By Jeffrey Swindoll
Sports Writer
Coming off two wins in a row, Baylor Baseball travelled up the down the road to San Marcos for their two-game series finale with Texas State.
The Bears grinded out their first road win last weekend, breaking a streak that nearly spanned the entire 2013-14 thus far. A massive burden was lifted off the shoulders of the Bears as they experienced huge boost in morale throughout the clubhouse.
However, the momentum of the two wins in a row did not translate into a win Wednesday night. The Bears dropped a 0-2 score line thanks to Texas State’s two-run eighth inning.
The action started quick for the Bears, as Brett Doe cracked a one-out double and reached third. It looked like another positive, fast start for the Bears.
Baylor was unable to hit Doe in for the go-ahead run though. The game would remain scoreless until the eighth inning.
Junior pitcher Sean Spicer got the nod from Baylor head coach Steve Smith for the starting job Wednesday night. Spicer came into this game winless (0-2) in 2014.
That first win for Spicer continued in it’s elusiveness Wednesday night, but they wasn’t much else he could have done to position his team better for a victory. Spicer did not give up any runs and threw a career-high 6 strikeouts.
Spicer gave the Bears the solid start they needed, but Baylor’s offense was unable to capitalize on it. It’s been the story of the season for Baylor– great start on the defensive end and inability to get the run supply behind the pitchers. If the runs don’t come in the first few innings, it is unlikely they will come in the late game for the Bears.
Baylor got men on base numerous times. It was simply a matter of getting them home, but that has proved to be a struggle for the Bears this season. It continued to be a prominent issue for them Wednesday night.
Spicer came out of the game on schedule for Smith, and on came senior pitcher Doug Ashby for relief.
Texas State finally gashed the Bears for their ineffective offense and errors in the eighth inning. So deep into the game, and already with not much offensive production, two runs surely was enough to put away the Bears. The damage was done in the eighth inning.
Ashby came off after giving up those two crucial runs. Texas State broke the deadlock and the Bears could not muster enough to counter punch.
In the next frame, the top of the ninth, Baylor came up empty, marking the end of their optimistic two-game streak.
The Bears return home for a Big 12 weekend series against Kansas. KU has performed as one of the conference’s top ball clubs this season.
First pitch for game one is at 6:35 p.m. Friday, 3:35 Saturday, 1:05 p.m. Sunday at Baylor Ballpark. The series will be televised on Fox Sports family networks.
