March 14, 2008

Recap | Box Score

Baylor head coach Steve Smith:

On tonight's game:

"It was a heck of a game. We played very well defensively, and we didn't give them hardly anything. If anybody got any breaks in the game, it was us. They make a great play in right field, almost make two of them back-to-back, and they get three two-out solo home runs off of both Kendal (Volz) and Nick (Cassavechia). It was a classic; you would've liked to have won it, but any time two good teams play one good team loses."

On Kendal Volz's performance:

"He couldn't stop the bleeding there for a minute. He made a close pitch to walk a guy with two outs, and then they were able to get three or four more guys to the plate. He was good; he may not have been the best he's ever been, but he was playing well enough."

On the keys for his team to come back and win tomorrow:

"It'll be the same key for 26 more of them. It'll be good starting pitching, a guy throwing strikes, and not giving up the free bases. We won that tonight; they gave us more than we gave them. Make the routine play on defense and get the ball in play. They were able to overcome a couple of defensive things with the long ball. Hopefully as time goes on and our guys get a little deeper into the season and a little older, we'll start to see a few more long balls come our way. We've got more power than we've shown up and down the lineup so far."

On tonight's performance:

"We competed well. Their guy (Andrew Oliver) pitched extremely well. The two starting pitchers tonight were outstanding. It was what a Friday night in the Big 12 should be."

Baylor sophomore RHP Kendal Volz:

On tonight's game:

"We got ahead early and then they came back and scored three, but the difference this year is that we all know that we can come back at any time. No one gets their heads down, we all keep playing, and that's just the mentality we have. All of our pitchers go out there like that, and our hitters do too. Even when they get two outs on us, we're still swinging it really well. It was a great game. If you don't like playing in these situations, then it's not the kind of game for you."

On coming back ready to play tomorrow:

"We've just got to forget about this one, even though it's tough. I know we're going to come out tomorrow firing. Shawn's (Tolleson) going to throw well, our hitters are going to be pumped up, and even though this was a tough one to lose, it kind of put some fire under us. It's a little bit more motivation."

On giving up three runs with two outs in the fifth inning:

"That's baseball. It could've easily gone the other way. We try to control what we can control, and everything else is just part of the game. If they get hits like that, so be it. We'll get our fair share of them throughout the year."

Baylor junior 1B Adam Hornung:

On tonight's game:

"It was frustrating fighting back in that game and then losing it in the ninth, but that's just the way baseball goes. You've got to play 27 outs to win."

On the two-out home runs in the ninth inning:

"When we had two outs I definitely didn't think the game was over yet with their three and four hitters coming up, but we were all kind of on a high from coming back and taking the lead. It was definitely a downer to see both of those balls leave the yard."

On taking the lead in the eighth and then losing it in the ninth:

"We did a good job of coming back and doing what we had to do to take the league. Nick's (Cassavechia) a great pitcher, and that probably won't happen again all season. Everybody on our team has confidence in him. That's just the way the game goes."