Sunday, February 23
Waco, TX
11:00 AM
Baylor
13-2
5
vs
4
Illinois
7-5
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Illinois
1
0
3
0
0
0
0
4
6
0
Baylor
1
0
1
0
2
1
X
5
8
0
Photo by: Baylor Photography
SB Tops Illinois to Complete Undefeated Sweep of Baylor Invitational
2/23/2020 2:44:00 PM | Softball
Lady Bears have won 11-straight at home
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Last year, Glenn Moore didn't have many options in the bullpen. If the starting pitcher got in trouble, he had to leave her out there. "We couldn't relieve her."
That's not the case this year.
After Sidney Holman-Mansell gave up a three-run homer in the third inning in Sunday's Baylor Invitation finale, freshman Aliyah Pritchett (4-0) retired the last 12 batters in a row, struck out four and hit a solo home run for good measure as Baylor softball (13-2) rallied to beat Illinois, 5-4, and win its 11th in a row.
"No doubt about it, she can do it all," said Baylor coach Glenn Moore, whose team won its fourth one-run game of the weekend and completed a sweep of the five-team Baylor Invitational.
"She came in in a 4-2 ballgame and just competed and kept us right there with them until she made the difference offensively. She's got good stuff and changes speeds. She's tough on our hitters in practice, so I knew there was a day coming when she would be able to handle some big lineups. We're seeing that right now."
Baylor rallied late for a pair of walk-off wins over Texas State and Minnesota on Saturday and followed a similar blueprint for Sunday's game.
Illinois (7-5) got on the board first with three-straight two-out hits off Holman-Mansell in the top of the first, but the Lady Bears answered with a run in the bottom of the frame. Maddison Kettler ripped a one-out triple down the right-field line and scored on freshman Emily Hott's grounder to short.
After retiring the side in order in the second, Holman-Mansell gave up a pair of singles and a three-run bomb by Danielle Davis that cleared the wall in left-center field to give the Illini a 4-1 lead.
Baylor cut into the deficit with a run in the bottom half of the third on singles by Alyssa Avalos and Kettler and then tied it up in the fifth. Kyla Walker and Kettler delivered back-to-back RBI singles to tie it up, but Walker was called out at the plate on a close play when she tried to score from third on Hott's fielder's choice grounder to short.
"We're a very laid-back team. I think we trust the process that we're having with our coaches and our teammates," said Kettler, who was 3-for-3 to raise her batting average by over 60 points to .343. "We knew we had it in the bag, we just didn't know when."
Stringing together 11-consecutive home wins, Moore said there's a confidence brewing with this team, and (we're) starting to believe."
"We're like a thousand paper cuts. We just keep putting pressure on you until you break down," Moore said. "As long as we don't let the lead get out of hand, we feel like we're in most ballgames. . . . I think as long as you stay in ballgames, you have the motivation to be resilient."
The key to staying in the game was Pritchett stringing together outs in the circle until the Lady Bears got the offense cranked up. After striking out the side in the top of the sixth, she led off the bottom of the inning by crushing a solo blast to left-center to give Baylor its first lead of the game.
"It felt awesome, honestly," said Pritchett, who hit her second homer of the season. "I went up there, I had to get a hit for my team. Being able to come out with the win was great."
Even with ace Gia Rodoni "warmed up and ready," Moore opted to stick with the freshman to close it out in the seventh. And she repaid that confidence with a quick 1-2-3 inning, the only close call coming when first baseman Goose McGlaun had to scoop Taylor Ellis's throw from short on a Maddy Adams grounder.
"They had 7, 8 and 9 hitters coming up, and (Pritchett) looked good," Moore said. "We had Gia warmed up and ready to go. And had we got to top of the order with a maybe a runner or two on, we probably would have gone with Gia. It may not have been fair to Aliyah, because she had thrown well. But, if you've got a tool over there, you need to use it to try to secure the win. But, Aliyah went back out there and took care of business."
Baylor led the Baylor Invitational with a. 5-0 mark in the tournament, followed by 17th-ranked Minnesota (3-2), Illinois (2-2), Texas State (2-3) and Tulsa (0-5).
The Lady Bears will face Louisiana Tech at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday to wrap up a 12-game home stand before another challenging tournament. They are scheduled to play two games against No. 9 Florida State and one each against No. 23 Arkansas, Villanova and Kent State at the Woo Pig Classic on Thursday-Saturday in Fayetteville, Ark.
"I hope their confidence is raising to a high level, mine certainly is with them," Moore said. "I don't look to the bench to pinch-hit very often. Although, you look at Alyssa Avalos and what she did today (2-for-2, 2 runs), you certainly have a couple hitters on the bench that could do some damage if you need it."
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Baylor softball grinded out its third one-run victory of the weekend as a solo home run by freshman Aliyah Pritchett lifted the Lady Bears to a 5-4 win over Illinois Sunday afternoon at Getterman Stadium. The win moved BU to 5-0 in the Baylor Invitational and 11-0 at home this season.
