Baylor
Oklahoma
Ninth-Inning Magic Provides Bears 6-5 Win over OU
3/21/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 21, 2003
WACO, Texas - Michael Griffin's two-out single in the bottom of the ninth plated Chris Durbin with the winning run as No. 8 Baylor battled back to defeat No. 30 Oklahoma Friday night at Baylor Ballpark, 6-5.
Baylor (19-6, 3-1 Big 12) had only one man on in the ninth with two outs before putting together two singles and an intentional walk off Sooner reliever Jarod McAuliffe (1-1). After Paul Witt flew out to start the ninth, McAuliffe hit Durbin with a pitch. David Murphy struck out for just the third time all season, leaving McAuliffe one out away.
Josh Ford fell behind 0-2, then lined a single off the pitcher's glove that rolled up the middle, moving Durbin all the way to third. Oklahoma (11-7, 0-1 Big 12) elected to intentionally walk Ross Bennett and pitch to Griffin instead, but Griffin brought the Bears home victorious with a liner to right for the game-winning run.
The ninth-inning rally made a winner out of reliever Abe Woody (4-0). Woody entered the game with nobody out in the eighth and runners on second and third, tied at 5-5. The freshman reliever induced a weak infield grounder for the first out, preventing the runners from advancing, then issued an intentional walk to shortstop Eddie Cornejo to load the bases.
Third baseman Jay Yaconetti followed with a ground ball to second, which Mark Saccomanno quickly turned into a double play by tagging Cornejo and firing to first for the third out.
Woody had taken over for freshman Ryan LaMotta, who had also come in from the pen and worked out of a tough situation. LaMotta entered the game in a tie game in the sixth with the bases loaded and one out and proceeded to strike out OU's No. 4 and 5 hitters to escape the jam. LaMotta breezed through the seventh, then ran into trouble in the eighth before Woody closed the door.
Trailing 1-0 in the third, Ross Bennett blasted a two-out, three-run homer, his second of the year, to put the Bears on top for the first time in the game. That lead only lasted half an inning, as OU put together two doubles and two walks to score three times in the fourth and retake the lead.
With two outs in the fifth, Murphy singled to right (one of four hits on the night for the junior) and Josh Ford powered out an opposite field home run to tie the game at 5-5.
Baylor starter Steven White battled through 5 1/3 innings without command of his breaking ball, striking out six but walking five. The senior ace gave up five runs (three earned) on six hits.
Oklahoma starter Mark Roberts lasted eight innings, allowing 11 hits but just one walk and striking out four. Roberts allowed the Bears' first five runs but did not factor in the decision when McAuliffe started the ninth for the Sooners.
