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Sports news from The Baylor Lariat.

Baylor volleyball overcame a slow start against Rice University to win their first road match of the season in Houston. Baylor dropped the first set and then won three consecutive sets to close out the Rice Owls and earn the victory. The sets went 18-25, 25-21, 25-21 and 25-14.

Sophomore outside hitter Thea Munch-Soegaard led the Bears. Munch-Soegaard finished with 11 kills, 13 digs and two service aces.

One thing junior starting quarterback Bryce Petty wants to make sure of is that this Baylor team does not get comfortable after amassing two blowout victories against nonconference opponents this season.

“You can’t get complacent,” Petty said. “You can’t think you’ve arrived. We still have our things to work on and that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

Petty and the team used the bye week to do just that, work out the kinks, perfect their game and recuperate their bodies. Now, Baylor turns its focus to ULM.

No. 20 Baylor football has a tough task coming up this Saturday when they try to contain University of Louisiana-Monroe dual-threat senior quarterback Kolton Browning, who helped ULM score 42 points against the Bears last season in a 47-42 Baylor win.

This season, the Bears boast the second-best scoring defense in the entire NCAA by allowing 8.0 points per game.

Baylor volleyball plays Rice University in Houston tonight in a matchup of two teams who entered the season with major expectations but are currently struggling. The Bears were expected to improve after coming within a game of the NCAA Tournament last season, and Rice was picked by the coaches to win Conference USA in the preseason polls. Both teams look to pull themselves back to .500 after poor starts.

No. 7 Baylor soccer toppled Cal Poly 4-0 on Friday for its 14th straight home win and then faced McNeese State in a 0-0 draw on Sunday to keep their 29 game unbeaten streak alive. The Bears have not lost a match in the last 387 days.

The Bears got off to an early start against Cal Poly with a header by senior midfielder Kat Ludlow, who scored off a long free kick, which senior defender Taylor Heatherly took. Baylor had trouble finishing on Sunday, getting shut out despite taking 32 shots.

The Bears went 2-1 over the weekend with two wins against Appalachian State and Northwestern State before falling in the Baylor Invitational final against Colorado in straight sets.

Baylor won their first match of the weekend against Northwestern State 3-1 on Friday. The sets were 25-19, 25-17, 21-25 and 25-23.

Despite taking 32 shots, No. 7 Baylor soccer could not put one in the net, resulting in a 0-0 draw with the McNeese State Cowgirls on Sunday. The draw ends Baylor’s (6-0-2) 14-game home winning streak, but the Bears keep their current 29-game unbeaten streak alive.

“It was very frustrating, senior midfielder Kat Ludlow said. “It was very frustrating to be on the field and have them outfight us. They really did. They outfought us and that’s a learning lesson right there for the rest of the season.”

Baylor’s equestrian team scrimmaged Saturday with an exhibition meet against Southern Methodist University. Baylor won Western 6-4 but lost Hunterseat 7-5 and the overall competition after a tiebreaker was enforced.

Baylor’s head coach Ellen White remained upbeat after the meet.

“It was exactly what we wanted to do,” said White.

It was an opportunity to see which players were going to step up and to work out the kinks of hosting an event, White said.

Baylor volleyball ended the three match Baylor Invitational tournament with a loss to Colorado. The Bears lost the match in straight sets, losing 25-21, 25-23 and 25-11.

After the match, Colorado improved to 8-1 while Baylor fell to 4-7. For the tournament, Baylor finished with a record of 2-1.

Baylor could not get consistent performance offensively, finishing with 25 total kills for the match. The Bears hit .035 over the three sets, including a -.156 in the deciding third set.

Senior outside hitter Zoe Adom led the team with seven kills while sophomore outside hitter Laura Jones added six. No other player finished with more than four. A night after limiting themselves to 19 total errors, Baylor had 34 total errors.

The Bears played two matches in the Baylor Invitational on Friday, winning against both Northwestern State and Appalachian State.

The second match against Appalachian State on Friday night, winning in straight sets. They won sets 29-27, 25-20 and 25-15.

The win was their second win of the day, after beating Northwestern State University in their first match. The Bears record improved to 4-6 after Friday’s matches, while Appalachian State falls to 6-3.

