By Ben Everett | Sports Editor
No. 16-ranked Baylor softball took home third place at the Getterman Classic Sunday afternoon at Getterman Stadium after defeating Southern Miss 4-3.
The Lady Bears (7-4) went 2-0 on day one of the tournament, defeating Sam Houston State 7-0 and Southern Miss 3-1 on Friday.
In the win over Sam Houston State, sophomore pitcher Sidney Holman and junior pitcher Regan Green combined for a one-hit shutout of the Bearkats. The Lady Bears jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning thanks to RBIs by sophomore utility player Goose McGlaun’s and freshman outfielder Ana Watson’s, and Baylor never looked back.
Holman said the Baylor pitching and defense worked together to pull off the 7-0 shutout.
“We all just worked together really well today, and I think it’s going to be a great season,” Holman said. “My adrenaline was definitely pumping, but it was a good game, and I had a good defense backing me up. So, it really helped.”
The second game of day one started off slowly, but freshman infielder Kassidy Krupit broke the tie with an RBI single in the third inning. After McGlaun tacked on another run with a double, Krupit cushioned the Lady Bears’ lead with her second RBI of the day in the bottom of the fifth to secure the 3-1 win.
On Saturday, the Lady Bears faced UT-Arlington before bracket play began. Baylor struggled on offense until late in the game. UTA took a 5-0 lead after six innings and held on for the 5-2 win.
In the first round of the tournament, Baylor and UTA faced off again. UTA stayed hot with a six-run eighth to propel them to a 10-2 win.
In the third-place game against Southern Miss, Krupit got things started with an RBI single in the first inning. The Lady Bears scored again in the third inning, but Southern Miss took a 3-2 lead in the fifth inning. Baylor responded in the bottom of the fifth when Josie Bower notched an RBI single and then scored on an error to give the Lady Bears a 4-3 lead that they would never surrender.
Baylor head coach Glenn Moore said the Lady Bears have a lot of room for improvement.
“When we relax and see what this team has done in practice situations, I think we’ll be much better,” Moore said. “But we’re a long way from that right now. But it’s early in the season and we know the youth of this team.”
Next up the Lady Bears will host the Baylor Invitational from Feb. 22 to 24 at Getterman Stadium.
