Friday, February 21
Waco, Texas
3:45 PM
Baylor
9-2
1
vs
0
Tulsa
8-3
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Tulsa
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
Baylor
0
0
0
0
0
1
X
1
6
0
Photo by: Baylor Photography
Pair of Pitching Gems Gives SB Two Wins to Open Baylor Invitational
2/21/2020 9:47:00 PM | Softball
Lady Bears are 8-0 at home to start the 2020 season
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Going into this weekend's Baylor Invitational, coach Glenn Moore talked about wanting to "see a little more efficiency out of the other ones."
Ask, and ye shall receive.
While fifth-year senior ace Gia Rodoni did Gia Rodoni things, twirling her record-tying fifth no-hitter in a 1-0 win over Tulsa, junior Sidney Holman-Mansell followed that up with a three-hitter with nine strikeouts in the Lady Bears' 5-1 win over Tulsa in Friday's finale.
"We only really had one pitcher last year, so it's been a while since we've had two performances this efficient," said Moore, whose team improved to 10-2 with its eighth-straight win. "Obviously, a no-hitter is efficient. Sid was very efficient. She stayed around the zone and threw really hard and stayed with two-ball counts at the most.
"They were swinging at pitches, helping her out. But, whenever you're throwing pitches that look like strikes and they swing at them, then you're doing your job. I certainly thought that was one of her better performances against a great team in a Baylor uniform."
Thrust into the ace role last season when Rodoni was out with an injury, Holman-Mansell was 10-18 with a 4.69 ERA as Baylor finished last in the Big 12 and failed to make an NCAA regional.
This year, she's off to a 3-1 start with a 2.49 ERA and 31 strikeouts with only 10 walks in 25.1 innings. But, she found a different groove in Friday's game.
"We adjusted some things over the week and threw a lot of curveballs and worked on spinning rather than speed the whole time," Holman-Mansell said. "I figured out (my rhythm) this game. I had to get into that rhythm to keep everything going. It is really nice to have the girls back there talking to me during the game."
Tying Whitney Canion's program record with her fifth career no-hitter, Rodoni dominated the Tulsa batters with nine strikeouts and only two walks in the complete-game gem.
"It felt good, I felt like I hadn't missed a year," said Rodoni (5-1), who lowered her ERA to 1.01. "Everything felt good, my body felt good. It was just a great overall team effort, so I'm super-pleased with the performance."
Rodoni was locked in a pitchers' duel with Tulsa's Samantha Pochop through the first five innings before Baylor finally came through with a big hit.
Maddison Kettler opened the sixth with a bunt single, moved to second on a sac bunt by Josie Bower and scored on a Taylor Ellis RBI single to left.
In the nightcap, Holman-Mansell had a one-hit shutout through the first frames and struck out the side in the third. But, Illinois (6-4) got on board first in the top of the sixth with a pair of hits and Delaney Rummell's sacrifice fly.
The Lady Bears answered with five runs in the bottom of the inning. Hannah Thompson led off with a double to the right-field alley, with pinch-runner Alyssa Avalos scoring the tying run on a throwing error by the Illini shortstop.
Lou Gilbert then scored the go-ahead run on another error, and Bower followed with a towering, two-run homer over the right-field wall off starter Sydney Sickels (2-3).
"She had been throwing that changeup since the beginning of the game, so it was in the back of our minds the entire time," said Bower, who hit her team-high second home run of the season. "Honestly, I just went up there and was like, 'Whatever she throws, I'm going to hit it.' That was my mentality."
Baylor added another unearned run when Goose McGlaun doubled and scored on the Illiini's third error of the inning.
"I think we're all on the same page," Bower said. "When we're down, we're all together and trying to bring each other up. We're really cohesive, and that's what's making us really successful."
Back to the diamond for Day 2, Baylor will face Texas State at 2:30 p.m. and 17th-ranked Minnesota at 4:45 before closing out the tournament with another game against Illinois at 11 a.m. Sunday.
