Baylor Walks Off Texas A&M in Former Big 12 Clash, Splits Weekend Pair Between Top 25 Foes
This was one these schools were surely waiting on all offseason, and it certainly did not disappoint. After Texas A&M took the first between the two Friday by a 3-0 count, Baylor returned the favor to its former Big 12 rival with a 2-1, walk-off victory in the bottom of the eighth inning Sunday at Getterman Stadium.
With runners on the corners, shortstop Amber Toven stepped to the plate and delivered. She drilled a 3-2 pitch up the middle to plate the international rule automatic runner Taylor Strain for the winning run.
In the top of the eighth, Bears pitcher Dariana Orme had to keep the Aggies off the board to ensure that one run would prove to be the difference. That’s exactly what she did.
The star hurler induced a line out to short and struck out the second batter before issuing an intentional walk after falling behind in the count to the third hitter. That paid off when Orme calmly fielded a soft grounder hit back to her and flipped to first for the third and final out.
The only other offense came in the bottom of the first for Baylor and the top of the third for Texas A&M. First baseman Shaylon Govan ripped an RBI double to get the scoring started. Aggies right fielder Morgan Smith tied things up with an infield RBI single.
Dominant all season, Orme improved to 6-1 after throwing a complete game and allowing only the one earned run on five hits and two walks, with six strikeouts. Emily Leavitt suffered the loss in relief, despite tossing a very solid 5.1 innings with one unearned run on four hits and a walk. She fanned a pair.
Baylor (17-2) returns to action when it takes on Cal State Fullerton at 6 p.m. CT Wednesday in Fullerton, Calif. It’ll also face Boston University, Long Beach State, Columbia and Loyola Marymount in the three-day Long Beach/Cal State Fullerton Tournament.
