SB Hosts Texas to Close Regular Season

May 4, 2018

GAMES 48-49

BAYLOR vs TEXAS

MEDIA INFORMATION

GAME 1 | May 5:
TV: FOX Sports Southwest Plus and FOX Sports GO App
Talent: Dave Barnett (pxp) and Jill Dorsey (analyst)
Radio: ESPN Central Texas and TuneInn app
Talent: Dan Ingham (pxp) and Jason Orts (analyst)
Online Stream: BaylorBears.com/allaccess ($)
Live Stats/In-Game Home: BaylorBears.com
Twitter: @BaylorSoftball | #SicEm | #SicUT | #Big12SB

GAME 2 | April 28:
TV: FOX Sports Southwest and FOX Sports GO App
Talent: John Morris (pxp) and Jordan Strickland (analyst)
Radio: ESPN Central Texas and TuneInn app
Talent: Dan Ingham (pxp) and Jason Orts (analyst)
Online Stream: BaylorBears.com/allaccess ($)
Live Stats/In-Game Home: BaylorBears.com
Twitter:@BaylorSoftball | #SicEm | #SicUT | #Big12SB

MATCHUP

BAYLOR

33-14, 10-6 Big 12
Ranking: 19 - Coaches, 18 - ESPN, 15 - RPI
Head Coach: Glenn Moore (Northwestern State, 1993)
Career Record: 872-379 (21st season)
BU Record: 733-338 (18th season)
vs. UT: 20-23

TEXAS

30-21, 10-6 Big 12
Ranking: NR - Coaches, NR - ESPN, 34 - RPI
Head Coach: Connie Clark (Cal State Fullerton, 1996)
Career Record: 844-381-3 (22nd season)
UT Record: 844-381-3 (22nd season)
vs. BU: 29-20

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation

As seniors potentially playing their final games at Getterman Stadium, Baylor first baseman Shelby Friudenberg and centerfielder Jessie Scroggins try not to even think about it.

"But, it's here, so it's kind of something you have to think about," said Scroggins, a senior centerfielder from Lakewood, Calif., who is hitting .453 coming into a weekend series between the No. 18/19 Lady Bears (33-14, 10-6) and Texas Longhorns (30-21, 10-6). "I'm hoping we can play more games at Getterman during the postseason. But if not, I've had a blast playing at Getterman."

At 15th in the latest RPI rankings, Baylor has a chance to send a message to the NCAA selection committee with a sweep of the Longhorns that the Lady Bears are worthy of being one of 16 host sites for the May 18-20 regionals. Game times this weekend are 6:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, with both games being televised.

"I think we're playing our best ball or headed in that direction," Baylor coach Glenn Moore said. "I can't say that we're playing up to our potential consistently, but we did play a complete game against Iowa State on Sunday (9-0, five-inning win)."

Career record-setters Friudenberg (47 homers, 187 RBI) and Scroggins (261 hits) will be honored following Sunday's game, along with injured third baseman Caitlin Charlton and Auburn transfer catcher Carlee Wallace.

"This weekend is definitely an eye-opener that we're almost done here," said Friudenberg, who hails from nearby Bruceville, Texas, "and we're going to do what we can to make it to the World Series and give it our all."

Scroggins, who's vying with junior outfielder Kyla Walker (.455) to break Lindsey Cargill's single-season record for batting average (.430) that was set just a year ago, said "it's definitely emotional. This is my last two games at Getterman."

Baylor's April 17 game at Texas was a pivotal turning point. After getting swept in two of their first three series against Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, the Lady Bears knocked off the Longhorns, 3-0, in Austin and have won seven of eight games since then.

"I think it got us going back in the right direction," said sophomore third baseman Goose McGlaun, who is hitting .328 with a team-high 12 homers and 43 RBI. "Offense came around, Gia (Rodoni) did well (in the circle). So, I think we all kind of put the pieces together there. . . . We knew in the beginning that wasn't Baylor softball that we were playing."

Just two days after the finale in a three-game sweep at Oklahoma State, Baylor rebounded behind Rodoni's three-hit shutout and a two-out, two-run single in the second inning by Scroggins to hand the Longhorns their first conference loss of the season.

UT went the other way, losing five of its next six Big 12 games before sweeping Incarnate Word in a non-conference doubleheader Wednesday night in Austin.

"I don't know if it helps us more than them," Moore said of already playing the Longhorns once before this regular season-ending series. "It certainly educates you on both teams. The strength they have is they've seen our No. 1 pitcher (Rodoni) and they have three No. 1s. They have three options that are good."