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Gia Rodoni threw her fifth career no-hitter, and Sidney Holman-Mansell followed that up to hold Illinois to one run off three hits with nine strikeouts as the pair of pitchers completed stellar complete-game performances to give the Lady Bears wins over Tulsa and Illinois on Friday.
The Baylor defense backed up the performances in the circle with errorless ball through both games to open the Baylor Invitational.
At the plate, the Lady Bears scored all of their runs on the day in the sixth inning.
GAME 1: BAYLOR 1, TULSA 0
Gia Rodoni tossed her fifth career no-hitter, and first since May 19, 2018 against McNeese. It was her first no-no in regular season action since Feb. 9, 2018, vs. Northwestern State.
The Baylor defense retired the first 14 batters in a row, with eight of those outs coming from Rodoni strikeouts. On the outing, Rodoni racked up nine strikeouts. In total, Tulsa finished with a pair of baserunners but only one advanced to second base.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Maddison Kettler led things off for BU with a bunt single and then moved to second off a sacrifice bunt by Josie Bower. With two outs and Kettler on second, Taylor Ellis hit a single that dropped perfectly in the left side to bring Kettler home.
GAME 2: BAYLOR 5, ILLINOIS 1
Another sixth-inning rally by the home team helped Baylor to its second win of the day, a 5-1 victory over Illinois. And like their first game of the day, the Lady Bears were paced by a strong performance in the circle.
Sidney Holman-Mansell went the distance for Baylor with one run allowed off three hits with nine strikeouts.
After the Fighting Illini took the 1-0 lead in the top of the sixth inning, it took the Lady Bears little time to respond. Hannah Thompson led things off with her first hit of the year, a double, off the wall in right center field. That was just the spark the BU dugout needed as Baylor capitalized off a trio of Illinois errs in the inning.
Lou Gilbert reached base off an error by the Illinois shortstop which allowed Alyssa Avalos, who came on to pinch run for Thompson, to score. Gilbert crossed the plate shortly after when Kyla Walker reached base off an error by the third baseman.
With one out and a runner on second, Josie Bower pummeled her second home run of the season over the right field wall. A batter later, Goose McGlaun doubled to left field and later scored when Emily Hott reached base off an error by the Illinois first baseman.
HIGHLIGHTS
0 – Number of hits Gia Rodoni allowed in seven innings of work against Tulsa, marking her fifth career no-hitter.
TOP QUOTES
Glenn Moore on the pitching…
"We only really had one pitcher last year, so it's been a while since we've had two performances this efficient. Obviously, a no-hitter is efficient. Sid was very efficient for her tonight. She stayed around the zone and threw really hard and stayed with two-ball counts at the most. They were swinging at pitches helping her out, but whenever you're throwing pitches that look like strikes and they swing at them, then you're doing your job. I certainly thought that was one of her better performances against a great team in a Baylor uniform."
Josie Bower on her home run…
"She had been throwing that change-up since the beginning of the game, so it was in the back of our minds the entire time. Honestly, I just went up there and I was like, 'Whatever she throws, I'm going to hit it.' That was my mentality."
Sidney Holman-Mansell on her preparation this week…
"We adjusted some things over the week, and threw a lot of curveballs and worked on spinning rather than speed the whole time."
Gia Rodoni on her no-hitter…
"I felt good. I felt like I hadn't missed a year. Everything felt good and my body felt good. It was just a great overall team effort. I'm super pleased with the performance."
Baylor Bear Insider
Going into this weekend's Baylor Invitational, coach Glenn Moore talked about wanting to "see a little more efficiency out of the other ones."
Ask, and ye shall receive.
While fifth-year senior ace Gia Rodoni did Gia Rodoni things, twirling her record-tying fifth no-hitter in a 1-0 win over Tulsa, junior Sidney Holman-Mansell followed that up with a three-hitter with nine strikeouts in the Lady Bears' 5-1 win over Tulsa in Friday's finale.
