By Carson Vercoe | Sports Intern
After having a 4-1 lead going into the third inning, Baylor’s bats went ice cold, allowing UT Arlington to spark a comeback in the fifth inning and secure a 5-4 upset win.
The road loss marked the third straight for the Bears (23-16, 5-6 Big 12), who lost a weekend series to Houston and dropped a Monday-night bout with Lamar.
The Bears got things rolling from the jump when an error and a single gave the Bears runners on first and second. Senior shortstop Amber Toven smacked a line drive right back up the middle, scoring senior center fielder Brooklyn Carter.
The Mavericks (17-19, 5-4 WAC) were able to get two quick outs, but pitcher Kynlee Bowlin struggled to find the zone, walking 2 batters and hitting another, giving the Bears a bases-loaded situation. Toven was able to pick up another run on a passed ball, giving the Bears a two-run frame.
The Mavericks were able to cut the deficit in half in the bottom of the first inning, picking up a run on a sacrifice fly from third baseman Peyton Holland, scoring designated player Valeria Feeney.
In the second, the top of the Bears’ lineup repeated what they did in the first after a sacrifice bunt from sophomore right fielder Sa’Mya Jones turned into a three-base error, scoring Carter. Toven picked up her second RBI on a sacrifice fly, giving the Bears another two-run frame.
The next two innings turned into a pitcher’s duel between pitcher Madi McDonnell and sophomore pitcher Peyton Tanner. Both pitchers continuously shut down opposing hitters until Tanner was removed in the fourth.
In the bottom of the fifth, after the Bears made a pitching change to sophomore pitcher Sadie Ross, the Mustangs struck hard for the first time since the first inning. After a single, a walk and an error loaded the bases for the Mustangs, right fielder Kelsey Creech delivered a clutch at bat, giving her team an RBI walk. Second baseman Kaitlyn Sailor kept things rolling with a two-RBI single.
The Mustangs added one more run on an RBI single from left fielder Kaylee Schweitzer, giving the Mustangs a 5-4 lead.
The Bears’ bats fell silent as they struggled to get anything going after the second inning. The Bears had one hit after the second inning and couldn’t get any traffic on the base paths to threaten the Mustangs’ lead, allowing pitcher Maddie Furniss to come in and give the Mustangs a three-up, three-down inning and a win for the Mustangs.
The Bears will open a weekend series with Kansas (27-11, 8-4 Big 12) at 5 p.m. Friday at Arrocha Ballpark at Rock Chalk Park in Lawrence, Kan. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+.
