Baylor Baseball Drops Season Opener Despite Marriott’s Stellar Outing

[Calderone, Max]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – Feb. 16, 2023

Baylor Baseball Drops Season Opener Despite Marriott’s Stellar Outing
Junior RHP fans career-high 10 in 4-1 loss to Nebraska
For more information contact: Max Calderone, 254-265-1639, Max_Calderone at Baylor.edu<mailto:Max_Calderone at Baylor.edu>

ARLINGTON, Texas – Baylor baseball (0-1) dropped its 2024 season opener against Nebraska (1-0) on Friday morning at Globe Life Field in Arlington, 4-1.

Despite a career-high 10 strikeouts for junior right-handed pitcher Mason Marriott, the Bears were unable to overcome a late surge by the Cornhuskers, as they scored three unanswered runs in the final two innings.

Marriott took a no-hitter into the sixth and finished going 5.2 innings, surrendering just the one hit with two walks and one earned run against him.

Seven Bears made their Baylor debuts, including fifth-year senior infielder Mason Greer who went 2-for-4 at the plate and reached on an error. Fellow newcomer Ty Johnson, a junior outfielder, also recorded a two-hit day to lead the Bears offensively. Senior outfielder Hunter Simmons delivered an RBI double for BU’s only run of the day.

THE RUNDOWN
It was a pitcher’s duel early on as Marriott cruised through the Nebraska lineup, retiring the side in order in four of his first five frames. He worked around a pair of walks in the top of the second to strand a runner in scoring position, then retired the next 10 he faced, including striking out the side in the top of the fifth.

Nebraska starter Brett Sears nearly matched Marriott though, holding the Bears to just two hits through the first five innings.

In the top of the sixth, Marriott exited after recording his 10th punchout, but the Huskers greeted the BU bullpen with an RBI double to score the game’s first run. Simmons answered back for the Bears in the bottom half with an RBI double of his own, scoring T. Johnson and knotting the tally at 1-1.

After Nebraska’s leadoff batter was hit by a pitch to start the eighth inning, a two-out RBI double later scored him to give the Huskers the lead back at 2-1. They would stay in front thanks to a solo home run and RBI single in the top of the ninth that extended the lead to 4-1.

Though junior infielder Hunter Teplanszky started the bottom of the ninth with a knock, Nebraska’s closer Casey Daiss got the next three Bears on just eight pitches for his first save of the year.

HIGHLIGHTS
• Baylor still leads the all-time series, 37-31-1, over Nebraska.
• BU fell to 65-37 all-time on Opening Day.
• The Bears now own an 8-5 record all-time at tournaments sponsored by Shriners Children’s.
• Baylor out-hit Nebraska, 7-5.
• BU logged 14 strikeouts on the mound, marking the 21st time in the Mitch Thompson era that the Bears have eclipsed double digits in strikeouts in a game.
• This marks the 11th time in the Thompson era that the Bears struck out at least 13 opposing hitters.
• Junior RHP Mason Marriott recorded a career-high 10 strikeouts, becoming the first Bear since Blake Helton (vs. Youngstown State, March 3, 2023) to reach double digits in punchouts.
• Marriott is the first Bear since Shawn Tolleson (11, vs. Duke, Feb. 19, 2010) to fan double-digit opponents on Opening Day.
• Seven Bears made their Baylor debuts in Enzo Apodaca, Mason Greer, Patrick Hail, Ty Johnson, Wesley Jordan, Tyriq Kemp and Stephen Sepulveda.
• This marked the Division I debuts for Johnson, Jordan and Kemp, and the collegiate debut for Sepulveda.
• Greer and Johnson each recorded two hits to lead BU offensively.
• Greer surpassed 100 career hits with his single in the fifth inning.
• Senior OF Hunter Simmons collected an RBI double. He has driven in at least one run in three of his last five games, dating back to 2023.

STAT OF THE DAY
10 – Mason Marriott struck out a career-high 10 batters, becoming the first BU pitcher to eclipse double-digit punchouts since Blake Helton (vs. Youngstown State, March 3, 2023). He is the first Bear since Shawn Tolleson (11, vs. Duke, Feb. 19, 2010) to fan double-digit opponents on Opening Day.

QUOTABLE
Head Coach Mitch Thompson
On today’s game…
“I give Nebraska a lot of credit. I thought they pitched really well against us, really tough. They located their stuff, had multiple pitches and got after it. We just couldn’t get the hit when we had opportunities, and they didn’t give us many opportunities. It looked like an early-season game with some really good pitching on the mound. We didn’t beat ourselves, they just beat us today and I give them all the credit for that.”

On Mason Marriott’s performance…
“I’m really proud of Mason Marriott. I’m proud of the way he threw the ball. I thought he really competed well for us as a starting pitcher. I thought he did fantastic. That’s why we threw him on Opening Day. It was good to see him answer the bell and we’ll be expecting big things from him the rest of the way, no question.”

Junior RHP Mason Marriott
On his outing…
“I felt good and I was confident in my stuff. Coach Lev called a great game and I had great defense behind me. It was a team effort. Me and Coach Lev worked on it all year, getting ahead of hitters so I’m not ever pitching from behind. It was nice to be able to attack through the entire game. Today gives me a lot of confidence, knowing that my work from the fall paid off. It’s good to feel that my hard work is showing on the field.”

WHAT’S NEXT
Baylor (0-1) takes on Oregon (0-0) in its second game at the 2024 Shriners Children’s College Showdown, with first pitch set for 11 a.m. on Saturday.

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

[signature_672407049]<http://baylorbears.com/>

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.baylor.edu/pipermail/localmedia/attachments/20240216/a7a440fd/attachment-0001.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.png
Type: image/png
Size: 11694 bytes
Desc: image001.png
URL: <http://mailman.baylor.edu/pipermail/localmedia/attachments/20240216/a7a440fd/attachment-0001.png>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: BU01 Box Score.pdf
Type: application/pdf
Size: 38718 bytes
Desc: BU01 Box Score.pdf
URL: <http://mailman.baylor.edu/pipermail/localmedia/attachments/20240216/a7a440fd/attachment-0002.pdf>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: 2024 Season Stats.pdf
Type: application/pdf
Size: 292957 bytes
Desc: 2024 Season Stats.pdf
URL: <http://mailman.baylor.edu/pipermail/localmedia/attachments/20240216/a7a440fd/attachment-0003.pdf>