May 1, 2009
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -
The Texas A&M softball team wraps up the regular season by traveling to Texas and Baylor this weekend. The State Farm Lone Star Showdown on Saturday is televised nationally by ESPN and first pitch is slated for 6:11 p.m. Sunday's contest in Waco, Texas, will begin at 4 p.m.
The Aggies (29-19, 6-9 Big 12) enter the weekend searching for their first victory on the road in Big 12 play. A&M suffered a disappointing, 4-1, loss at Kansas on Thursday and was pushed into seventh place in the Big 12 standings. Sophomore Rhi Kliesing struck out seven and recorded one of two hits with a solo home run. The team posts a .267 batting average and 2.65 ERA.
The Longhorns (37-16, 13-6 Big 12) are in fourth place in the conference and have won three straight including a run-rule of Oklahoma State and a pair games from UTSA. Texas has a .301 team batting average and 2.80 ERA. The team defeated the Aggies in College Station on April 1, but the all-time series is tied, 16-16.
The Lady Bears (36-18, 11-6 Big 12) are in third place in the Big 12 and fell to A&M on April 15 after a game-winning, two-run home run by sophomore Bailey Schroeder in the fourth inning, but A&M could not come back from a pair of two-run home runs by the Longhorns in the fifth.
The Aggies had not played the 10 days prior and got off to a slow start, but came around to tally eight hits in the game, including at least one in each of the last five innings.
VERSUS THE LONGHORNS
The all-time series is tied between the two teams, 16-16, but A&M was victorious the last 4-of-5 meetings. Texas holds a slight, 7-6, advantage at home.
SCOUTING BAYLOR
The Lady Bears are in third place in the Big 12 and split at Kansas last weekend, but have won seven of their last 10 games. The team is hitting .312 with a 2.29 ERA.
Kayce Walker (.413) is the only BU player hitting above .400. She also leads the team with 62 hits and adds 23 stolen bases. Brette Reagan is playing through an ACL tear earlier in the season and has recorded eight home runs and 28 RBIs with a .716 slugging percentage. Whitney Canion (23-14) has picked up Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honors four times this season. She has a 1.76 ERA, 10 shutouts and 366 strikeouts in 246.1 innings pitched.
THE LAST TIME OUT
Villarreal hit the game-winning, two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth to push the Aggies past Baylor, 5-4, on April 15. The Frisco, Texas, native drove in two runs in the second and with A&M down 4-3 in the sixth she capped off a 2-for-4 performance by scoring a pair of runs on a two-out long ball over the right field wall. Four RBIs matches her career high. To top her success at the plate, Villarreal ended the game with a double play by making a diving catch in the infield and firing to second from her knees.
VERSUS THE LADY BEARS
The Aggies are 52-18-1 all-time against Baylor and blanked the Lady Bears twice last year, in addition to winning earlier this year for a three-game winning streak. The teams are even in the last 10 meetings.
POSTPONED AGAIN
Sunday's game at Baylor was originally scheduled for March 25 and has been postponed twice due to rain. The Aggies will get their last chance to battle it out with Lady Bears in the regular season this Sunday.
AGGIE SOFTBALL ON ESPN TWICE
The Aggies are the only team in team in Division I softball to have two regular season games televised nationally on ESPN.