"We only really had one pitcher last year, so it's been a while since we've had two performances this efficient," said Moore, whose team improved to 10-2 with its eighth-straight win. "Obviously, a no-hitter is efficient. Sid was very efficient. She stayed around the zone and threw really hard and stayed with two-ball counts at the most.
"They were swinging at pitches, helping her out. But, whenever you're throwing pitches that look like strikes and they swing at them, then you're doing your job. I certainly thought that was one of her better performances against a great team in a Baylor uniform."
Thrust into the ace role last season when Rodoni was out with an injury, Holman-Mansell was 10-18 with a 4.69 ERA as Baylor finished last in the Big 12 and failed to make an NCAA regional.
This year, she's off to a 3-1 start with a 2.49 ERA and 31 strikeouts with only 10 walks in 25.1 innings. But, she found a different groove in Friday's game.
"We adjusted some things over the week and threw a lot of curveballs and worked on spinning rather than speed the whole time," Holman-Mansell said. "I figured out (my rhythm) this game. I had to get into that rhythm to keep everything going. It is really nice to have the girls back there talking to me during the game."
Tying Whitney Canion's program record with her fifth career no-hitter, Rodoni dominated the Tulsa batters with nine strikeouts and only two walks in the complete-game gem.
"It felt good, I felt like I hadn't missed a year," said Rodoni (5-1), who lowered her ERA to 1.01. "Everything felt good, my body felt good. It was just a great overall team effort, so I'm super-pleased with the performance."
Rodoni was locked in a pitchers' duel with Tulsa's Samantha Pochop through the first five innings before Baylor finally came through with a big hit.
Maddison Kettler opened the sixth with a bunt single, moved to second on a sac bunt by Josie Bower and scored on a Taylor Ellis RBI single to left.
In the nightcap, Holman-Mansell had a one-hit shutout through the first frames and struck out the side in the third. But, Illinois (6-4) got on board first in the top of the sixth with a pair of hits and Delaney Rummell's sacrifice fly.
The Lady Bears answered with five runs in the bottom of the inning. Hannah Thompson led off with a double to the right-field alley, with pinch-runner Alyssa Avalos scoring the tying run on a throwing error by the Illini shortstop.
Lou Gilbert then scored the go-ahead run on another error, and Bower followed with a towering, two-run homer over the right-field wall off starter Sydney Sickels (2-3).
"She had been throwing that changeup since the beginning of the game, so it was in the back of our minds the entire time," said Bower, who hit her team-high second home run of the season. "Honestly, I just went up there and was like, 'Whatever she throws, I'm going to hit it.' That was my mentality."
Baylor added another unearned run when Goose McGlaun doubled and scored on the Illiini's third error of the inning.
"I think we're all on the same page," Bower said. "When we're down, we're all together and trying to bring each other up. We're really cohesive, and that's what's making us really successful."
Back to the diamond for Day 2, Baylor will face Texas State at 2:30 p.m. and 17th-ranked Minnesota at 4:45 before closing out the tournament with another game against Illinois at 11 a.m. Sunday.
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Gia Rodoni threw her fifth career no-hitter, and Sidney Holman-Mansell followed that up to hold Illinois to one run off three hits with nine strikeouts as the pair of pitchers completed stellar complete-game performances to give the Lady Bears wins over Tulsa and Illinois on Friday.
The Baylor defense backed up the performances in the circle with errorless ball through both games to open the Baylor Invitational.
At the plate, the Lady Bears scored all of their runs on the day in the sixth inning.
GAME 1: BAYLOR 1, TULSA 0
Gia Rodoni tossed her fifth career no-hitter, and first since May 19, 2018 against McNeese. It was her first no-no in regular season action since Feb. 9, 2018, vs. Northwestern State.
