The No. 15 Texas A&M softball team (23-9, 3-1 Big 12) defeated No. 17 Baylor (22-9, 1-3 Big 12) Wednesday at the Aggie Softball Complex.
The Aggies and Lady Bears will face off two more times this season to determine a winner in the three-game conference series. The teams will meet in Waco on Tuesday, April 10 and in College Station on Tuesday, April 24.
“I loved the way we kept scoring, with two outs especially,” head coach Jo Evans said. “Kelsea Orsak was just terrific today at the plate. They played her up tight and that could have been scary for that second baseman. She just looked really good all day. Our hitters did a really good job of being patient and taking what their pitchers gave them.”
A two-run second inning gave the Aggies an early lead. Sophomore Cassie Tysarczyk, who reached on a throwing error, scored on the first hit of the game, a double to right-center by sophomore Amber Garza. The third baseman was 2-for-2 on the game with a double, a single, a walk and two runs scored.
Another RBI single, by senior Kelsea Orsak, sent Garza home for the 2-0 lead. Orsak was 2-for-2 on the day with a pair of doubles and a hit by pitch.
The Aggies plated another pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth to expand their lead to 4-0. Garza and Tyler each drew walks and added a base on a wild pitch. With two outs, Orsak hit her second double of the day and picked up two RBI as Garza and Tyler crossed home.
A double by the Lady Bears and a sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth gave Baylor its only run of the day.
A&M also scored in the fifth, grabbing two runs for a final 6-1 score. With two outs, junior Mel Dumezich drew a walk before Tysarczyk went opposite field with a home run to score the pair.
Dumezich (15-6) threw five strikeouts and gave up just one earned run on three hits for her third conference victory of the season. Baylor’s Courtney Repka (10-4) tossed 3 2/3 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits and walking two. Neither of the Lady Bears’ pitchers threw a strikeout through six complete innings.
“Mel did a great job of shutting down their speed,” Evans said. “I thought that Mel was really comfortable out there and that she was working quick and she and [catcher] Meagan [May] were calling a good game. I just felt that there was really good energy in our ballclub tonight, and a lot of confidence.”
The Aggies travel to Stillwater, Okla., this weekend to play a three-game Big 12 series with Oklahoma State. Game one between the Aggies and Cowgirls will take place at 7 p.m. Friday, with game two at 3 p.m. Saturday and the series finale at noon on Sunday. All three matchups will be broadcast live on Sports Radio 1150 AM. To learn more about Texas A&M softball, log on to AggieAthletics or follow @AggieSoftball on Twitter.