Three-Run Ninth Lifts Baylor Baseball Past UCF, 5-4

[Calderone, Max]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – May 15, 2025

Three-Run Ninth Lifts Baylor Baseball Past UCF, 5-4
Bears log 14th come-from-behind victory in series opener; clinch spot at Big 12 Championship
For more information contact: Max Calderone, 254-265-1639, Max_Calderone at Baylor.edu<mailto:Max_Calderone at Baylor.edu>

ORLANDO, Fla. – Baylor baseball plated three runs in the top of the ninth inning to come from behind and defeat UCF, 5-4, in the series opener Friday night at John Euliano Park in Orlando, Fla.

Down to its final out, BU scored the game-tying run on senior catcher Cortlan Castle’s RBI infield single, then senior outfielder Ty Johnson stole third and scored on a UCF throwing error to go in front for good. Sixth-year senior closer Gabe Craig locked things down in the bottom of the ninth, earning his 10th save of the season with a 1-2-3 frame.

With the win, the Bears clinched their spot in the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship and are guaranteed to be at least the No. 11 seed in the tournament when play begins next week at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.

THE RUNDOWN
Baylor jumped out to 1-0 lead right away on a solo home run by redshirt sophomore infielder Travis Sanders in the top of the first, a 391-foot blast off the top of the videoboard in right-center at John Euliano Park.

Bears starter sophomore southpaw Mason Green settled in nicely behind the quick lead, retiring the first seven he faced before a allowing a one-out single in the third. But, back-to-back flyouts ended the inning and helped Green put up a third-straight zero in the early stages.

BU threatened in three of its first four offensive frames, but grounded into a pair of inning-ending double plays and lined into another to squash the run-scoring opportunities and keep things at a one-run game through three and a half.

UCF knotted the scoreline at 1-1 with a two-out RBI double in the bottom of the fourth, though its bid for the lead was snuffed but a tandem relay from redshirt senior outfielder Enzo Apodaca to senior shortstop Tyriq Kemp, who fired to Castle at the plate to apply the tag.

In the fifth, the Bears retook the lead as Castle doubled with two outs and chased redshirt senior designated hitter Hunter Simmons in all the way from first, giving BU a 2-1 advantage. Green capped off his day with another scoreless frame, working around a one-out single that was erased by Castle trying to advance on a passed ball.

Redshirt sophomore right-hander Lucas Davenport took over in the sixth and worked a 1-2-3 inning before UCF scored two runs to go in front in the seventh. With one out and a runner moving from first, Knights catcher Dylan King lined a ball to deep center field where Johnson made a leaping effort at the wall, but the ball popped out of his glove and allowed the tying run to score on what went for a double. Later in the inning, a two-out infield single plated another run as UCF took a 3-2 lead.

After nothing came of an Apodaca single in the top of the eighth for Baylor, the Knights added on in the home half with a sacrifice fly to extend the lead to 4-2.

In the ninth, the first two Bears reached on back-to-back walks, then advanced into scoring position as Simmons laid down a sacrifice bunt. A run-scoring groundout pulled BU within a run, then the magic happened as Johnson was hit by a pitch with two outs. After fouling off the first pitch he saw, Castle grounded one between the shortstop and third baseman for an infield single, allowing freshman infielder Pearson Riebock to score the game-tying run.

Johnson then took matters into his own hands, stealing third base and scoring the go-ahead run on a throwing error by the Knights catcher. That allowed Baylor to bring on the closer, Craig, who made his 21st scoreless appearance of the season in shutting things down and sealing the series-opening victory.

HIGHLIGHTS
• Tonight’s win clinches Baylor’s spot in the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship, its first trip to the conference tournament since 2022.
• BU is guaranteed to be at least the No. 11 seed when play begins next week at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
• This is BU’s first win in program history against UCF in Orlando.
• The Bears improved to 13-3 when wearing their green uniforms this season.
• The win marked Baylor’s 14th come-from-behind victory of 2025.
• BU improved to 21-5 this season when allowing two walks or fewer.
• Redshirt senior OF Enzo Apodaca extended his hitting streak to 19 games, the longest by a Bear this season.
• Redshirt sophomore INF Travis Sanders launched his seventh home run of the season.
• Senior INF Tyriq Kemp extended his on-base streak to 28 games.
• Senior OF Wesley Jordan extended his on-base streak to eight games.
• Freshman INF Pearson Riebock extended his on-base streak to 15 games.
• Senior C Cortlan Castle logged his 10th multi-hit game of the year.
• Sophomore LHP Mason Green worked a season-long five innings on the mound and allowed just one run on four hits.
• Redshirt sophomore RHP Lucas Davenport collected his team-leading fourth win of the season.
• Sixth-year senior RHP Gabe Craig earned his 10th save of the year, the most by a Bear since Troy Montemayor’s 11 in 2018.
• Craig recorded his 21st scoreless outing of the season and 13th hitless appearance of the year.

STAT OF THE DAY
14 – Baylor scored three runs in the top of the ninth inning to erase a two-run deficit for its 14th come-from-behind win of the season.

QUOTABLE
Head Coach Mitch Thompson
On tonight’s resilient win…
“I’m just proud of the fight. I’m proud of the guys. There was some great competitiveness in this dugout tonight. I thought Mason Green was great and Dav [Lucas Davenport] threw the ball well, too. We didn’t play clean, there was nothing perfect about what we did tonight, but this team keeps fighting. And if we can get to the ninth inning with a one-run lead and we can get Gabe Craig out there, we ought to feel pretty dang good about it.”

Senior C Cortlan Castle
On the hard-fought victory…
“We know that our season is on the line and we’re getting close to the finish line now. Nobody in our dugout wants to be done playing. We’re fighting every second to get as many wins as we can and extend our season. It was awesome to see our guys dig deep and get the job done. It just feels so good, feels really rewarding.”

Sixth-Year Senior RHP Gabe Craig
On the team’s mentality…
“It’s been awesome to see these last two games this late in the season still coming out and fighting. I think this team has grown a lot because we’ve been able to bounce back from being down. In a tough situation right there where the momentum went their way for a couple innings, our guys stayed locked in and did their job up and down the lineup to get it to the next guy. Everyone on the pitching staff tonight just going out there and competing and keeping a good UCF offense limited. It just shows the maturity and leadership on this team.”

WHAT’S NEXT
Baylor (32-20, 12-16) goes for the series win over UCF (28-25, 8-20) in game two of the series on Friday, May 16, at John Euliano Park in Orlando, Fla. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. CT.

To stay up to date on all things Baylor baseball, follow the team on its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts: @BaylorBaseball.



-BaylorBears.com-


__________________________________

Max Calderone | Director of Athletics Communications (Baseball, Football)
Department of Athletics | Baylor University
C: 254-265-1639

[signature_3678955513]<http://baylorbears.com/>

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