Baylor had its chances to get on the scoreboard against TCU on Sunday night. It came away emptyhanded, though, as the Bears fell 9-0 in the NCAA tournament Fort Worth Regional. Despite a strong start from senior Craig Fritsch, Baylor’s 36-24 season ended with tournament elimination.
Fritsch and Horned Frogs’ hurler Steven Maxwell battled to a scoreless first four innings. TCU finally broke through in the fifth when All-Tournament MVP Taylor Featherston tripled down the right field line, scoring Jerome Pena and Brance Rivera.
“I say I definitely felt like I hit a little bit of a wall in the fifth. I started missing locations, and they took advantage of it,” Fritsch said.
The same could not be said of Baylor. Though Brooks Pinckard ignited the Baylor faithful in attendance with a leadoff triple in Baylor’s fourth inning, the team could not capitalize. Joey Hainsfurther worked a walk, but Cal Towey struck out and Raynor Campbell then hit into an inning ending double play.
“The way Craig was pitching at that point in time, it was looking like it was going to be a 3-2 type of a ballgame,” coach Steve Smith said. “You’re not going to win too many games when you’ve got first and third with nobody out and you can’t get something out of it.”
Maxwell, named one of two All-Tournament starting pitchers alongside Baylor’s Willie Kempf, held the Bears to three hits in 8.0 innings, striking out 10 batters.
Fritsch lasted 6.2 innings, surrendering four runs on eight hits with eight strikeouts. He handed the ball to Brooks Pinckard, upon whom the Bears called in its Sunday afternoon game against Arizona. Pinckard totaled 3.0 innings in addition to playing the remainder of each game in center field.
Pinckard looked to maintain his team’s slim comeback chances before trouble struck in the ninth.
With runners on first and third, pinch hitter Kyle Von Tungeln reached first when Campbell fielded Von Tungeln’s grounder but hesitated too long to throw out any runners.
Jantzen Witte followed with another groundball. Landis Ware fielded the ball and, realizing Witte would beat out his throw to first, instead held on to catch Matt Curry running between third and home. But Ware fooled catcher Gregg Glime with a pump fake to first, and when Ware threw home for a tag out, the ball soared past Glime as Curry scored.
Von Tungeln also scored on the play, and Witte reached third on the two-base throwing error.
“It’s an embarrassing moment for the guy on the field, but I’m just glad it wasn’t the game (deciding play),” Smith said.
The game was a rough way for Fritsch and the senior class to end their careers, but Fritsch did acknowledge his pride in the seniors’ deepest run in their four years.
“It’s a little bittersweet. If you look back a couple weeks ago, we were battling to get into the Big 12 tournament and battling to get in (the NCAA tournament.) I’m not happy with how we finished, but it’s rewarding,” Fritsch said.