By Dylan Fink | Sports Writer
You always see something new in softball.
It’s a storied saying in baseball and softball, and it was certainly true for Baylor this past weekend. The Bears’ late-game theatrics became the team’s identity following a hat trick of walk-off wins in the Getterman Classic.
The Bears began the weekend with a shutout loss to No. 24 Mississippi State, falling 10-0 in a five-inning loss. (Per if a team is trailing by eight or more after the fifth inning, then the game is declared over.)
“We never want to lose, but I definitely think there was something to learn from that,” sophomore infielder Faith Piper said after the loss. “I’m excited to see where we go from here because it’s definitely not going to look like that the rest of the season.”
Piper’s words rang true. The Bears found their footing at the plate Friday afternoon, securing their first victory of the season against New Mexico, 8-7.
Baylor built off its single-hit performance the previous evening, building a 14-hit outing off the Lobos in the home team’s first victory of the season.
Sophomore catcher Averie Waddell was the star of the outing Friday afternoon. She found an early two-run homer over the left-field wall, but Waddell’s signature moment of the day came in the bottom of the seventh, when a chipped single drove in the winning run.
“There’s a lot of talent on this team,” head coach Glenn Moore said. “They’ve got me a little baffled at times to be honest, but I love their spirit and their fight … We’ve just got to let the cream rise.”
The last-minute pursuits did not end there, as the green and gold continued to find their way in back-to-back walk-off victories against Wichita State later in the weekend.
In their first battle against the Shockers, the Bears entered their last string of opportunities at the plate down 2-0. Waddell continued to find contact off her bat, as she drove in the first run for the Bears off a sacrifice fly ball.
Following a stream of walks leading to loaded bases, sophomore outfielder Karynton Dawson stepped into the batter’s box. Dawson rifled a line drive straight back to the Wichita State pitcher, who in turn sailed the ball over the head of her own first baseman, allowing the Bears to bring in two off the error.
“In some really crucial at-bats, those kids have looked extremely mature and experienced, even though they aren’t very experienced yet,” Moore said. “That’s going to pay dividends down the road.”
Friday night was not the only three-run seventh inning for the Bears, as they completed the weekend walk-off hat trick with a nearly identical performance against the Shockers again on Saturday night.
Baylor entered the final half of the seventh inning trailing 8-6. Quickly finding two to tie it up off an RBI single from freshman utility player Kaygen Marshall, the Bears once again won off a Wichita State loose ball, which allowed the winning run to slide into the plate.
“You don’t know what you don’t know,” Moore said. “They don’t know that the game’s going to eventually punish them for playing like this … but I’m not going to tell them right now because they believe they’re going to score as many runs as they need to win it. There’s just no fear in these kids.”
Next, the Bears will take on Oregon State at the Campbell/Cartier Classic in San Diego. First pitch is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Friday, and a radio stream is available here.
