SB Gets Repeat First-Round Foe in Lafayette Regional
5/13/2024 9:08:00 AM | Softball
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
In the words of the great Yogi Berra, "It's like déjà vu all over again."
For the second year in a row, Baylor softball (32-20) will face Ole Miss (31-25) in the first round of an NCAA regional, heading to No. 13 national seed Louisiana-Lafayette this time after the NCAA Tournament field was announced Sunday night.
"To be able to face Ole Miss again, who we faced in the first round last year, it's going to be a redemption story," said senior outfielder Emily Hott, a second-team All-Big 12 pick who is hitting .335 with eight homers and 26 RBIs. "The NCAA Tournament loves putting together fun brackets, and I could tell that's what they were thinking when they did this. I'm just happy to be a part of it."
Just like last year, when they were just outside of the top 16 and were sent to Salt Lake City, Utah, the Bears were 18th in the NCAA RPI rankings despite a strength of schedule that was ranked as the toughest in the nation for most of the year.
"We had a lot of adversity this year that kept us from reaching our goal of being a host," said Baylor coach Glenn Moore, whose team will play in its 11th NCAA regional in the last 13 seasons. "At the same time, I think we were probably pretty close to at least being in the conversation. . . . But I knew it was a long shot with all the teams around us that were hosting."
That includes three Big 12 teams as top-5 seeds – No. 1 national seed Texas (47-7), second-seeded and three-time defending national champion Oklahoma (49-6) and fifth-seeded Oklahoma State (44-10) – along with No. 9 seed LSU (40-15), No. 12 seed Arkansas (36-16) and 16th-seeded Texas A&M (40-13).
All 13 SEC teams were named to the 64-team field, including the last-place Ole Miss Rebels, while the Big 12 had only five teams selected. UCF (30-23) was listed as the "last team in" and sent to 15th-seeded Florida State.
"I feel like our conference is underrepresented once again," Moore said. "I would like some answers into why we have three of the top five teams in the field, and then we (only) get two more in. I feel bad for Texas Tech, a (number) 39 RPI team that should be in the tournament, in my opinion. . . . To not get two more teams in, I'm extremely disappointed and feel bad for those guys."
Overcoming a rash of injuries and adversity throughout the season, Baylor swept its last three conference series and won 10 of 11 games before losing to the top-seeded Longhorns in the semifinals of the Big 12 Championship.
"We got hit hard with adversity," Moore said, "to a point where we could have easily, I guess, given up and said, 'Hey, we're not that good, and we're not able to meet our goals.' But the girls kept fighting through some very difficult times and eventually it turned. We kept encouraging them and let them know, 'Hey, it's a game of percentage, it's going to come our way eventually. We just can't give up.' And they didn't, they kept fighting."
A big key to the late surge, Aliyah Binford (12-10, 3.29 ERA, 142 strikeouts) picked up six of those last nine conference wins and hit .481 (13-of-27) with her first homer of the season over the last 11 games.
"I wouldn't say a chip (on our shoulder)," Binford said, "I would say that it just made us stronger. It gives us an advantage, I think, above people, because you don't know what other teams are going through. But I know we went through it a lot, and we didn't let it break us. I think it made us stronger."
In Friday's regional schedule, Louisiana (42-17) plays Ivy League champion Princeton (29-16) at 4:30 p.m. at Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park, followed by Baylor vs. Ole Miss at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.
With their top two pitchers out by that point, the Bears lost to Ole Miss, 3-0 and 9-2, at the Utah Regional last year and defeated Southern Illinois, 13-9, for their first regional win in five years.
"I'd say (it's a) completely new year," Hott said. "I know (Ole Miss has) a lot of transfers, and our team is relatively the same. Last year, they showed up as a better Ole Miss team than our Baylor team was. If you're a competitor, you love that they sent us to somebody that we've played before, just to make it more exciting. And the drama will be so good."
In an impressive start that included wins over sixth-seeded UCLA and No. 7 seed Missouri at the Mary Nutter Classic in Palm Springs, Calif., Baylor won two of three games against Louisiana at the Ragin' Cajuns' home field.
"I think anytime you're familiar with a ballpark, the setting, your competition . . . but if it gives us an advantage in that situation, it certainly gives (Louisiana) one as well, because they've played us, too. They're a team that's very seasoned in postseason and a crowd that responds to that. That's their sport down there."
Outside of hosting, of course, this was Moore's dream scenario. A 1993 Northwestern (La.) State graduate, Moore also coached at LSU.
"Take my wife home to her home state and get to back to where there's great food and play some softball," Moore said. "What else could you ask for."
