By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Transferring from SFA in the fall,
Shaylon Govan had a feeling there was something special about this Baylor softball team.
That's why it didn't come as much of a surprise when Baylor pulled off one of the biggest wins in program history on Sunday. Backing another pitching gem by
Dariana Orme (3-1), Govan blasted a three-run home run to lift the Bears (8-1) to a 4-3 victory over top-ranked Oklahoma (8-1) before a sellout crowd of 1,271 at Getterman Stadium.
"We know that we're a good team, and we're happy to put Baylor on the map," Govan said. "We're trying to get us back to the Women's College World Series. That's the plan."
The two-time defending national champion, Oklahoma outscored its first three opponents in the Getterman Classic, 41-0, with three run-rule victories and had scored in all but one inning.
But that changed in a hurry against Orme, who gave up one unearned run and six hits with two walks and two strikeouts in 4.0 innings. It capped a phenomenal weekend for the junior right-hander, who pitched the program's first seven-inning perfect game in Friday's 3-0 win over SFA.
"I don't know that we've faced anyone that's throwing it that hard this early," said OU coach Patty Gasso. "So, we knew what to expect, but she was really spotting pitches really well early. Maybe that's a little bit different, but with age comes maturity and understanding, and that's usually what all pitchers start to figure out once they get a little older."
Orme, who lowered her ERA to 0.82, said Sunday's win over Oklahoma "is only the beginning."
"I don't want us to ever get too high," she said, "but live in the moment. This is only the beginning for us."
After working out of a bases-loaded jam in the first, Orme gave up a one-out triple off the top of the wall in dead-center field by Alynah Torres in the second. The Sooners got on the board first when shortstop
Amber Toven couldn't handle a hot shot from Jayda Coleman, scoring Torres from third.
The Bears got runners as far as second base in each of the first two innings, then broke through in a big way in the third.
Presleigh Pilon led off with a single through the left side, then moved all the way around to third when
McKenzie Wilson reached on a bunt single.
Toven followed with a first-pitch RBI single just out of the reach of All-American second baseman Tiara Jennings to tie it up at 1-1.
Govan, who struck out on a changeup in the first, was "looking down" on a 1-1 changeup from Jordy Bahl that she got all of and deposited over the left-field wall for her second homer of the season and a 4-1 lead for the Bears.
"I knew it off the bat," said Govan. "It felt so good."
Bahl, the Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Year and National Freshman of the Year last season when she was 22-1, allowed as many as four runs for just the fourth time in her career and sixth-career homer.
"She's a dangerous hitter and had another well-hit ball in the game, too," Baylor coach
Glenn Moore said. "I think you're going to see her trot around the bases a few times in her career here."
Working around a pair of singles in the fourth, Orme put up zeroes in the third and fourth before being taken out going into the fifth.
"I definitely think it gets a little bit tiring out there," Orme said. "But when your adrenaline's pumping and your team needs you, I don't even know what the pitch count is. Honestly, that's the first time hearing of (the pitch count). I just go until I can't go anymore. That's the plan."
Aliyah Binford came on in relief in the fifth, moving from third base, and worked two 1-2-3 innings to pick up her fifth-career save.
The Sooners did make things interesting, plating two runs in the sixth on three-straight hits by Riley Boone, Coleman and Jennings, cutting the deficit to 4-3. But Binford retired the last five batters, getting Alyssa Brito to end it on a fly ball to center.
"I thought it was a perfect-timing call," Orme said of Binford coming in out of the pen, "because Aliyah and I work so well together. She and I just complement each other so well. As soon as she got the call, I became her biggest cheerleader, because I knew she was going to kill it. And she did just that. I'm proud of her and what we were able to do here."
Finishing off a perfect 4-0 weekend, Baylor scored seven runs in the first two innings and knocked off Army, 7-0, in the final game of the three-day tournament. Freshman
RyLee Crandall combined with
Kaci West on a two-hit shutout of the Black Knights (2-7), striking out a career-high 11 batters in 6.0 innings.
"RyLee is going to be a big-time pitcher for us," Moore said of Crandall, who improved to 2-0 with a 0.49 ERA. "We've seen that already and it's just going to be a matter of getting her in a groove. She's going to pitch some big games for us this year. But it's good to have pitchers like Aliyah and Dari to grow a pitcher like that. You don't always have that luxury."
Baylor picked up its second-ever win over a No. 1-ranked team and first since then-freshman Whitney Canion tossed a three-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts in a 1-0 win over top-ranked Florida on Feb. 8, 2009.
Continuing a 14-game homestand, the Bears will face Minnesota (5-4), No. 25 Maryland (8-1) and Texas A&M-Commerce (2-9) in next weekend's Baylor Invitational.
WACO, Texas – Behind a three-run homer from
Shaylon Govan, Baylor softball posted a 4-3 win over No. 1 Oklahoma, its first win over a top-ranked foe since 2009, on Sunday afternoon in front of 1,271 at Getterman Stadium.
Baylor (7-1) handed Oklahoma (8-1) its first loss of the season, using a four-run third to erase a one-run, second-inning hole. The Bears used a pair of pitchers in the circle due to pitch-count limitations and held off a two-run, sixth-inning rally from the Sooners to secure the win.
It marked the first loss of the year for the defending national champions, who went 59-3 a year ago while cruising to the NCAA title. It was OU's first loss since June 6, 2022 in the Women's College World Series and its first regular-season loss since April 16, 2022 vs. Texas in Austin, a span of 309 days.
The Baylor win over a top-ranked foe was its first since Feb. 8, 2009 at No. 1 Florida. The win over the high-octane Sooners marked the first for the Bears since 2017 in Norman, Okla.
The win improved the Bears to 3-0 in the Getterman Classic, also earning wins over Stephen F. Austin on Friday and over Longwood on Saturday, both shutout victories, with the outing vs. SFA going as the first seven-inning perfect game in school annals.
Sooner ace Jordy Bahl (3-1) – the 2022 national freshman of the year who went 22-1 with a 1.09 ERA in 33 outings last year – suffered her first loss, allowing four runs on five hits with two walks and six strikeouts.
STAT OF THE GAME
The Bears used a five-hit effort to fuel the four-run outing, getting two hits from Govan, including the three-run homer. Baylor also got hits from
McKenzie Wilson,
Amber Toven and
Presleigh Pilon.
Taylor Strain added a walk.
Dariana Orme (3-1) worked four innings without allowing an earned run, surrendering six hits – five singles – with two walks and two strikeouts. It was the second straight stellar outing for Orme, who fired the first complete-game perfect game in program history on Friday in a 3-0 win over Stephen F. Austin.
Leading 4-1 and after reaching her pitch count, the Bears turned to
Aliyah Binford to open the fifth inning. Binford worked the final three innings for her first save of the year, allowing a pair of runs on two hits and a walk, striking out two.
THE RUNDOWN
Oklahoma took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning. Alynah Torres tripled to centerfield with one out and scored following a fielding error up the middle.
The Bears answered in the bottom of the third inning, plating four runs on four hits for a 4-1 lead. Pilon led off with a single through the left side and Wilson laid down a bunt single, with Pilon motoring to third on the throw. After an out, sophomore shortstop Toven singled into centerfield, scoring Pilon. Govan then belted a three-run homer down the leftfield line. It was her second homer of the year.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Bears will wrap up the Getterman Classic with a nightcap of a Sunday doubleheader, facing Army live on ESPN+ and the Baylor Sports Network from Learfield. Following the Getterman Classic finale on Sunday, the Bears will return to action on Friday, hosting Minnesota in the lid-lifter of the Baylor Invitational, live on ESPN+ and the Baylor Sports Network.