The Baylor defense retired the first 14 batters in a row, with eight of those outs coming from Rodoni strikeouts. On the outing, Rodoni racked up nine strikeouts. In total, Tulsa finished with a pair of baserunners but only one advanced to second base.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Maddison Kettler led things off for BU with a bunt single and then moved to second off a sacrifice bunt by Josie Bower. With two outs and Kettler on second, Taylor Ellis hit a single that dropped perfectly in the left side to bring Kettler home.
GAME 2: BAYLOR 5, ILLINOIS 1
Another sixth-inning rally by the home team helped Baylor to its second win of the day, a 5-1 victory over Illinois. And like their first game of the day, the Lady Bears were paced by a strong performance in the circle.
Sidney Holman-Mansell went the distance for Baylor with one run allowed off three hits with nine strikeouts.
After the Fighting Illini took the 1-0 lead in the top of the sixth inning, it took the Lady Bears little time to respond. Hannah Thompson led things off with her first hit of the year, a double, off the wall in right center field. That was just the spark the BU dugout needed as Baylor capitalized off a trio of Illinois errs in the inning.
Lou Gilbert reached base off an error by the Illinois shortstop which allowed Alyssa Avalos, who came on to pinch run for Thompson, to score. Gilbert crossed the plate shortly after when Kyla Walker reached base off an error by the third baseman.
With one out and a runner on second, Josie Bower pummeled her second home run of the season over the right field wall. A batter later, Goose McGlaun doubled to left field and later scored when Emily Hott reached base off an error by the Illinois first baseman.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Kyla Walker hit her ninth career triple in the fourth inning vs. Illinois. That moves her into a tie for first place in the record books with nine career triples – Kim Wilmoth (2002-05), Carrie Leerberg (2002-05), Harmony Schwethelm (2003-06).
- Josie Bower hit her second home run of the season, and third of her career, against Illinois. She was the lone Lady Bear to record a hit in both games on Friday and now has a hit in seven of the last eight games. Bower has also now reached base safely in eight-straight games, a new career high.
- With an RBI vs. Tulsa, Taylor Ellis has an RBI in three of the last four games. She's got 11 RBI on the season.
- Lou Gilbert's hit streak reached nine games in a row with her hit vs. Tulsa. Gilbert's reached base safely in every game this season. That 12-game streak is three shy of tying her career high.
- In her last three starts, Sidney Holman-Mansell has 22 strikeouts.
- Goose McGlaun hit her fourth double of the season.
0 – Number of hits Gia Rodoni allowed in seven innings of work against Tulsa, marking her fifth career no-hitter.
TOP QUOTES
Glenn Moore on the pitching…
"We only really had one pitcher last year, so it's been a while since we've had two performances this efficient. Obviously, a no-hitter is efficient. Sid was very efficient for her tonight. She stayed around the zone and threw really hard and stayed with two-ball counts at the most. They were swinging at pitches helping her out, but whenever you're throwing pitches that look like strikes and they swing at them, then you're doing your job. I certainly thought that was one of her better performances against a great team in a Baylor uniform."
Josie Bower on her home run…
"She had been throwing that change-up since the beginning of the game, so it was in the back of our minds the entire time. Honestly, I just went up there and I was like, 'Whatever she throws, I'm going to hit it.' That was my mentality."
Sidney Holman-Mansell on her preparation this week…
"We adjusted some things over the week, and threw a lot of curveballs and worked on spinning rather than speed the whole time."
Gia Rodoni on her no-hitter…
"I felt good. I felt like I hadn't missed a year. Everything felt good and my body felt good. It was just a great overall team effort. I'm super pleased with the performance."
www.BaylorBears.com
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Rodoni, Gia (5-1)
L: POCHOP, S. (2-1)
Batting:
RBI: Ellis, Taylor 1
SH: Bower, Josie 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kettler, Maddison 1
SB: Gilbert, Lou 1
CS: Gilbert, Lou 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
2
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
1
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
INF/C
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
RHP
/ SoftballUTIL
/ Softball
OF/INF
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
OF
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