By Marquis Cooley | Sports Editor
The past weekend saw Baylor athletics taking on its conference foes with both men’s and women’s tennis and women’s golf competing in Big 12 tournaments, while baseball and softball battled Big 12 rivals. With such a jam-packed weekend, it’s easy to miss a few things, so here’s a rundown of everything that happened in case you missed it.
No. 4 MTEN triumphs in Big 12 tournament
The Big 12 Championship trophy will call Waco its home for the third-straight year, as No. 4 Baylor men’s tennis (26-3) claimed a 4-2 victory over No. 1 Texas Christian University (23-4) on Sunday in the Big 12 Championship final after beating the University of Texas 4-2 Saturday in the semifinals at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center in Fort Worth.
“This was one of the best college tennis matches I’ve been a part of, to be honest,” head coach Michael Woodson said. “They’re never going to forget this moment. And they frankly deserve it with everything that they’ve been through. I’m so proud of these guys.”
The Bears now await the NCAA Tournament beginning on May 6 and will find out their seeding in the NCAA Championship selection show on ncaa.com that will be announced at 6 p.m. CT on Monday.
No. 21 WTEN suffers loss in Big 12 quarterfinals
In its third matchup of the season, No. 4-seed Baylor women’s tennis dropped a 4-1 contest to No. 5-seed University of Kansas in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship Friday at Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center in Fort Worth.
“Ultimately, we’ll learn from it,” head coach Joey Scrivano said. “We’ll have a couple of good weeks of training and get ready for the NCAAs. This team has earned a spot in the field, and that’s always a big deal. We’re going to get back, get our minds right and be ready to play in the postseason.”
With the Baylor loss, the program moved to 37-17 all-time in the Big 12 Championships. The team now looks ahead to the selection show, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT Monday, streaming on ncaa.com.
No. 15 WGOLF falls short of Big 12 title, settles for second place
A rough Saturday slip-up mixed with some brutal conditions saw No. 15 Baylor women’s golf finish tied for second in the Big 12 Championship at The Clubs at Houston Oaks in Hockley. The Bears shot 27-over 879 to be knotted with No. 6 Oklahoma State University in the two spot, just three shots shy of the conference champion, No. 13 University of Texas.
“Obviously, it hurts to be a little short, but I think this team is really solid,” head coach Jay Goble said. “We can get going on any golf course in America. We can shoot good scores, and I believe this is only the beginning of a good run for the next month.”
Baylor now awaits its regional destination when the field is announced on Wednesday, marking the ninth-straight NCAA regional appearance for the Bears.
Longhorns sweep series, pummel injury-riddled baseball
Injuries paired with inexperience proved to be too much for Baylor baseball, as they were decimated by No. 10 University of Texas all weekend at UFCU Disch-Falk Field in Austin. Beaten and banged up, the Bears were never able to hang with the high-powered Longhorns, proven by a 20-1 loss Friday evening and a pair of 13-4 losses Saturday and Sunday afternoon.
“Our guys did a pretty good job. It’s unfortunate right now because we’ve lost two starters in the first inning this weekend and it puts a pretty high stress level on the bullpen,” head coach Steve Rodriguez said. “We’re asking guys that can go one or two innings to go two or three innings and sometimes we’re just asking a bit too much of them.”
Baylor heads back north and will look to put that series behind them, as they welcome the University of Incarnate Word for a midweek matchup, first pitch set for 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Baylor Ballpark.
Softball wins home series against Texas Tech
Baylor softball returned to Getterman Stadium for its three-game series with Texas Tech University, winning two games to one. Great pitching from sophomores Dariana Orme and Aliyah Binford allowed the Bears to post back-to-back complete-game shutouts on Friday and Saturday before falling to the Red Raiders on Sunday.
“Whenever I’m in the circle, I’m not even thinking about how many pitches I’ve thrown. I’m like, ‘Go pound the zone for the team,’” Orme said. “It is so mental. I really don’t want to know [my pitch count]. I can throw 200 pitches and still get a [win], so it doesn’t really matter at the end of the day.”
Baylor continues its long homestand with a midweek matchup with Stephen F. Austin on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. before welcoming Iowa State University on Friday for a three-game series.
T&F records 11 wins in last home meet of the season
Baylor track and field came away with 11 wins and multiple national marks in the Michael Johnson Invitational on Friday and Saturday at the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium.
“Crazy Michael Johnson Invitational, especially with this being my first one with the alumni and everything else and trying to run it with Lucy [Reed],” head coach Michael Ford said. “But I think overall, we had an awesome track meet. I think we still have to stay healthy because we got a couple people banged-up today. But, I think once we get back healthy and have one more track meet and get a week off before conference, I think we’ll be ready to go.”
Next up, Baylor travels to finish the regular season at the LSU Invitational on April 30 in Baton Rouge, La.
Just a sample: Football’s Green and Gold Game taps into potential
Baylor football gave a little taste of what’s to come this fall in the 2022 Green and Gold Game Saturday afternoon at McLane Stadium. Team Green came away with the 28-16 win over Gold, highlighted by a pair of touchdowns from junior running back Craig “Sqwirl” Williams.
“I’m proud of the team, there’s a lot of growth still to take place,” head coach Dave Aranda said. “We’re on the right track and I think we have identified the right fights to fight. I thought the O-lines [and] D-lines really were the big takeaway for me. Offensively, the push and the finish of some drives [were good] and [they] had some plays in them. And I thought defensively, there were some big plays.”
