No. 15 Baylor Softball Falls Against Iowa State, 8-1

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - No. 15 Baylor Softball fell against No. 5 seed Iowa State, 8-1, Thursday in the Big 12 Tournament at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium.

The Bears, now 39-16 on the season, are knocked out of the conference tournament in the first round.

THE RUNDOWN

Iowa State starter Ellie Spelhaugh (8-8) threw a gem of a game, not letting the Bears record a hit until the sixth inning.

The Cyclones got on the board first, when a double and a single plated their first two runs of the game. ISU then put back-to-back runs on the board in the fifth and sixth innings, extending their lead to 4-1.

Baylor second baseman Presleigh Pilon notched the first hit of the game for the Bears, a single up the middle. After McKenzie Wilson then reached on a fielder’s choice, Emily Hott was hit by a pitch to put two on for Shaylon Govan. The first baseman then laced a double down the left field line to bring home the Bears’ lone run of the game.

ISU plated four more runs in the seventh, extending the Cyclones’ lead to 8-1 on a two-run home run.

The Bears weren’t able to get anything going in the bottom half of the seventh inning and fell in the opening round of the tournament.

HIGHLIGHTS

• BU has now been knocked out of the tournament two years in a row by Iowa State
• The Bears only recorded two hits in the matchup – a single from Presleigh Pilon and a double from Shaylon Govan, both in the sixth inning
• Dariana Orme returned to the circle after a three-game break
• The Bears are now 39-16 on the season
• BU gave up its most hits of the season (16)

QUOTABLE

Head coach Glenn Moore on the game: “They're the toughest team we’ve played this year besides Oklahoma, probably. We've had more trouble figuring them out and certainly have to take my hat off to the way they played against us. I said up there (in Ames) that we didn't play poorly up there. I thought we played poorly today, but it has a lot to do with how they played. They just played better up there than we did. But today we couldn't figure out Ellie (Spelhaug). She threw an outstanding game. We've got a decent offense and to shut us down completely more so than the great name pitchers have shut us down really this year; says a lot for her and shows you what kind of game we had.”

WHAT’S NEXT

The Bears will return home and await the results from the NCAA Selection Show. The Bears will host a Selection Show watch party Sunday, May 14, beginning at 5:15 p.m., with the show starting at 6 p.m. CT. The event will be located in the Letterwinners Lounge at McLane Stadium and is open to the public.