Waco, Texas – The Illinois softball team jumped out early, but host Baylor came back twice as the Illini fell to the Bears, 5-4, in the finale of the Baylor Invitational on Sunday (Feb. 23) at Gettterman Stadium.
"Today was yet another opportunity for growth against a strong Baylor team," said head coach Tyra Perry. "Danielle Davis has been seeing the ball well and played hard for us all weekend. Addy Jarvis fought hard in the circle but fell a little short. We will go back to the drawing board and continue to work on our overall offense."
The Illini (7-5) grabbed an early 1-0 advantage as back-to-back singles from freshman Delaney Rummell and junior Bella Loya set up sophomore Danielle Davis for an RBI single through the right side.
After the Bears (13-2) knotted it up in the bottom of the opening frame, Davis came up big again as she broke the tie with a three-run home run to left centerfield in the top of the third for the 4-1 edge.
Baylor answered back with a run in the bottom of the inning and pair of scores in the fifth, before taking a 5-4 lead on a solo home run in the sixth.
Sophomore Addy Jarvis (3-2) took the loss after giving up five runs on eight hits and struck out two in six innings of work.
The Illini totaled six hits with Davis leading the way with a 2-for-3 effort at the plate with four RBI and a run, while Rummell also added a 2-for-3 performance to go along with two runs.
Next Up
The Illini next travel to Fullerton, Calif., for the Judi Garman Classic, hosted by Cal State Fullerton on Feb. 27-29. The Illini will take on Cal Poly, BYU, Colorado State, Fresno State and the host Titans in the three-day tournament.
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