Baylor Bear Insider
In the words of the great Yogi Berra, "It's like déjà vu all over again."
For the second year in a row, Baylor softball (32-20) will face Ole Miss (31-25) in the first round of an NCAA regional, heading to No. 13 national seed Louisiana-Lafayette this time after the NCAA Tournament field was announced Sunday night.
"To be able to face Ole Miss again, who we faced in the first round last year, it's going to be a redemption story," said senior outfielder Emily Hott, a second-team All-Big 12 pick who is hitting .335 with eight homers and 26 RBIs. "The NCAA Tournament loves putting together fun brackets, and I could tell that's what they were thinking when they did this. I'm just happy to be a part of it."
Just like last year, when they were just outside of the top 16 and were sent to Salt Lake City, Utah, the Bears were 18th in the NCAA RPI rankings despite a strength of schedule that was ranked as the toughest in the nation for most of the year.
"We had a lot of adversity this year that kept us from reaching our goal of being a host," said Baylor coach Glenn Moore, whose team will play in its 11th NCAA regional in the last 13 seasons. "At the same time, I think we were probably pretty close to at least being in the conversation. . . . But I knew it was a long shot with all the teams around us that were hosting."
That includes three Big 12 teams as top-5 seeds – No. 1 national seed Texas (47-7), second-seeded and three-time defending national champion Oklahoma (49-6) and fifth-seeded Oklahoma State (44-10) – along with No. 9 seed LSU (40-15), No. 12 seed Arkansas (36-16) and 16th-seeded Texas A&M (40-13).
All 13 SEC teams were named to the 64-team field, including the last-place Ole Miss Rebels, while the Big 12 had only five teams selected. UCF (30-23) was listed as the "last team in" and sent to 15th-seeded Florida State.
"I feel like our conference is underrepresented once again," Moore said. "I would like some answers into why we have three of the top five teams in the field, and then we (only) get two more in. I feel bad for Texas Tech, a (number) 39 RPI team that should be in the tournament, in my opinion. . . . To not get two more teams in, I'm extremely disappointed and feel bad for those guys."
Overcoming a rash of injuries and adversity throughout the season, Baylor swept its last three conference series and won 10 of 11 games before losing to the top-seeded Longhorns in the semifinals of the Big 12 Championship.
"We got hit hard with adversity," Moore said, "to a point where we could have easily, I guess, given up and said, 'Hey, we're not that good, and we're not able to meet our goals.' But the girls kept fighting through some very difficult times and eventually it turned. We kept encouraging them and let them know, 'Hey, it's a game of percentage, it's going to come our way eventually. We just can't give up.' And they didn't, they kept fighting."
A big key to the late surge, Aliyah Binford (12-10, 3.29 ERA, 142 strikeouts) picked up six of those last nine conference wins and hit .481 (13-of-27) with her first homer of the season over the last 11 games.
"I wouldn't say a chip (on our shoulder)," Binford said, "I would say that it just made us stronger. It gives us an advantage, I think, above people, because you don't know what other teams are going through. But I know we went through it a lot, and we didn't let it break us. I think it made us stronger."
In Friday's regional schedule, Louisiana (42-17) plays Ivy League champion Princeton (29-16) at 4:30 p.m. at Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park, followed by Baylor vs. Ole Miss at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.
With their top two pitchers out by that point, the Bears lost to Ole Miss, 3-0 and 9-2, at the Utah Regional last year and defeated Southern Illinois, 13-9, for their first regional win in five years.
"I'd say (it's a) completely new year," Hott said. "I know (Ole Miss has) a lot of transfers, and our team is relatively the same. Last year, they showed up as a better Ole Miss team than our Baylor team was. If you're a competitor, you love that they sent us to somebody that we've played before, just to make it more exciting. And the drama will be so good."
In an impressive start that included wins over sixth-seeded UCLA and No. 7 seed Missouri at the Mary Nutter Classic in Palm Springs, Calif., Baylor won two of three games against Louisiana at the Ragin' Cajuns' home field.
"I think anytime you're familiar with a ballpark, the setting, your competition . . . but if it gives us an advantage in that situation, it certainly gives (Louisiana) one as well, because they've played us, too. They're a team that's very seasoned in postseason and a crowd that responds to that. That's their sport down there."
Outside of hosting, of course, this was Moore's dream scenario. A 1993 Northwestern (La.) State graduate, Moore also coached at LSU.
"Take my wife home to her home state and get to back to where there's great food and play some softball," Moore said. "What else could you ask for."
- BaylorBears.com -
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