skoug’s double to right center (his seventh extra-base hit in NCAA postseason) to score Zach Humphreys, who was hit by a pitch, and Elliott Barzilli’s single to right to score Skoug.

Connor Wanhanen had a first inning RBI on a ground ball for TCU.

The Aggies got their run on Braden Shewmake’s ground ball to second base in the sixth inning, scoring Austin Homan after Cole Bedford’s double.