No. 7 Baylor posted another shutout en route to its 14th straight home win with a 4-0 victory over Cal Poly on Friday at Betty Lou Mays Field.

Baylor (6-0-1) handed Cal Poly (4-1-0) it’s first loss of the season by shutting down one of the best scorers in the nation in sophomore forward Elise Krieghoff, who came into this game having scored 10 goals.

Baylor volleyball hosts the 2013 Baylor Invitational Tournament this weekend at the Ferrell Center. Baylor faces off against Northwestern State and Appalachian State today and then takes on Colorado on Saturday.

Northwestern State heads into the Baylor Invitational with a record of 1-6, with its sole loss coming against Prairie View A&M. Freshman outside hitter Ashley Elrod leads the team with a .206 hitting percentage and totals of 57 kills and 48 digs through 22 sets. The Lady Demons have a combined hitting percentage of .104 and allow opponents to hit .232 on the season.

No. 7 Baylor soccer is ready to protect its home field by striving to get a pair of wins against two dynamic offenses beginning with Cal Poly at 7 p.m. today and finishing with McNeese State at 1 p.m. Sunday.

“I’m looking forward to this weekend,” Baylor co-head coach Marci Jobson said. “It’s going to be very good games. Cal Poly comes in undefeated with the nation’s leading goal scorer on their team so it’s going to be a very tough match and then Saturday we have to refocus on McNeese State.”

It’s a fortress that scares other soccer teams and a barrier that gives the offense protection. Usually this type of protection would be the goalie, but with No. 7 Baylor it goes beyond that. It’s the combination of the defense and the goalie.

Baylor is first in the Big 12 in part because of the combination between the hard-nosed defense and the effective play of junior goalkeeper Michelle Kloss.

No. 24 TCU (1-1) at Texas Tech (2-0)
After being suspended for much of last season, senior TCU quarterback Casey Pachall broke his arm in last week’s game against Southeastern Louisiana. Backup sophomore quarterback Trevone Boykin was able to come in and lift TCU to the victory, throwing for 133 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 pass attempts.

There is a great awakening in Baylor football and it has everything to do with the Bears’ improvement on defense. Picking up where it left off last season, the defense has made big plays sending a message to the offense that it can get the job done.

A new fear has developed as this hard-nosed, tough and physical defense begins to pose problems for the opposing team. Baylor is always a threat offensively with the ability to score points quickly, and in the past, opponents were able to keep pace. Those days are over. At least that’s what the defense hopes.

Baylor volleyball lost in four sets to Texas State on Tuesday night in San Marcos. The Bears dropped the match 3-1 and the sets read 15-25, 19-25, 25-20 and 24-26.

The Bears fell to 2-6 after the loss, and Texas State improved to 8-2.

This marked the first time Texas State beat Baylor in volleyball since 1996.

Baylor was led by a strong showing from senior outside hitter Zoe Adom. Adom tied a career high with 20 kills on a .250 hitting percentage.

After defeating Wofford 69-3 in the season opener, the Bears were expecting a tougher challenge against Buffalo on Saturday afternoon at Floyd Casey Stadium.

For the second time in two weeks, Baylor shattered the school record of most points scored in the modern era with 70 points scored in a 70-13 shellacking of Buffalo.

To open the season, the Buffalo Bulls lost at No. 4 Ohio State 40-20. Considering the previous week’s competitive game Buffalo played against a highly ranked Buckeyes team, Baylor entered the matchup believing Buffalo would pose a threat on the gridiron.

Baylor volleyball hosted the Baylor Classic tournament this weekend at the Ferrell Center in Waco. The Classic consisted of matches against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, UT-Arlington Mavericks and Mississippi State Bulldogs. The Bears finished with a record of 1-2, with a win against Mississippi State in their final game.

“The early part of the season has been a building process for us,” head volleyball coach Jim Barnes said. “When there are only one or two contributors returning, it’s hard to learn how to play together right away. There is a learning curve.”

No. 7 Baylor soccer’s ability was on full display against Missouri and No. 19 Texas A&M. The Bears only allowed one goal en route to a 2-1 win over the Tigers on Friday and a 0-0 draw against the Aggies on Sunday.

