SB Earns At-Large Bid to NCAA Tournament

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            Sick to their stomachs last year when their name was never called in the NCAA Softball Tournament selection show, the Baylor Bears made a commitment that they wouldn't be in that position again.
            Even though Baylor (39-16) wasn't picked as one of the 16 national seeds that will host an NCAA regional next weekend, emotions were high Sunday night when the Bears came up in 15^th-seeded Utah's regional in Salt Lake City.
            "To sit here in this room and to hear Baylor's name get called, to see your name up on the board, it's just a lot of emotion," said junior centerfielder McKenzie Wilson, "because we all made a commitment that we weren't going to be in this position again, that we were going to do everything and anything in our power to flip the script."
            Selected as the No. 2 seed in the Salt Lake City Regional, Baylor will face Ole Miss (30-26) at 12 p.m. CT at Dumke Family Softball Stadium. The No. 15 national seed, Pac-12 tournament champion Utah (37-13) will face Missouri Valley Conference champion Southern Illinois (36-18) at 2:30 p.m. CT in the first round of the double-elimination tournament.
            "We would have liked to have seen our name called for a host and give that back to our fans," Baylor coach Glenn Moore said, "but it's a long way from where we were a year ago.
            "You can say the right things and have the right intentions, but to actually put feet to words and do it in the off-season and deal with the adverse situations we had to deal with, with injuries and things like that, says a lot about the character of this team. And I think we were rewarded today for that."
            The Bears' chances for hosting likely ended with Thursday's 8-1 first-round loss to Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship. Utah was 24^th in the RPI rankings going into the first-ever Pac-12 tournament, but moved past Baylor and potential regional hosts Louisiana, Oregon and Auburn with wins over national seeds Washington and UCLA.
            "I don't think it was really a disappointment (not to host)," said sophomore first baseman Shaylon Govan, a first-team All-Big 12 pick who is hitting .382 with 11 homers and 51 RBIs, "we were just excited to play for postseason and be able to help put Baylor back on the map. So, I think we were good, wherever we went."
            Snubbed by the NCAA selection committee last year, Baylor made the most of its second chance with a four-game run in the National Invitational Softball Championship and a 4-0 win over UNLV in the title game.
            But after missing the NCAA Tournament twice in the previous three years, Baylor is making its 15^th NCAA regional appearance and 10^th in the last 12 tournaments (there was no tournament because of COVID in 2020). With the Salt Lake City Regional paired with second-seeded UCLA (52-5), the Bears are trying to get back to a Super Regional for the first time since 2017.
            "I had a lot of butterflies back there, waiting to see if we were going to host, if we were going to be a 16, 15 (seed)," Moore said. "Of course, that's part of the joy of earning the right to be in that position.
            "We weren't in a position where we were trying to hear our name called. We knew it was going to be called, it was just a matter of whether we were going to host . . . or whether we're going on the road. And if we were going, where we're going. As it happens so often, Utah wasn't one of the places that I expected to go."
            Located in the Wasatch Mountains at the western edge of the Rocky Mountains, Salt Lake City has an altitude of 4,227 feet.
            "I'm more worried about me catching my breath walking across the field to the third-base coaching box," Moore said. "The air will be thinner and the ball will travel a little bit farther than it does down here. Those are things you have to be aware of. But we're not playing basketball up there. It's not that much of a cardio challenge, so I think we'll handle that well."
            With BYU moving into the Big 12 next year, Govan said this weekend will help prepare Baylor for future trips Provo, Utah.
            "We're just excited to go out there and play in some higher elevation, let the ball fly and just do what we do," she said. "We'll see how it really flies when we get out there."
            Ole Miss finished 11^th in the 13-team SEC standings (all 13 teams made the NCAA Tournament), but posted wins over national seeds Alabama and LSU in two of its last three games. All-SEC Defensive Team pick Tate Whitley leads the Rebels with a .326 batting average, while junior pitcher Aynslie Furbush is 9-6 with a 2.00 ERA .
            "Don't know a lot about them," Moore said of Ole Miss. "I know a few of their players, but I have just in general watched the outcome of their games. So, we have a lot of homework to do."
            Hitting .323 as a team, Utah has seven everyday players hitting over .300, led by junior infielder Aliya Belarde at .393. Junior left-hander Mariah Lopez is 18-5 with a 2.33 ERA and 186 strikeouts.
            Making its 14^th NCAA Tournament appearance, Southern Illinois is hitting .297 as a team with 37 homers and 52 stolen bases. The Salukis knocked off Indiana State, 10-2, in Saturday's MVC tournament championship game to punch its ticket.
            Baylor was one of four Big 12 teams named to the 64-team tournament, joining national seeds Oklahoma (#1), Oklahoma State (#6) and Texas (#13).
            "During the show, I was definitely nervous," Govan said, "but now I'm relieved. Just to see our name on the board is super exciting."