Rodoni went 3-0 with one save and a 0.31 ERA with 26 strikeouts to earn her program-record sixth Big 12 Pitcher of the Week award. She beat Iowa State twice in a road sweep and also picked up her first save of the season in Saturday's 4-3 win.

"I couldn't be happier with the way Gia is throwing," Moore said. "Her speeds were as high as they've been all season against Iowa State. She's strong and looking good. We could use her both games this weekend, if we need to; that's a possibility. But, we'll see how she throws in the first game and see her pitch count. I have confidence in (junior Regan Green) as well."

STORY LINES
• Baylor finishes off its regular season schedule with the final two games of the split series with Texas, hosting the Longhorns on May 5-6 at Getterman Stadium.
• Although Texas holds a 29-20 advantage in the all-time series, Baylor has won six of the last seven meetings between the programs and has won the series each of the last two season, going for its third-straight with a win in either game of the weekend set.
• Neither side has swept a full three-game season series since the conference moved to a three-game series format in 2012, with BU looking to finish off the season set after winning the first game of the split schedule in Austin with a 3-0 victory on April 17.
• The Lady Bears rebounded from a rocky first half of Big 12 play, taking a road win over Texas and sweeping both Kansas and Iowa State to push back over .500 in conference play, securing a winning record in conference play for the sixth-straight season and has won 10 or more Big 12 games in now eight consecutive seasons.
• Baylor is battling Texas for the No. 3 seed for next weekend's 2018 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship, with BU clinching the third seed on a win in either Saturday or Sunday's contest which would take the tiebreak on head-to-head.
• Shelby Friudenberg punched her way to the top of Baylor's career leaderboard, drilling her 45th career home run in Sunday's series finale at Texas Tech, passing Chelsi Lake (44, 2004-2007) as the program's all-time record holder in base knocks.
• Friudenberg passed Lake's career RBI mark (184, 2004-2007) on a two-RBI single in the first inning of the series finale at Iowa State on April 29.
• Gia Rodoni added her name to the top of the program record books, earning her sixth Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honors, the most-ever in a single season by a Lady Bear tying for the third-most in conference history.
• After missing 11 games due to an ankle injury, Kyla Walker is back in the lineup, a huge boost for the Lady Bears as the program's career batting average leader and the fifth-highest career hitting mark among all active student-athletes in Division I softball, the second-highest among non-freshmen. She leads the team with a .455 effort on the year.
• In her 26 games since returning to the starting lineup, Walker is batting .478 with 12 multi-hit games and has posted at least one hit in all but three games over that stretch.
• Jessie Scroggins is making a strong case for consideration as the nation's top centerfielder, holding the 12th-highest batting average in the nation (.453) entering the weekend, the second-highest among the country's centerfielders and the highest among CFs from the Power 5 conferences.
• Scroggins also leads the Big 12 in stolen bases per game (0.36) and ranks sixth nationally with 72 hits on the year, good for first among the conference's hitters.
• Scroggins now sits atop the program's record book for career hits, passing Lindsey Cargill (253, 2014-2017) for the top spot with a single vs. Kansas on April 20.
• A 2-for-3 performance by Scroggins against BYU on March 24 marked the 70th career multi-hit game of her career, passing Naomi Fitzgerald (69, 1998-2001) to set a new Baylor program record.
• Scroggins became the ninth Lady Bear in program history taken in the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) College Draft, selected by the Chicago Bandits as the No. 15 overall pick in the third round.
• Scroggins added to her impressive accolade collection, named a Top 25 Finalist for USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, the only centerfielder in the country named to the list.
• Gia Rodoni made it seven-straight seasons that a BU pitcher has notched 200-plus strikeouts in a season, leading the Big 12 in both strikeouts and strikeouts per seven innings, ranking in the Top 20 in the country in both categories.
• Rodoni also made it six-straight seasons that a BU pitcher has posted 20 or more victories in the circle.
• Baylor had seven named to the Academic All-Big 12 teams, marking 11-straight seasons with six or more selections, and five or more for the 16th-straight year.

Season tickets, softball flex plans, and the Baylor All Sport Season passes are available, and single-game tickets are currently on sale. Get your tickets on BaylorBears.com/tickets or by calling 254-710-1000.

The Diamond Club is an exclusive support club that enhances the Baylor Softball program. Joining the Diamond Club allows you to get an insider look at Baylor softball. For more information on the Diamond Club, visit Baylor.edu/bearfoundation or call 254-710-2582.

Keep up with the team all season long by following Baylor Softball on the team's official Twitter (@BaylorSoftball), Facebook (Baylor Softball), and Instagram (@BaylorSoftball).

#SicEm