Box Score

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation

Baylor softball coach Glenn Moore's become greedy when it comes to expectations for senior pitcher Kelsee Selman.

"I got a little angry, because she had a couple three-ball counts early in the game," Moore said. "Last year, it was three-ball counts on just about every batter, just hoping she'd fight through it. But, she rarely goes to three-ball counts anymore."

The staff ace, Selman (17-3) capped off an impressive weekend with a two-hit shutout of Texas Tech (16-17, 3-3) in Saturday's 4-0 win that finished off a three-game sweep of the Red Raiders at Getterman Stadium.

"On Day 3, you've got to be pitch them a little bit careful, they've seen you twice - one full game and part of another," Moore said. "So, it's understandable, but I'm getting a little selfish, I guess. I'm expecting it out of her, so that's a credit to how well she's pitched. She's not surprising me now, she's pitched that way against too many good lineups."

Selman, who's already won two Big 12 Pitcher of the Week awards, might have been at her best against Tech. She had a career-high 11 strikeouts in a 5-1 win in Friday's opener, then picked up her third save of the season by striking out two batters in the seventh inning of a 6-3 win in the doubleheader nightcap.

"We went with the same plan to attack the hitters. I just went with my strengths, and it worked out again," Selman said of Saturday afternoon's shutout. "I think my stuff wasn't better, it was exactly the same. They made adjustments, but we stuck to the plan and continued to work."

Baylor (32-6, 5-1) collected double-digit hits for the second straight game and fourth time in the last five outings, rapping out 10 hits against Kassidy Scott (8-10).

The Lady Bears broke through with a run in the third after back-to-back singles by Maddison Kettler and Jessie Scroggins. Kyla Walker followed with a sac bunt to third base, reaching safely when the first baseman dropped the throw, with Kettler coming around to score.

Selman worked around a pair of walks in the third and took a no-hitter into the fifth, when the Red Raiders threatened with a fielding error and a bunt single by Sarah Weber that third baseman Lindsey Cargill nearly caught with a diving stab.

The Lady Bears got out of the only real jam when Kettler tracked down Kiana Workman's fly ball in foul territory down the left-field line.

"I challenged her yesterday, because I felt like she had another gear she could go to," Moore said of Kettler. "She dropped a couple balls in foul territory that I thought she could be a little more aggressive on. I really think, watching her on film, that it's her first couple steps rather than her laying out. She could put them together and be an All-American out there. Today, I thought she really had some great first steps."

Still clinging to a 1-0 lead, Baylor busted it open in the bottom of the fifth when Scroggins led off with a double and scored on Shelby Friudenberg's two-out, line-drive home run over the left-field wall.

It was Friudenberg's sixth homer of the season and first hit of the weekend after going 0-for-6 with two walks in her first eight plate appearances.

"I felt a little bit of relief," said Friudenberg, who had a 33-game on-base streak snapped in Friday's nightcap, when she went 0-for-4. "I'm not too worried about stats. We're just trying to get the win."

Baylor tacked on a run in the sixth, when Taylor Ellis had a leadoff single, moved to second on a passed ball and scored on Kettler's double to the corner in right.

Sarah Wellborn, who had a home run off Gia Rodoni Friday night, came up just short of another one leading off the seventh. Off the bat, it looked like it was out of the park, but Kettler caught it on the warning track with the wind blowing in.

"I wanted to tell her, `Welcome to Getterman Stadium,''' Selman said. "This is a pitcher's park."

Freshman Shelby McGlaun disproved that theory, hitting homers in each of Friday's game and giving her a team-high eight for the season.

"I thought Getterman might win again," McGlaun said of her three-run shot to center in Friday's opener. "I thought the wind might get us again, but I'm just thankful it went out and thankful to score runs."

After the three-game sweep, the Lady Bears sit behind only Oklahoma State (25-11, 6-0) and Oklahoma (31-7, 3-0) in the Big 12 standings. Baylor hosts Iowa State (15-22, 0-6) in a three-game series next weekend.