After Illinois jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, the Lady Bears tied things up in the bottom of the frame. Maddison Kettler knocked a triple down the right field line and then scored when Emily Hott grounded out to shortstop.
Two innings later, Illinois regained the lead with a three-run homer, but the Baylor bats were just heating up.
Alyssa Avalos, who finished the day 2-for-2 at the plate, singled through the right side and advanced to second off a wild pitch to put a runner in scoring position with one out. Kettler again came up big for BU in the batter's box as her single up the middle scored Avalos to put the Lady Bears within two.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Baylor tied things up at four. Goose McGlaun led off the frame with a single and then advanced to third off Avalos's first-career double. Ana Watson, who came on to pinch run for McGlaun, scored when Kyla Walker singled through the right side. Kettler had her second RBI of the day when she singled with one out in the inning to score Avalos and tie the game. Kettler led the way for BU at the plate with a 3-for-3 showing and a pair of RBI.
Pritchett's second career homer gave the Lady Bears the lead for good in the sixth inning. The freshman, who started the game at shortstop, came on to pitch in the fourth inning and allowed no runs off no hits with four strikeouts.
HIGHLIGHTS
STAT OF THE GAME
11 – Straight wins at home by Baylor softball, the longest home winning streak to open a season since 2011 (11).
TOP QUOTES
Glenn Moore on the win…
"I think we're facing better competition every time we go out there. This team has continued to raise the level of play and playing more mature. I feel this team can be very good. We still have a long way to go with better competition next week. I think we're where we hoped we would be."
Maddison Kettler on her performance…
"I knew that today was the day after coming out yesterday and not performing how I wanted. I needed to perform for my team. That's what I needed to do."
Aliyah Pritchett on her home run…
"It felt awesome, honestly. I went up there and had to get a hit for my team. Being able to come out with the win was great."
Baylor Bear Insider
Last year, Glenn Moore didn't have many options in the bullpen. If the starting pitcher got in trouble, he had to leave her out there. "We couldn't relieve her."
That's not the case this year.
After Sidney Holman-Mansell gave up a three-run homer in the third inning in Sunday's Baylor Invitation finale, freshman Aliyah Pritchett (4-0) retired the last 12 batters in a row, struck out four and hit a solo home run for good measure as Baylor softball (13-2) rallied to beat Illinois, 5-4, and win its 11th in a row.
"No doubt about it, she can do it all," said Baylor coach Glenn Moore, whose team won its fourth one-run game of the weekend and completed a sweep of the five-team Baylor Invitational.
"She came in in a 4-2 ballgame and just competed and kept us right there with them until she made the difference offensively. She's got good stuff and changes speeds. She's tough on our hitters in practice, so I knew there was a day coming when she would be able to handle some big lineups. We're seeing that right now."
Baylor rallied late for a pair of walk-off wins over Texas State and Minnesota on Saturday and followed a similar blueprint for Sunday's game.
Illinois (7-5) got on the board first with three-straight two-out hits off Holman-Mansell in the top of the first, but the Lady Bears answered with a run in the bottom of the frame. Maddison Kettler ripped a one-out triple down the right-field line and scored on freshman Emily Hott's grounder to short.
After retiring the side in order in the second, Holman-Mansell gave up a pair of singles and a three-run bomb by Danielle Davis that cleared the wall in left-center field to give the Illini a 4-1 lead.
Baylor cut into the deficit with a run in the bottom half of the third on singles by Alyssa Avalos and Kettler and then tied it up in the fifth. Kyla Walker and Kettler delivered back-to-back RBI singles to tie it up, but Walker was called out at the plate on a close play when she tried to score from third on Hott's fielder's choice grounder to short.
"We're a very laid-back team. I think we trust the process that we're having with our coaches and our teammates," said Kettler, who was 3-for-3 to raise her batting average by over 60 points to .343. "We knew we had it in the bag, we just didn't know when."
Stringing together 11-consecutive home wins, Moore said there's a confidence brewing with this team, and (we're) starting to believe."
"We're like a thousand paper cuts. We just keep putting pressure on you until you break down," Moore said. "As long as we don't let the lead get out of hand, we feel like we're in most ballgames. . . . I think as long as you stay in ballgames, you have the motivation to be resilient."
The key to staying in the game was Pritchett stringing together outs in the circle until the Lady Bears got the offense cranked up. After striking out the side in the top of the sixth, she led off the bottom of the inning by crushing a solo blast to left-center to give Baylor its first lead of the game.
"It felt awesome, honestly," said Pritchett, who hit her second homer of the season. "I went up there, I had to get a hit for my team. Being able to come out with the win was great."
