No. 21 Softball Drops 2-1 Heartbreaker to No. 15 Baylor in Big 12 Opener

Saturday, March 26

Waco, Texas

2:00 PM

Texas A&M

27-8, 0

Baylor

26-4, 0

Texas A&M

Baylor

Mar 26, 2011 | Softball

Box Score

By: Texas A&M Athletics

March 26, 2011

Final Stats

WACO, Texas - Baylor's Megan Turk hit a walk-off solo home run in the 11th inning as the No. 21 Texas A&M softball team (27-8, 0-1) fell 2-1 to the Lady Bears (27-4, 1-0) Saturday, March 26, in front of a record crowd at Getterman Stadium.

"What my team needs to know is: you play like that, you put in that focus and determination and that intensity day-in and day-out, you've got a chance to win a championship," head coach Jo Evans said. "It's as simple as that. Our kids have to know that and have to come back tomorrow ready to play."

Turk's bomb flew down the left field line and over the fence with one out after 11 grueling innings of play in 85-degree central Texas heat. The long ball was the first of the season for the third baseman.

The Lady Bears took advantage of a sole base hit in the bottom of the first for an early 1-0 lead. Baylor right fielder Kayce Walker hit the infield single and was pushed to second on a walk. After taking third on a wild pitch, Walker stole home for the first run of the game.

A&M held the Lady Bears in the second and responded in the top of the third with a solo, game-tying run. Sophomore Brittany Walker led off in the inning with a blooper single over the shortstop's head into shallow left field, and took second on a sacrifice bunt by junior Natalie Villarreal.

Freshman Cassie Tysarczyk stepped up to bat and hit a ball back to Baylor pitcher Whitney Canion who missed the first baseman by a mile, giving Tysarczyk time to reach second as Walker flew home for the tying run.

Defensive plays kept the Aggies in the game. In the bottom of the third with a runner on first and no outs, freshman Amber Garza grabbed a line drive and hurled it across the infield to first for two quick outs on the double play before sophomore pitcher Mel Dumezich snagged another line drive for the third out.

In the bottom of the fifth with one out and the go-ahead run on second, Dumezich struck out the batter and freshman catcher Nicole Morgan quickly turned the ball toward second. Villarreal was posed on the bag and caught the long throw for the third-out pickoff to end the inning.

In an attempt to take over in the seventh, junior Kelsea Orsak slammed a single to Canion who didn't have time to react as the Pearland, Texas, native reached first. Orsak stole second, but was left stranded.

Baylor threatened to score the winning run in the bottom of the seventh, but the quick hands of Villarreal turned a double play to end the inning. With one out Holly Holl laced a single up the middle and took second on a walk.

Canion moved into the batting lineup to get a hit for the Lady Bears, but her grounder was fielded by Villarreal who tagged a runner on her way to second before throwing the ace out at first on the double play.

"With our defense, we did a great job keeping their speed in check," Evans said. "Brittany Walker did a great job at shortstop. Natalie Villarreal turned that double play on Canion. I want to win every game. Everyone knows that about me. But I'm not going to hang my head on a game like that. Mel did a great job."

In the bottom of the 10th with one out, Baylor's Sydney Wilson was thrown out on a fielder's choice at third base when Dumezich fielded the ball and tossed it to Garza. Wilson was called back to the bag however, when the second base umpire claimed interference on Walker. With two outs and the bases loaded, Walker made up for the lost out, quickly fielding a hit and throwing a laser to first for the third out.

Looking for a rally, Dumezich stepped into the box in the top of the 11th and slammed a ball to the outfield that forced the center fielder to make an error while Dumezich took two bases on the play. The right-handed pitcher was left stranded in the inning, however, and Turk's home run in the next half-inning ended the game in a 2-1 victory for the Lady Bears.

Dumezich (14-5) suffered the loss, fanning eight batters in 10.1 innings of play and allowing only two runs and five hits. She threw 172 pitches in the game. Canion (14-3) took the win. The lefty threw seven strikeouts and allowed one run on four hits in 11 complete innings, tossing 149 pitches overall.

The Aggies will host the Lady Bears tomorrow at the Aggie Softball Complex to close out the two-game series. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. Log on to AggieAthletics.com to learn more about Texas A&M softball.