WACO, Texas – Baylor (39-16) secured its 15^th NCAA Tournament bid, heading to the Salt Lake City Regional, hosted by No. 15 national seed Utah (37-13), May 19-21.

The Bears open the double-elimination tournament against Ole Miss (30-26) on Friday at 12 p.m. CT at Dumke Family Softball Stadium. The Utes and Southern Illinois (36-18) will follow with a 2:30 p.m. CT start time.

Baylor's all-time record in the NCAA Tournament is 47-32 and all 79 games have been under the direction of head coach Glenn Moore.

This marks the 10^th appearance in the last 12 seasons for Baylor in the NCAA Tournament. The Bears have advanced to at least a Super Regional round six times and are 33-13 all-time in the first round.

Utah pulled off the 7-4 upset of UCLA to win the first-ever Pac-12 Tournament Championship. The Salukis earned the Missouri Valley Conference's automatic bid, while Ole Miss grabbed an at-large bid as all 13 SEC schools got into the postseason tournament.

Four Big 12 teams received bids as Oklahoma earned the No. 1 overall seed. Oklahoma State will be the No. 6 overall seed and Texas received the No. 13 seed.

Baylor Softball NCAA Postseason Notes
LAST NCAA TOURNAMENT:
2021, Gainesville Regional

LAST NCAA SUPER-REGIONAL:
2017 - Baylor advanced from the Waco Regional to the Tucson Super Regional, coming back from a 1-0 deficit to the No. 2 seed, Arizona, to win back-to-back wins in dramatic fashion.

LAST NCAA WOMEN'S COLLEGE WORLD SERIES:
2017 - Baylor went 0-2 in the WCWS, falling to the eventual two-time champs, Oklahoma, and closing the season with a loss to Oregon for the second-straight season.

Baylor's all-time Postseason Record (NCAA):
47-32

Baylor's all-time First-Round Record:
33-14

All-Time Baylor Postseason Appearances:
2004 - Waco Regional
2005 - Auburn Regional, Waco Super Regional
2006 - Corvallis Regional (Oregon St.)
2007 - Hempstead Regional (Albany), Waco Super Regional, WCWS
2009 - Waco Regional, Ann Arbor Super Regional (Michigan)
2011 - College Park Regional (Maryland), Athens Super Regional (Georgia), WCWS
2012 - Lafayette Regional (Louisiana-Lafayette)
2013 - College Station Regional (Texas A&M)
2014 - Waco Regional, Athens Super Regional (Georgia), WCWS
2015 - Lafayette Regional (ULL)
2016 - Eugene Regional (Oregon)
2017 - Waco Regional, Tucson Super Regional (Arizona), WCWS
2018 – College Station Regional
2021 – Gainesville Regional

Pre-Glenn Moore Postseason Appearances:
1979 - SWAIAW Regional Tournament, 0-2 (Head Coach: Olga Fallon)
1980 - AIAW Regional Tournament, 5-1; AIAW Nationals, 0-1 (Head Coach: Bob Brock)
1981 - AIAW Regional Tournament, 4-0, AIAW Nationals, 0-2

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

SB Earns At-Large Bid to NCAA Tournament

Players Mentioned

Shaylon Govan

McKenzie Wilson

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