Even with ace Gia Rodoni "warmed up and ready," Moore opted to stick with the freshman to close it out in the seventh. And she repaid that confidence with a quick 1-2-3 inning, the only close call coming when first baseman Goose McGlaun had to scoop Taylor Ellis's throw from short on a Maddy Adams grounder.
"They had 7, 8 and 9 hitters coming up, and (Pritchett) looked good," Moore said. "We had Gia warmed up and ready to go. And had we got to top of the order with a maybe a runner or two on, we probably would have gone with Gia. It may not have been fair to Aliyah, because she had thrown well. But, if you've got a tool over there, you need to use it to try to secure the win. But, Aliyah went back out there and took care of business."
Baylor led the Baylor Invitational with a. 5-0 mark in the tournament, followed by 17th-ranked Minnesota (3-2), Illinois (2-2), Texas State (2-3) and Tulsa (0-5).
The Lady Bears will face Louisiana Tech at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday to wrap up a 12-game home stand before another challenging tournament. They are scheduled to play two games against No. 9 Florida State and one each against No. 23 Arkansas, Villanova and Kent State at the Woo Pig Classic on Thursday-Saturday in Fayetteville, Ark.
"I hope their confidence is raising to a high level, mine certainly is with them," Moore said. "I don't look to the bench to pinch-hit very often. Although, you look at Alyssa Avalos and what she did today (2-for-2, 2 runs), you certainly have a couple hitters on the bench that could do some damage if you need it."
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Baylor softball grinded out its third one-run victory of the weekend as a solo home run by freshman Aliyah Pritchett lifted the Lady Bears to a 5-4 win over Illinois Sunday afternoon at Getterman Stadium. The win moved BU to 5-0 in the Baylor Invitational and 11-0 at home this season.
After Illinois jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, the Lady Bears tied things up in the bottom of the frame. Maddison Kettler knocked a triple down the right field line and then scored when Emily Hott grounded out to shortstop.
Two innings later, Illinois regained the lead with a three-run homer, but the Baylor bats were just heating up.
Alyssa Avalos, who finished the day 2-for-2 at the plate, singled through the right side and advanced to second off a wild pitch to put a runner in scoring position with one out. Kettler again came up big for BU in the batter's box as her single up the middle scored Avalos to put the Lady Bears within two.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Baylor tied things up at four. Goose McGlaun led off the frame with a single and then advanced to third off Avalos's first-career double. Ana Watson, who came on to pinch run for McGlaun, scored when Kyla Walker singled through the right side. Kettler had her second RBI of the day when she singled with one out in the inning to score Avalos and tie the game. Kettler led the way for BU at the plate with a 3-for-3 showing and a pair of RBI.
Pritchett's second career homer gave the Lady Bears the lead for good in the sixth inning. The freshman, who started the game at shortstop, came on to pitch in the fourth inning and allowed no runs off no hits with four strikeouts.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Gia Rodoni, Josie Bower, Aliyah Pritchett, Kyla Walker, Maddison Kettler and Emily Hott were named to the Baylor Invitational All-Tournament team.
- Alyssa Avalos recorded the second multi-hit game of her career as she went 2-for-2 at the plate. She had her first career double in the fifth inning and scored two runs.
- Kettler matched her career best with three hits against Illinois. She hit her first triple of the season and added a pair of RBI.
- Pritchett crushed her second home run of the season and first at Getterman Stadium. Pritchett has now recorded a hit in three-straight games. She's had an extra base hit in two of the last three games.
- Walker has a hit in four-straight games.
STAT OF THE GAME
11 – Straight wins at home by Baylor softball, the longest home winning streak to open a season since 2011 (11).
TOP QUOTES
Glenn Moore on the win…
"I think we're facing better competition every time we go out there. This team has continued to raise the level of play and playing more mature. I feel this team can be very good. We still have a long way to go with better competition next week. I think we're where we hoped we would be."
Maddison Kettler on her performance…
"I knew that today was the day after coming out yesterday and not performing how I wanted. I needed to perform for my team. That's what I needed to do."
Aliyah Pritchett on her home run…
"It felt awesome, honestly. I went up there and had to get a hit for my team. Being able to come out with the win was great."
www.BaylorBears.com
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Binford, Aliyah (4-0)
L: A Jarvis (3-2)
Batting:
HR: D Davis 1
RBI: D Davis 4
Base Running:
RUNS: A Steiner 1 ; D Rummell 2 ; D Davis 1
Batting:
2B: Avalos, Alyssa 1
3B: Kettler, Maddison 1
HR: Binford, Aliyah 1
RBI: Walker, Kyla 1 ; Kettler, Maddison 2 ; Hott, Emily 1 ; Binford, Aliyah 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kettler, Maddison 1 ; Binford, Aliyah 1 ; Watson, Ana 1 ; Avalos, Alyssa 2
SB: Walker, Kyla 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
1
H
3
RBI
2
AB
2
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
1
ss/p
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
OF
/ SoftballP/INF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
INF/C
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
OF/INF
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
OF
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