Feb. 22, 2005
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#11 BAYLOR (17-2) at TEXAS STATE (5-10) (DH)
Feb. 23, 2005 • 5:00 PM
Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, Texas
THE SERIES
Baylor vs. Texas State: Baylor leads 26-12
Waco, Texas: Baylor leads 16-5
San Marcos, Texas: Baylor leads 7-6
Neutral: Baylor leads 3-1
Streak: Baylor won 3
Last Meeting: Baylor 16, Texas State 2 (2/19/05)
LIVE COVERAGE
Radio: None
Live Audio: None
Live Stats: www.BaylorBears.com
Television: None
No. 11 Baylor (17-2) returns to action this week when the Lady Bears travel to San Marcos, Texas, to take on Texas State in a doubleheader beginning at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 23. The Bobcats will be looking to avenge last week's loss to the Lady Bears when Baylor defeated Texas State 16-2 at the Crowne Plaza Classic.
Baylor enters the contest after having won the Crowne Plaza Classic title with a 4-1 record last weekend. Texas State also competed at the tournament and finished with a record of 2-3 after a 2-1 victory over the host, Houston, to close out the tournament.
The match-up marks the 29th and 30th meetings between the two schools, with Baylor owning a 26-12 series advantage. Baylor has won three straight in the series, including a pair of wins last season.
The Lady Bears are 7-6 all-time at Texas State and took the edge in the series in San Marcos after a 7-0 win over the Bobcats last season.
SCOUTING TEXAS STATE
Since winning their first three games, the Bobcats went on a 10-game losing skid before capturing the final two games at the Crowne Plaza Classic. Texas State is led by ace Katie Ann Trahan, who did not face the Lady Bears in the previous meeting this season. On the season, Trahan is 5-5 with a 2.23 ERA in 72.1 innings of work. The right-handed pitcher has struck out an impressive 95 batters on the season while walking 33.
At the plate, Texas State is led by Amy Hromadka. So far this season, Hromadka leads the team with a .262 batting average and leads the squad with 12 hits and 11 runs scored. Rachel Bonetti is also a force at the plate for Texas State, leading the team with three home runs and seven RBI on the season.
BAYLOR SOFTBALL QUICK NOTES
• Baylor climbed to No. 11 in the latest USA Today/NFCA Top 25. The ranking marks the highest for the Lady Bears in school history.
• Baylor is 89-3 over the past four seasons when scoring at least four runs.
• Baylor is 74-8 over the past four seasons when collecting at least eight hits.
• Baylor is 118-12 over the past four seasons when out-hitting its opponent.
• Baylor is 78-19 over the past three seasons at Getterman Stadium, including a 27-4 mark at home last season.
• With its opening win of the season over Louisiana-Monroe, Baylor earned its 100th victory at Getterman Stadium. Baylor is now 105-38 all-time in games played at Getterman Stadium
• Baylor's Tessa Lynam was named USA Softball National Player of the Week, marking the first time in school history a player from Baylor was recognized for the award.
• Lynam was also named Big 12 Conference Player of the Week. Baylor players have now earned the honor for three consecutive weeks (Chelsi Lake, Kim Wilmoth).
• Carrie Leerberg will likely return this week after suffering a hamstring injury two weeks ago.
Tessa Lynam NAMED NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Tessa Lynam (Alpharetta, Ga.) has been selected as the USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Week for the week of February 15-20 the Amateur Softball Association announced Tuesday. She led the No. 11 Lady Bears with a .571 batting average through seven games and was instrumental in the team's success at the Crowne Plaza Classic in Houston, Texas. For her performance, Lynam also earned Big 12 Conference Player of the Week honors.
Over the course of the week, Lynam went 12-of-21 and led the Lady Bears with a .571 batting average over seven games. She led the team in several categories, including hits (12), doubles (4), home runs (2), RBI (13), total bases (22), slugging percentage (1.048) and on-base percentage (.615). She ranked second on the team with eight runs scored and four walks.
In the 16-2 win over Texas State, Lynam went 3-for-4 with two home runs, a double, two runs score and six RBI. The 10 total bases for Lynam in the contest established a new single-game school record, eclipsing the previous record of nine held by three different players.
Her six RBI performance against the Bobcats was the most for a Baylor player since Kelly Osburn drove in six in a win against Tennessee on Feb. 27, 2004. Lynam recorded an RBI in five of six games this week and went 2-for-3 with a double, run scored and three RBI in the 11-1 win over North Carolina to clinch the Crowne Plaza Classic title. The junior also recorded a hit in every game, including multiple hits in four of seven contests, this past week as she pushed her hit streak to 10 games.
Lynam also contributed to the Lady Bears success while in the circle. The right-hander pitched a 3-0 shutout victory against the Wildcats to open the Crowne Plaza Classic. In seven innings of work, she allowed only two hits while striking out six to move to 4-0 on the season.
With her selection as Big 12 Conference Player of the Week, Lynam became the third consecutive Lady Bears player to be selected for the honor. Kim Wilmoth won the season's inaugural award as Chelsi Lake won the honor last season. It marked the first career honor for Lynam and is the first time in school history three Baylor players have been selected for the award in a single season.
800TH CAREER STRIKEOUT IN SIGHT FOR VITEK
Senior left-handed pitcher Cristin Vitek continues to climb up the career charts in several categories, including strikeouts where she entered the season as Baylor's career leader with 645. In fact, Vitek has a good shot at becoming Baylor's first-ever 800 strikeout performer as the lefty currently has 686 strikeouts and is now only 115 strikeouts shy of the milestone.
Last season, she became only the second player in school history to record 600 strikeouts in her career when she struck out Tina Boutelle of Texas in the sixth inning at the Big 12 Conference Tournament.
UP NEXT...
Baylor will return to action on Friday, Feb. 25, when the Lady Bears host the Compass Bank Invitational at Getterman Stadium. Baylor opens play at the tournament against Louisiana Tech at 4:15 p.m. Top-ranked Arizona, Birmingham Southern and Sam Houston State round out the field.
