By Michael Haag | Sports Editor
With 17 total events from Friday to Sunday, it’s nearly impossible to keep up with everything regarding Baylor Athletics. If you’re new here, welcome to the springtime. Here is everything you may have missed over the stacked slate.
Baylor track and field completes final day of Big 12 Indoor Championship
Baylor track and field saw 12 individuals, as well as two relay teams, wrap up the Big 12 Indoor Track and Field Championships with All-Conference awards on Saturday evening at Texas Tech’s Sports Performance Center in Lubbock.
The Bears’ women’s squad took fifth place with 44 points, while the men’s side finished in 10th place with 31 points. Nineteen Baylor athletes ended up with All-Big 12 honors across the two-day event.
“Nate [Ezekiel] and Demar [Francis] both had great performances today, placing third in 400m and 200m,” head coach Michael Ford said. “Gary Moore’s personal best in the shot put was huge for us. Coach Chak had a great meet scoring in the weights and shots on both sides. Laurenz [Colbert] had a good meet placing in both the 200m and 60m, especially after being out most of last year due to injuries.
“Alexis Brown continues to amaze me, placing in the long jump yesterday and today scoring in the 60m in fourth place. I am also happy that the 4×4 got a season-best today and really competed hard. I am looking forward to the outdoor season with both teams, which starts this upcoming weekend, and I am excited for the NCAA indoor selections this week.”
Baylor announced on Monday that its Baylor Invitational is canceled due to limited entry numbers, but the Bears will head to the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships March 8-9 in Boston.
No. 11 Baylor’s rally comes up short in 82-76 overtime loss to No. 2 Houston
No. 11 Baylor men’s basketball had all the momentum when it scored the first two points of overtime, taking its first lead of the game over No. 2 Houston.
The Cougars put that to rest with a 9-1 run over the next four minutes though, and they pulled out their 10th win in 11 games with an 82-76 victory on Saturday afternoon in the Foster Pavilion.
“When you get easier buckets, you’re able to get some confidence, and then you get the crowd involved and get momentum and it all kind of snowballs,” head coach Scott Drew said. “And unfortunately, we couldn’t get any of that in the first half.”
Baylor has a quick turnaround game at TCU, as tipoff is set for 8 p.m. on Monday in the Schollmaier Arena in Fort Worth. The Big Monday contest will be broadcast on ESPN.
No. 24 Baylor women’s basketball pulled out a nail-biting 66-65 win against No. 22 West Virginia on Saturday afternoon in the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, W.Va.
The Bears (21-6, 10-6 Big 12) lost a double-digit lead to the Mountaineers (22-5, 11-5 Big 12) when WVU junior guard JJ Quinerly scored a 3-pointer to make it 64-65. Baylor senior guard Jana Van Gytenbeek stepped in for junior guard Jada Walker after Quinerly was forced to foul.
“When your head coach gives you a bear hug and tells you she has all the faith in the world in you, it’s pretty easy for you to feel confident in that moment,” Van Gytenbeek said. “That could make me cry. I’m going to credit that to Nicki and all the other coaches and teammates who told me I was going to make this.”
The team will stay on the road, as it heads to Cincinnati to play Cincinnati (13-14, 5-11 Big 12) on Tuesday before wrapping up the regular season against Oklahoma State (13-14, 6-10 Big 12) on Sunday in the Foster Pavilion.
No. 22 Baylor softball rallied back on both No. 19 UCLA and No. 13 Missouri on Saturday night in Cathedral City, Calif., to close out the Mary Nutter Classic with a 5-0 record.
The second match against the Tigers ended via a walk-off in the bottom of the seventh, and the Bears have now won seven straight.
Baylor (7-3) will stick around this weekend, as it’ll face Morgan State in a three-game set Saturday and Sunday. The two squads will take part in a doubleheader on Saturday.
Seventh-inning splurge propels No. 22 Indiana to 15-5 run-rule win over Baylor
The game was right there for the taking when Baylor baseball trailed by one run through six innings. The Bears committed two errors and stranded seven runners at that point in the game, and head coach Mitch Thompson said the team felt good about its chances of salvaging the series against No. 22 Indiana.
But the Hoosiers scored 11 runs over the next two innings to force a 15-5 run-rule victory on Sunday afternoon at Baylor Ballpark.
“Until the seventh inning, it’s a ballgame,” head coach Mitch Thompson said. “They got after us in the seventh and eighth innings, and that’s disappointing that the game got away from us, because we had a shot. … We ended up needing six or seven attempts to get that third out in the seventh inning. We didn’t get it, and then a grand slam and all of a sudden, the game’s out of hand.”
Baylor (1-6) now welcomes Abilene Christian for a midweek bout, as the two teams will square off at 4 p.m. on Wednesday at Baylor Ballpark. The game will be streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and can be listened to on ESPN Central Texas 1660 AM/92.3 FM radio.
No. 1 Baylor acro & tumbling protects home mat with win over No. 2 Oregon
No.1 Baylor acrobatics and tumbling added to its winning streak, defeating No. 2 Oregon 278.935 to 271.835 on Sunday evening at the Ferrell Center in an NCATA National Championship final rematch.
The Bears (3-0) started off the meet with a compulsory score of 38.40. They racked up a 9.75 in acro, 9.95 in pyramid, 9.80 in toss and 8.70 in tumbling. Baylor edged Oregon’s (1-1) 37.85 score.
Baylor will head on the road to compete against Iona on Sunday and Long Island on March 5, with both programs being in their first year.
Baylor women’s tennis conquers Grand Canyon, falls to No. 19 Texas A&M
Baylor women’s tennis wrapped up its third and fourth matches of the weekend, defeating Grand Canyon 4-3 and falling to No. 19 Texas A&M 4-0 on Sunday at the Hurd Tennis Center.
The Bears (6-5) are zeroing in on conference play.
“I love the grit displayed by this team all weekend,” head coach Joey Scrivano said. “Their commitment to competition and prioritizing the ‘we over me’ mentality is something special. We have a group that is embracing challenges and avoiding complacency. Today marked a significant stride in the right direction, and now we need to prepare well this week for the start of conference play.”
Baylor opens Big 12 play at Cincinnati on Friday and at West Virginia on Sunday.
No. 17 Baylor men’s tennis bulls through SMU, UTRGV in doubleheader
No. 17 Baylor men’s tennis bested SMU 4-2 before taking down UTRGV 6-1 on Sunday afternoon at the Hurd Tennis Center. The Bears performed the first match of the doubleheader in front of nearly 350 fans.
“SMU was far better than their current ranking [No. 60], and they’re only going to go up from here,” head coach Michael Woodson said. “I have a ton of respect for that program and the veteran guys. … I thought our guys did a great job with their backs against the wall, playing the right way and backing themselves with each other.
“With a quick turnaround to play against UTRGV, a feisty team, it’s not as easy, and I think some guys really stepped up there. They had great energy early to get through doubles and stretch some singles leads.”
The Bears (12-1) stick around to host No. 1 Ohio State at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at the Hurd Tennis Center.