"We've got to win at home," Moore said. "We're not real happy with the way we've played over the past couple years at home. So, that's a big challenge for us is to give the crowd what they deserve."

Kelsee Selman (17-3) worked her ninth complete game of the season, including her third complete shutout, going 7.0 frames, allowing just two hits, and striking out five.

Selman took a no-hitter through 4.2 innings, with an infield bloop single breaking up her no-hit bid.

The Baylor bats continued to swing away with 10 hits, notching double-digit hits in the second-straight game and in four of the last five contests.

The Lady Bears were the first to break the tie, cracking through in the bottom of the third.

Maddison Kettler and Jessie Scroggins got the rally going with back-to-back singles. Kyla Walker reached safely on a sac bunt attempt with the Tech first baseman botching the catch at first. Kettler would come around to score, giving BU the 1-0 advantage.

The Lady Bears were held scoreless in the fourth, carrying the razor thin lead into the bottom of the fifth. Scroggins led off with a double to right center, advancing to third on a groundout. With two outs, Shelby Friudenberg added the insurance, busting a two-run blast over the left field wall to push the BU lead to 3-0.

Not holding up in the bottom of the sixth, Taylor Ellis laced a single to the gap in left center to lead off the frame, moving into scoring position on a passed ball.

Kettler roped a double into right field, hooking into the corner down the line to easily score Ellis from second, adding in the fourth and final run of the ballgame.

HIGHLIGHTS
- Lindsey Cargill, the team and Big 12's leading hitter, extended her hitting streak to 16, a new career high and the team's season high streak.
- Cargill entered the weekend tied for the 10th-longest streak in school history, adding three over the weekend to jump up to a tie for second, matching Kathy Shelton (16, 2011-2012) for the No. 2 spot. Cargill now trails only Kelly Osburn (19, 2004-2005) for the top spot.
- Cargill's single bumped her career hit total to 224, tying Osburn (224, 2003-2006) for 8th-most in program history.
- Shelby Friudenberg drilled her sixth home run of the season, taking her career total to 35. Friudenberg is now three back from tying Osburn (38, 2003-2006) for the No. 4 spot on Baylor's career home runs list, and nine away from matching Chelsi Lake (44, 2004-2007) for the BU record.
- Ari Hawkins extended her own on-base streak to 25 games and counting, trailing Kaitlyn Thumann (26, 2014) and Kathy Shelton (26, 2011-2012) for the No. 3 streak.
- Kelsee Selman has now pitched in each of Baylor's six conference games. The Lady Bears improved to 4-0 in Big 12 games that Selman has started.
- Freshmen led the way for BU in the weekend series, with Maddison Kettler (.667), Taylor Ellis (.500), and Shelby McGlaun (.429) posting the top three averages for the Lady Bears. The trio accounted for nearly half of Baylor's hits (13 out of 30) and RBI (5 out of 11).
- The Baylor offense posted a .357 average as a unit, while the pitching staff allowed just a .164 opposing average. The pitchers kept a stifling 1.33 ERA through the series.

TOP QUOTES
"[Selman] is pretty consistent for us. We know what we're going to get out of her. I think she's locked in right now to compete. Everything is working for her. Sometimes you just don't talk to a kid whenever they're in that zone. She's been in it for quite a while, ever since California. Maybe most of the year for that matter, she's thrown really well." - Baylor head coach Glenn Moore

"Our pitchers did great on the mound this weekend, I think they did really well. We all did our job as a whole team. I believe in our defense, but also our pitchers do a great job. The whole defense in general, we come together when we need to and make plays." - Baylor freshman outfielder Maddison Kettler

"We won two of three at Kansas and that was kind of a downer. Coming in and getting the sweep is going to help us out big time since we don't have a midweek game. We're going to practice and work on it and be ready for Iowa State." - Baylor junior infielder Shelby Friudenberg

STAT OF THE GAME
.542 - the combined batting average for the three freshmen in Baylor's lineup (Kettler, Ellis, McGlaun) in the weekend series

WHAT'S NEXT
Baylor gets a rare midweek off, returning to Getterman Stadium for a weekend series with Iowa State, April 7-9.

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