SB Continues Home Slate with Baylor Invitational

BAYLOR (8-1) vs. BAYLOR INVITATIONAL

Friday, Feb. 24 • vs. Maryland • Waco, Texas | Getterman Stadium • Radio: 101.3 FM • Watch: Big 12 Now ESPN+
Friday, Feb. 24 • vs. Minnesota • Waco, Texas | Getterman Stadium • Radio: 101.3 FM • Watch: Big 12 Now ESPN+
Saturday, Feb. 25 • vs. Texas A&M Commerce • Waco, Texas | Getterman Stadium • Radio: 101.3 FM
Saturday, Feb. 25 • vs. TBD • Waco, Texas | Getterman Stadium • Radio: 101.3 FM
Sunday, Feb. 26 • vs. TBD • Waco, Texas | Getterman Stadium • Radio: 101.3 FM • Watch: Big 12 Now ESPN+

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            Ranked in each of his first 21 seasons with Baylor softball, Glenn Moore challenged this year's team to "bring that back" after not cracking the polls at all during a 32-24 season that ended with a title in the National Invitational Softball Championship.
            Challenge accepted, the Bears (8-1) knocked off then-No. 1 Oklahoma, 4-3, in the third day of the Getterman Classic and re-entered the polls for the first time in two years at No. 22 in the ESPN poll and 25^th by the NFCA Coaches.
            "I think the buzz is real and we've experienced it before, but it hasn't been the last couple of years," said Moore, whose team will host the four-team Baylor Invitational this weekend at Getterman Stadium.
            "(The players) are responsible for the buzz being here. They're responsible for the crowd getting into it. We can't ask fans to come out here and cheer us on if they don't have anything to cheer for. Sunday gave them play to cheer for, and they responded."
            Baylor opens the tournament with a top-25 matchup against No. 21/23 Maryland (8-1) at 1:30 p.m., followed by Minnesota (5-4) at 6:30. In Friday's other games, Texas A&M-Commerce plays Maryland at 11 a.m. and Minnesota at 4.
            "Now that we've got a target on our back, we have to go back to work," Moore said. "We can't just sit on one win, because going downhill from here would ruin all of that. So, I really have loved practice this week: a lot of focus, a lot of getting better and woring on the things that we needed to work on."
            While the Bears are excited about the start and ranking, "we're definitely not surprised by it," junior outfielder Emily Hott said.
            "We realize, we were here every weekday in the fall at 5 a.m., working out and busting our tails off," Hott said. "It's just fun to see all the hard work paying off and getting to show other people what we knew we had in ourselves."
            With seven starters hitting at least .400, Baylor is hitting a collective .373 as a team and ranks ninth nationally and second in the Big 12. Sophomore outfielder Taylor Strain is hitting a team-best .538, with transfers Amber Toven (Arizona) and Shaylon Govan (SFA) and junior third baseman/pitcher all hitting an even .500 going into the weekend.
            "Whenever you have nine batters in the lineup that are hard outs, it just means everybody's going to see better pitchers," Hott said. "It also helps, if you are having difficulties, it's just a breath of fresh air. You don't have to worry about, 'Oh, if I'm not hitting good, the team's going to suffer from it. No, my teammates are going to have my back. They're going to help us win and get the win, no matter what."
            While the hitting stayed hot, Baylor's pitching was dramatically better in the second weekend of the season. Dariana Orme (3-1, 0.82 ERA) was named the NFCA National Pitcher of the Week, tossing the first seven-inning perfect game in program history and then going the first 4.0 innings in the Bears' stunning win over the Sooners.
                "I can count on her to get the job done every time," Toven said, "and I'm just there to back her up and have her back every single pitch that she throws. It just amazes me every time she steps into the circle and deals every single inning."
            Orme hasn't been the only weapon in the circle, though. Freshman RyLee Crandall is 2-0 with a 0.49 ERA and a team-high 23 strikeouts, while Aliyah Binford (2-0, 4.75 ERA) bounced back from a rough opening weekend to pitch five shutout innings in a 7-0 win over Longwood and picked up the save in a three-inning stint against the Sooners.
            After limited pitch counts in her first four games, Orme will "move it up to somewhere around 100 (pitches)" in Friday's game against Maryland.
            "We're still in a protect mode for her, to a degree," Moore said. "And I think it's prudent that our bullpen is prepared for that and ready to go in whenever we call on them. Obviously, Aliyah Binford was outstanding coming in in relief against Oklahoma. And she's got to continue to be that."
Baylor's game against Maryland and Sunday's tournament championship at 11 a.m. will both be streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN2.

STORY LINES
• Baylor Softball is set to host their second of three back-to-back-to-back tournaments at Getterman Stadium. The Baylor Invitational will feature No. 21 Maryland, Minnesota and Texas A&M - Commerce all playing visits to Waco.
• The Bears will be meeting the Golden Gophers of Minnesota for the sixth time in program history, and will face Maryland and Texas A&M - Commerce for the first time.
• No. 21 Maryland will mark the third ranked team the Bears have faced so far this season. With the Bears only loss on the season coming from No. 7 Arkansas.
• BU took down No. 1 Oklahoma last weekend in the Getterman Classic. This was the first win for Baylor over a top-ranked team since Feb. 8, 2009, when the Bears took down Florida in Gainesville. The Bears had never beaten No. 1 ranked team at home before. This also marked the bears first win over the Sooners since the 2017 season in Norman.
• The Bears were a perfect 4-0 in the Getterman Classic and shut out three of their four opponents.
• After the perfect weekend and starting the season 8-1, the best start for Baylor since the 2018 season when they started 9-0, the Bears moved into the top-25 again, after not making it at all in the 2022 season. The bears are ranked 22 in the ESPN poll and 25 in the NFCA Coaches Poll.
• Starting last weekend on a high note was Dariana Orme who pitched the first seven-inning perfect game in baylor softball history and led to the 3-0 win over SFA. Orme struck out a career-high 10 in that outing, before going on the pitch the first four innings against No. 1 Oklahoma. After recording a perfect 0.00 ERA on the weekend and picking up two wins, Orme was named the NFCA National Pitcher of the Week and the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week.
• McKenzie Wilson led the Bears offensively last weekend, going 9-for-13 at the plate with a triple and a double. She didn't strikeout in any of her plate appearances and tallied three stolen bases.
• Amber Toven is still leading the Bears with 14 hits and her .500 batting average. She is one of six Bears to play and start in every game so far this season.
• BU had 21 of 22 players see action during a game at some point this season.
• With a career record of 985-468, head coach Glenn Moore is looking for his 1,000th career win this season and is only 15 wins away from hitting the milestone.
• McKenzie Wilson who led the Bears from the batter's box last year, was the only Bear named to the Big 12 Preseason Team.
• Baylor is returning 13 from last season, and all of them were letterwinners for the Bears. They are also returning all three All-Big 12 selections from 2022, McKenzie Wilson (first team), Aliyah Binford (second team) and Dariana Orme (second team) and two who were placed on the All-Freshman team, Taylor Strain and Kaci West.

- BaylorBears.com -

SB Continues Home Slate with Baylor Invitational

Players Mentioned

Aliyah Binford

RyLee Crandall

Shaylon Govan

Emily Hott

Dariana Orme

Taylor Strain

Amber Toven

Kaci West

McKenzie Wilson

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