By Adam Gibson | Assistant News Editor
Coming out of a split series at Houston, Baylor softball is set to take on the Iowa State Cyclones in Ames, Iowa, for its last away series of the regular season in a three-game series Friday through Sunday afternoon.
Head coach Glenn Moore said this final road trip of the season will be no easy task.
“We’ve been on the road a lot this year and this is the last one of the regular season,” Moore said. “Playing a team that’s much better than they have been in previous years. Coming off a big win last night. I’ve said it over and over that we just have to keep getting better and I think we’ve been doing that over the last couple of weeks.”
Moore added that the split series with Houston didn’t do too much to slow down the Bears (30-14, 7-6), but the team did not perform as cleanly as it wanted, due to switching up roles of key players in the game.
“I don’t think it hurts us a ton. It would help us to have won it,” Moore said. “We were mixing some people in there and trying to knock off some rust and hoping we could still come away with a win there. But we also knew Houston was possibly better than us with their No. 1, especially when we saw they were throwing their No. 1 in the second game. And that was their purpose … So, I don’t think it’s devastating. And I believe that you have to risk losing a game here or there to be as strong as you can in postseason. That was our idea in putting in a few players that hadn’t played a whole lot.”
Outfielder Jessie Scroggins agreed with Moore that the Cyclones (22-25, 3-9) are not a team to be taken lightly, especially with their recent success. She said it’s important to start the series strong.
“We can’t take Iowa State for granted,” Scroggins said. “They’re on a four-game winning streak, so we have to make sure we’re prepared and ready to go when we head there.”
Scroggins, who was drafted by The Chicago Bandits on Monday night, is finishing up her senior year before she heads to the professional level.
“I will pursue that. When I’m done I’ll head out there. It meant a lot. I’m really excited. I’m glad Chicago picked me up, and I’m just really excited that I’m getting the opportunity,” Scroggins said.
Infielder Shelby Friudenberg added on to the challenge that Iowa State poses for the Bears on the road. While it may be tough to go play a team who is on a winning streak at home, Friudenberg said the Bears’ momentum could help push them to play well and put up a fight against the Cyclones this weekend.
“We can’t overlook anyone so going into this weekend, we’re going to do what we can and play Baylor softball, try to focus on us more than the competition,” Friudenberg said. “I think so. Going into this weekend, we split with Houston, but we played both good games up there so if we can keep the good momentum going, we’ll be on track.
Moore praised the Cyclones for the recent success it has had in the past few years. He commended not only the skill the Cyclones have, but also their tendency to compete in every game.
“They’ve had a change in coaches two years in a row now. I think they’ve invested in their program,” Moore said. “They’re doing a great job recruiting and bringing in better talent. I think that’s the best thing, the key right there. They have a couple of arms. This game is played in the circle for the most part and they have couple of arms that keep them in games.”
