No. 19/18 Baylor softball (34-14, 11-6 Big 12) outlasted Texas (30-22, 10-7 Big 12) in an offensive slugfest, taking a 7-5 win over the Longhorns on Saturday evening at Getterman Stadium.
Gia Rodoni (21-9) worked the first 5.0 frames, allowing five hits, five runs, and striking out two. Four of the five runs and three of the hits came in the top of the sixth, with Regan Green entering in relief and keeping the Longhorns off the board over the final two frames, allowing just one hit over that stretch to earn her second save of the season.
The Lady Bear offense was firing on all cylinders, jumping out to a 1-0 lead on a leadoff home run in the bottom of the second by Goose McGlaun, her 13th of the season and the first of the 2018 season for the Baylor squad at Getterman Stadium.
The Longhorns would scratch out an equalizing run in the top of the third, with the teams staying locked in a 1-1 tie through to the home half of the fifth inning.
With one out, Hannah Thompson roped a double to left field, subbing Madi O’Neal on to pinch run for her at second.
Taylor Ellis followed up with an RBI double on a line shot that tight roped down the left field line into the corner, allowing O’Neal to score and keeping Ellis in scoring position.
Jessie Scroggins kicked off senior weekend with a bang, launching a two-run moon shot over the right field wall, scoring Ellis and pushing the BU lead to 4-1.
Keeping the bats rolling, a single for Kyla Walker put a runner on with two outs for McGlaun. She busted through again, drilling a two-run shot into the parking lot beyond the left field wall, finishing off a five-run inning for the Lady Bears to take a commanding 6-1 lead.
The Longhorns would not shy away, pulling to within one with a four-run spot in the top of the sixth. Green managed to get the Lady Bears out of the inning with a 6-5 advantage, looking for some final insurance in the bottom of the sixth.
An unorthodox scoring break went in BU’s favor, with Scroggins lacing a single up the middle with two outs.
Scroggins easily stole second, but the throw down to the bag ended up not only skating out into the outfield, but also getting behind UT centerfielder Ki’Audra Hayter all the way to the wall. Scroggins would race around to score, pushing the BU lead to 7-5 and giving Green some breathing room to retire the last three Longhorns in order.
HIGHLIGHTS
Baylor secured the third-straight season series win over the Longhorns, looking to close out the first-ever sweep of the series for either side with a win on Sunday. Neither team has finished off a full, three-game sweep since the conference adopted the three-game series format in 2012.
Goose McGlaun hit her 13th and 14th home runs of the season, moving into a tie for No. 6 on Baylor’s single-season home runs list (14, Stephanie Pomes, 2005, Dani Leal, 2011, Jordan Strickland, 2014).
Her solo home run in the second inning was the first of the season for the Lady Bears at Getterman Stadium, snapping a 14-game drought dating back to the 2017 NCAA Waco Regional when Shelby Friudenberg hit a solo home run vs. JMU on May 20.
McGlaun posted her third game this season with two home runs, her fourth career multi-HR effort.
McGlaun (2-for-2) recorded her 12th multi-hit game of the season and the 22nd of her career.
McGlaun (3 RBI) led the scoring effort for the Lady Bears, posting her team-best 11th multi-RBI game of the season, the 20th of her career.
Jessie Scroggins (2-for-4) extended her program record with the 80th multi-hit game of her career, her 25th this season.
Kyla Walker (3-for-4) picked up her 17th multi-hit game this season, the 58th of her career.
Walker (.464) and Scroggins (.454) continue to battle for the top batting average on the team and among the best in the country, both shooting to top the program’s single-season batting average record (.430, Lindsey Cargill, 2017).
Carlee Wallace (2-for-3) had her 12th multi-hit game this season, the 46th of her career, and her second this season against Texas, going 2-for-4 in Austin on April 17.
The win on Saturday clinched the No. 3 seed for Baylor, now holding the tiebreaker advantage over Texas for the upcoming 2018 Phillips 66 Big 12 Softball Championship, running next weekend in Oklahoma City, Okla.
WHAT’S NEXT
Baylor will try for the first-ever three-game series sweep by either program, hosting game three on Sunday, May 6, at 2:30 p.m. at Getterman Stadium. The Lady Bears will face the Longhorns in another televised game, with FOX Sports Southwest carrying the broadcast to close the 2018 regular season for BU.
