Baylor Baseball Clinches Series Over Oral Roberts

[Calderone, Max]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – March 2, 2024

Baylor Baseball Clinches Series Over Oral Roberts
Bears take 9-3 ballgame on Saturday behind Pendergrass’ three-hit, three-RBI day
For more information contact: Max Calderone, 254-265-1639, Max_Calderone at Baylor.edu<mailto:Max_Calderone at Baylor.edu>

WACO, Texas – Baylor baseball (3-7) clinched the series over Oral Roberts (4-6) with a 9-3 win on Saturday at Baylor Ballpark in Waco.

Redshirt junior infielder Will Pendergrass collected three hits and drove in three to lead the Bears offensively. Redshirt freshman right-handed pitcher Collin McKinney earned the win in his third-career start, while sophomore southpaw Ethan Calder picked up a four-inning save, the first of his career.

BU pounded out 11 hits and all nine starters reached base safely in the win, marking the second-consecutive game in which the Bears have eclipsed double-digit hits and had all nine starters reach. The victory marked just the fourth time since the start of the 2022 season that Baylor has won the first two games of its weekend series.

THE RUNDOWN
Baylor wasted no time getting on the board as each of the first four batters reached safely in the bottom of the first, highlighted by fifth-year senior infielder Mason Greer’s RBI single. Another run crossed the plate on a double play ball to give BU a 2-0 lead after the opening frame.

Then in the second, junior catcher Cortlan Castle and sophomore outfielder Caleb Bergman combined to wreak havoc on the ORU defense, as Castle reached on a fielder’s choice and advanced on an error. Then, Bergman beat out a bunt single and Castle came around to score on another miscue by the Golden Eagles, making it 3-0 in favor of the home team.

McKinney continued to put up zeroes and Baylor extended its lead to 5-0 in the fourth as junior infielder Hunter Teplanszky’s sacrifice fly and Pendergrass’ RBI single plated runs.

ORU’s Holden Breeze tagged McKinney for a three-run homer in the fifth, the only blemish of the day from the BU pitching staff, to cut the lead to 5-3. But the Bears responded in the sixth as Pendergrass doubled in a pair to make it 7-3.

A sacrifice fly from redshirt junior outfielder Enzo Apodaca in the seventh and junior outfielder Wesley Jordan’s first-career blast in the eighth added some more insurance, as Calder kept the Eagles bats quiet and clinched the series win for the Bears.

HIGHLIGHTS
• Baylor clinched its first series victory of 2024. The win marked just the fourth time since the start of the 2022 campaign that BU has won each of the first two games of its weekend series.
• Baylor improved to 27-22 all-time against Oral Roberts.
• The Bears tallied 11 hits for their fourth double-digit hitting output of the year.
• Redshirt junior OF Enzo Apodaca picked up his fourth multi-hit game of the season and extended his team-leading hitting streak to nine games.
• Junior INF Hunter Teplanszky collected his fifth multi-hit effort of the year.
• Redshirt junior INF Will Pendergrass tied his career high with three hits and drove in three runs while extending his hit streak to five games.
• Junior OF Wesley Jordan crushed his first-career home run.
• Redshirt freshman RHP Collin McKinney earned his first-career win after throwing five innings and allowing three earned runs on five hits with two walks and four strikeouts.
• Sophomore LHP Ethan Calder collected his first-career save after going four scoreless innings and allowing just three hits with no walks.
• This was Calder’s second scoreless outing of the year and third appearance without allowing an earned run.
• Freshman INF Chase Womack made his collegiate debut and walked in his only plate appearance.

STAT OF THE DAY
4 – Baylor has needed just four pitchers in its two wins over Oral Roberts this weekend. The two wins also marked just the fourth time since the start of the 2022 season that BU has won each of the first two games of a weekend series.

QUOTABLE

Head Coach Mitch Thompson

On today’s game…

“We jumped on them early. We took a lead in the first inning and then we extended it. There’s only two out of the eight innings we swung the bat that we didn’t score. We applied some pressure, took pretty good at-bats up and down the lineup and took advantage of the mistakes that they made. So, it was a really good day offensively.”



On Collin McKinney’s starting performance…

“Collin [McKinney] had to overcome some things. We had a runner at second and third, one out. We shouldn’t have had runners at second and third. The one missed play, even though it’s not an error, it’s a missed play. It’s something that we have to make. He showed maturity there. He had to overcome it. It was a strikeout, strikeout to get out of the inning. That was huge. He continues to work. There’s things he could do better, but he’s a really nice arm. He has a good arm and he’s learning every day.”



Junior INF Will Pendergrass

On the difference maker in his offensive performance…

“Just trying to get back to the basics and get a good pitch to hit. Staying with my approach, the one that the coaches and I have built throughout the week. Going to ground zero and starting back over.”



On contributing as a team…

“It’s been awesome. You’re seeing a bunch of guys get their first shot. They’re taking advantage of the opportunity. You can see the depth we have on this team. We just have to keep going out there and getting after it tomorrow.”

WHAT’S NEXT
Baylor (3-7) goes for the series sweep over Oral Roberts (4-6) on Sunday with a 1 p.m. first pitch at Baylor Ballpark.

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_3570197506]<http://baylorbears.com/>

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