By Foster Nicholas | Sports Writer
Baylor baseball split a rare four-game series against Youngstown State University at Baylor Ballpark this weekend. Head coach Mitch Thompson and the Bears (4-8) were helped by strong pitching, as the staff logged a season-high 47 strikeouts over the course of the four games.
On Sunday, the Bears looked to tie up the series at two games apiece, as they split the doubleheader on Saturday and fell on Friday. Junior left-handed pitcher and outfielder Kobe Andrade started the game and threw for 2.0 innings, giving up three earned runs and five hits. Even though Andrade gave up a few runs, Baylor earned them back in the bottom half of the first inning.
Eight batters stepped up to the plate in the first inning and four runs were scored. The offensive rally was capped off with a two-run double to dead center field from junior infielder Cole Posey. Then, in the second inning, the Bears plated two more runs on a groundout and a wild pitch.
After a scoring frenzy early, junior right-handed pitcher Brett Garcia came on to pitch for Baylor and threw two scoreless innings while striking out five Penguin hitters. After Garcia finished his outing, junior outfielder Hunter Simmons recorded his third RBI of the game on a single in the bottom of the fourth to give the Bears a 7-3 lead.
Baylor gave up a run in the fifth and two more in the sixth inning, but after that, freshman left-handed pitcher and outfielder Ethan Calder took the mound and kept YSU in check. Calder would give up one earned run in the seventh, but his 2.1 innings of work while striking out three kept the Bears in it.
In the seventh inning with the game tied 7-7, freshman Caleb Bergman stepped back up to the plate, and he perfectly executed a safety squeeze that allowed a run to score while allowing him to reach base and give his team the lead. Andrade would then score on a wild pitch in the eighth inning to add an insurance run and give Baylor a 9-7 lead.
“We’re learning about how to best use our bullpen and how to best use our guys to try and put them in the right situations where they can be successful with what they’re doing against who they’re competing against,” head coach Mitch Thompson said. “It worked out today, we scored enough to get the win and that was big.”
Sophomore right-handed pitcher Gabe Craig faced two batters to finish off the eighth inning and struck them both out, but heading into the ninth, Thompson elected to make a pitching change to try and clinch the win.
Junior right-handed pitcher Grant Golomb threw the ninth and earned the save (1) after striking out a couple of batters and not allowing a run. Calder (1-0) earned his first win as a Bear as the green and gold moved to 2-3 on the current 14-game homestand.
“Today was a great example of what our bullpen can be, especially when we’re using all of our pieces right, and we’re going out there and we’re attacking guys,” Golomb said.
The Bears will continue their homestand on Tuesday evening against Dallas Baptist University. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Baylor Ballpark.