“It was as soulful performance,” Baylor co-head coach Marci Jobson said. “Soulful. As a coach, it blew me away. I couldn’t ask for more. We had chances and they had chances. That’s what it’s all about between two great teams. Overall, it was a great soccer match and I’m just proud of the Baylor Bears.”

One thing unites everybody during a Saturday afternoon football game: sweat.

By the first quarter, the heat claims a victim. A man lies on the cement beneath the stands. Two police officers and a Baylor student in his line jersey are attending to him while a woman – presumably the man’s wife – looks on at the scene.

Within moments, paramedics arrive, get the man upright and start giving him oxygen.

No. 7 Baylor faced the toughest match of the season going up against No. 19 Texas A&M on Sunday resulting in a 0-0 draw. It’s the Bears first tie of the season as the Aggies and Bears engaged in an intense match. It’s Baylor’s for the first shutout in 14 matches.

Despite coming into the game without having lost to Baylor in program history, the Aggies came into the game with a different mentality as they faced a competitive Baylor team.

Baylor volleyball finished the three match Baylor Classic with a win against the Mississippi State Bulldogs. The Bears won the match 3-1, with sets of 22-25, 27-25, 25-17 and 25-18. The Bears finish up the Classic with a record of 1-2 and with a 2-5 record overall.

Mississippi State was led by freshman opposite hitter Kimmy Gardiner. Gardiner finished with a double-double, 20 kills and 14 digs. Freshman setter Suzanne Horner added 48 assists. Sophomore libero Roxanne McVey finished with 25 digs to lead all players.

Buffalo faced No. 3 Ohio State last week and lost 40-20, after Baylor defeated Buffalo 70-13 on Saturday afternoon at Floyd Casey Stadium, Buffalo head coach Jeff Quinn came away with strong remarks regarding the strength of Baylor’s football program.

The Baylor Bears offense posted seven touchdowns and the defense added another touchdown to give Baylor a whopping 56-13 lead over Buffalo at the half. The 56-point half marks the most points ever scored in a single half in the history of Floyd Casey Stadium.

Each year, Baylor student-athletes sign a financial-aid agreement that binds them to the bylaws expressed in the NCAA Division I Manual. Recent violations regarding name, picture and likeness have moved an article of the manual into the national spotlight.

Article 12 of the NCAA Constitution expresses the rules of a player regarding amateurism. Specifically, Article 12.5.1.1 lays out the rules of commercial use of a student-athletes name, picture or likeness.

At the age of three, Colleyville, Texas native and Baylor women’s soccer defender Kat Ludlow picked up a soccer ball, and has hardly put it down since. Now, as a senior, Ludlow continues to perfect her craft. So much so, that she has been nominated for the 2013 Senior Class Award.

Ludlow took a mission trip to Kenya, carries a 3.73 GPA and works to play a leadership role with her younger teammates.

As the afternoon sun beats down on Floyd Casey Stadium and the surrounding area, students, alumni and others make the pilgrimage to the 63-year-old home of Baylor football.

Parents buy their children snow cones that needed to be flavored. As soon as the parent hands their child the snow cone, the kid races to the yellow cart next to the vendor to add any flavor (or in most cases flavors) to their cool treat. Coconut, cherry, strawberry and a concoction called “tiger’s blood” all stain the pure ice as they flow into the cup.

Baylor volleyball started off the 2013 Baylor Classic with a straight set loss against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane in front of a home crowd of 835. Baylor lost the sets 16-25, 12-25 and 15-25. Baylor falls to 1-4 on the season, while Tulsa improves to 4-1.

The Bears struggled right from the beginning, hitting .087 in the first set. Things would only get worse as they hit -.029 in the second and .022 in the third to finish with a final hitting percentage of .019. The Bears as a team finished with 23 attack errors, almost doubling Tulsa’s 12.

It took 475 minutes this season for No. 7 Baylor soccer to concede a goal, but the Bears came out on top against a high-powered Missouri offense with a 2-1 win on Friday.

The Tigers continuously put pressure on the Baylor defense, taking 16 shots compared to Baylor’s 10. Strong play from junior goalkeeper Michelle Kloss allowed Baylor to keep the lead throughout the game.