WACO, Texas – The North Carolina A&T Aggies dropped the series-opener against the Baylor Bears, 6-0, on Thursday night inside Baylor Ballpark in a rare mid-season, non-conference baseball matchup against a Power Five institution.

The loss puts A&T at 7-18 while the Bears improve to 15-10.

"We got better as the game went on, but the story of the night is that we didn't really give ourselves any opportunities offensively," said head coach Ben Hall. "No rhythm, no strong, quality at-bats, so that hurt." 

Senior right-hander Michael Johnson (0-5) got the nod for A&T but did not get the start he wanted. 

The Bears got to work quickly in the bottom of the first, rifling off four-straight hits, the last being a two-RBI single from catcher Andy Thomas. Jack Pineda scored the game's first run. Jared McKenzie rounded third and would have stopped. But a fielding error by A&T in right field allowed him to make it a 2-0 ballgame.                            
An RBI sacrifice fly from Davion Downey plated the third run of the inning. 

The Bears knocked three more hits in the second and, coupled with another A&T error, scored two more runs to extend their lead to 5-0. 

The Aggies got their first hit of the game in the third inning when senior catcher Ryne Stanley singled through the left side. Senior shortstop Dustin Baber reached on a Baylor error to follow. A groundout from sophomore outfielder Cameran Brantley put both runners in scoring position, but freshman infielder Trevor Sheehan flew out to end the frame. 

Johnson settled in and blanked the Bears over the next three innings before being relieved by sophomore southpaw Daniel Carter. Johnson went 5.0 innings and allowed five runs, only two earned, on eight hits with four strikeouts.

 "Mikey settled in and kept competing," said Hall. "He's going to give up some runs at times, and he did, but defensively in that second inning, that hurt us to give up a couple of unearned runs. It could have easily been a two-run game as opposed to a five-run game."

The Aggies mustered just four hits on the night, highlighted by junior outfielder Justin Rodriguez's sixth-inning double. He was 1-for-4 on the day and had the lone extra-base hit for A&T.

Junior lefty Tyler Thomas pitched a complete game for Baylor, going 9.0 innings and striking out eight in 123 pitches.                             

The Aggies and Bears will play a doubleheader tomorrow, a seven-inning game followed by a nine-inning contest, with the first beginning at 3 p.m. ET.

"That's what baseball is," said Hall. "You have to have a short memory and get up with a new mindset tomorrow, and we have to eliminate the mistakes in key innings. You have runners on, you have to get off the field, and you have to make the plays. Somebody's got to stand out and be the guy in certain situations."