Baylor
Texas Tech
SB Opens Big 12 Play at Texas Tech
3/25/2021 9:12:00 AM | Softball
BU riding a six-game road winning streak heading into conference action
• Friday at 6 p.m. (CT)
• Saturday at 4 p.m. (CT)
• Sunday at noon (CT)
Site: Lubbock, Texas / Rocky Johnson Field
TV: Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Radio: 101.3 FM | Stream
Live Stats: BaylorStats.com
Twitter Updates: @BaylorSoftball
Series History
• Baylor leads, 53-18
• Waco: Baylor, 21-11
• Lubbock: Baylor, 24-4
• Neutral: Baylor, 8-3
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
With senior ace Gia Rodoni "looking more like Gia," and head coach Glenn Moore back in the dugout, Baylor softball (18-5) will open Big 12 play with a three-game weekend series against Texas Tech (16-10) at Rocky Johnson Field in Lubbock.
In a conference-opening weekend that features two other Big 12 series, Baylor and Tech will play at 6 p.m. Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday and 12 noon Sunday, with all three games streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
"Dealing with all of the things we were having to deal with, the biggest plus is seeing Gia looking more like Gia," Moore said. "Traditionally, she's been in a good place when we've needed it most. She's looked really good in her last two outings, so I'm really happy about that."
Even in a 3-1 loss to Houston last Saturday, Rodoni (5-4, 3.07 ERA) struck out 10 and allowed just five hits and two earned runs in 7.0 innings. Coming out of the bullpen in Tuesday's 7-3 win at Sam Houston, she struck out nine of the 18 batters she faced and gave up just one hit and one walk in shutting out the Bearkats over the last 5.1 innings.
"The biggest issue with Gia was her top-end speeds – they were 58-61 (mph), and that just doesn't allow her best pitch to be as effective as it could be, which is her changeup," Moore said. "It's effective and still a good pitch, but it's much more effective when they have to dig in for that 65 mph. I think she's getting her speeds back and getting a little more movement on the ball."
Moore will be back in the dugout after missing the three previous games with a heart condition. He had two stents put in last week to clear significant blockages.
"They're letting me go under the condition that I don't have any physical activity and that I coach from the dugout and don't get upset," said Moore, who usually coaches at third base. "I'm planning on asking the umpires that if they blow a call, they come talk to me at the dugout. I'm feeling pretty good overall, just feeling pretty tired and winded right now."
Because of injuries, Baylor had to tweak the lineup and rotate some players around, losing some of the offensive firepower the Lady Bears showed earlier. While outfielder Ana Watson will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury and centerfielder Nicky Dawson will miss the next six weeks following surgery to repair torn ligaments in her thumb, second baseman Emily Hott is expected to be back this weekend.
"Our offensive production hasn't been where I hoped it would be heading into Big 12 play," Moore said, "but not too long ago, we had some big offensive games. So hopefully, we will be back on track."
Baylor is hitting .308 as a team, led by senior outfielder Maddison Kettler at .372, Goose McGlaun .342 and Lou Gilbert and Aliyah Binford both at .319. Kettler has hit in 10-consecutive games, batting .565 with three doubles, a triple, eight RBI and four multi-hit games in that stretch.
"Kettler is starting to look like the Kettler of old. She's just been phenomenal," said Moore, who moved her into the No. 2 spot in the order behind Gilbert in the leadoff spot. "We're still going to be a threat up there, and I think Lou's possibly going to be our leadoff hitter in the future. She brings more of the power plus the short game we like to have."
After getting off to a slow start under first-year head coach Sami Ward, Tech has won 11 of its last 14 games and took two of three against Tarleton State last weekend. The Red Raiders are hitting .295 as a team and have a solid 1-2 pitching corps with Missy Zoch (7-3, 2.27) and Erin Edmoundson (7-4. 3.01).
"They look very similar to the team we saw two years ago that came in here and was probably the best Texas Tech team I've seen since I've been here," Moore said. "I'm expecting them to open up Big 12 with a lot of excitement and be very tough to beat up there."
The Lady Bears lead the all-time series, 53-18, including a 24-4 record in Lubbock.
STORY LINES
• For the first time in 722 days, the Lady Bears gear up to play a Big 12 game. Because the 2020 season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Baylor didn't play a conference game last year. BU's last time to go up against a conference foe came on May 5, 2019, in Austin.
• Baylor is currently riding a six-game road winning streak and is 12-2 in road/neutral contests already this season, including ranked wins at No. 13 Louisiana (3/4) and No. 9 Arizona State (3/14). During the six-game streak, BU is outscoring (49-11) and outhitting (65-33) its opposition.
• Baylor has opened Big 12 play against Texas Tech only twice in the league's history. BU is 4-0 in those contests sweeping the 2009 (2-1, 6-1) and 1999 (3-1, 2-1) series.BU has opened conference play away from the friendly confines of Getterman Stadium six times. Most recently, Baylor went 2-1 in a three-game league series at Kansas in 2017. In Big 12 opening games, Baylor is 11-12 overall. BU's last league opener to win was a 6-1 game at Kansas on March 25, 2017. In Big 12 opening series, BU is 20-26.
• After leading BU with a .429 average in a shortened 2020 season, Maddison Kettler got off to a slow start as the outfielder was hitting .071 nine games into the year. A two-hit game against Tarleton State on March 6 seemed to get her going as she hit .517 since then for a .372 overall average. Kettler is currently on a 10-game streak where she's reached base safely. During that time, she's hitting a whopping .565 with a .783 slugging percentage and a .636 OBP to go with three doubles, a triple, eight RBI and four multi-hit games. Most recently, Kettler tied her career high with three hits at Sam Houston when she went 3-for-4 at the plate with a double and three RBI.
• Gia Rodoni is now only five strikeouts away from 600 in her career. After throwing 10 Ks in seven innings against Houston, she followed that up with nine Ks in relief at Sam Houston. The past two games, Rodoni has struck out 40 percent of the batters she's faced.
• Nicky Dawson is Baylor's all-time leader in career triples with 12 after ripping one to left center field against Louisiana Tech on March 7. The fifth-year senior outfielder now has five triples this season, a mark that ties her for first nationally. Dawson is now tied for second in program history for triples in a season alongside Kyla Walker (2017), Carrie Leerberg (2004) and Kelly Osburn (2005). Harmony Schwethelm had six triples in 2005.
• After 20 seasons as an assistant coach for the Lady Bears, Mark Lumley retired in October before he passed away in December after his fourth bout with cancer. The Baylor players and coaching staff will all be wearing blue ribbons in his honor. This season is for Lum.
