PROVO, Utah — Coming off its first Big 12 series sweep in program history, BYU softball will play its final home series this weekend, welcoming Baylor to Gail Miller Field.
*In an effort to avoid inclement weather forecasted on Friday, the Cougars and Bears will now play a doubleheader on Thursday, April 25, beginning at 2 p.m. MDT. Game two will be played roughly 30 minutes following the completion of the first. Saturday's series finale is still scheduled to begin at noon MDT.
**After completion of a doubleheader on Thursday, BYU and Baylor have agreed to play game three of the series on Friday, April 26 at 6 p.m. MDT, weather permitting. If inclement weather persists, the series finale would be played on Saturday at noon MDT, as originally scheduled.
| BYU vs. Baylor | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Time | Live Stream | Live Stats |
| Thursday, April 25 | 2 p.m. MDT | BYU Cougars YouTube Live Stream | Stat Broadcast |
| Thursday, April 25 | 4:30 p.m. MDT | BYU Cougars YouTube Live Stream | Stat Broadcast |
| Friday, April 26 | 6 p.m. MDT | Big 12 Now on ESPN+ | Stat Broadcast |
The Cougars (26-19, 8-13 Big 12) will honor six graduating seniors after Saturday’s finale: catcher Macy Simmons, outfielder Taryn Lennon, pitcher Chloe Temples, left fielder Maddie Bejarano, center fielder Violet Zavodnik and first baseman Huntyr Ava.
BYU enters the week on a four-game win streak after beating Idaho State and sweeping Iowa State in the Cougars’ first ever series sweep in Big 12 play. After winning the series opener, 5-1, BYU faced deficits in both games two and three.
In Friday night’s game two contest, the Cougars trailed 4-0, before taking a 5-4 lead. The game eventually went into extras, where BYU hit a trio of home runs between the eighth and ninth innings, keeping the contest tied twice and walking it off on a solo shot by Bejarano.
The Cougars faced a 5-3 deficit after two innings, before retaking the lead at 6-5 in the third, one it would not relinquish for the remainder of the game. Hailey Morrow added a pair of insurance runs in the sixth, launching a 2-run homer on the first pitch she saw, helping secure the series sweep of the Cyclones.
Morrow was named the Big 12 Player of the Week, BYU’s first weekly honor of the season, after her impressive week at the plate. The catcher hit .583 and slugged 1.583 while tallying seven hits, four home runs, 10 RBI, six runs and 19 total bases, leading the league in all seven statistics.
The middle infielder turned catcher hit a career-high two home runs against Idaho State, a game-tying homer in the ninth inning of game two with Iowa State, and the series-sealing two-run shot during Saturday’s finale to go along with a perfect fielding percentage both behind the dish and out at shortstop.
With a pair of conference series against Baylor and Kansas, and one midweek game at Idaho State remaining, BYU is batting .327, a mark that ranks third in conference behind Oklahoma and Texas, the league’s top two teams.
The Cougars and Bears sit in a two-way tie for sixth place in the Big 12 heading into this weekend’s series and look for sole possession of sixth, which would grant a first round bye to the Big 12 Championships in two weeks.
Baylor (25-18, 8-13 Big 12)
- The Bears have a midweek game at Utah on Wednesday night before making their way down to Provo.
- BYU leads the all-time series between the two teams, 5-1, and has won the last five matchups.
- The Cougars swept the Bears in their only previous three-game series with a 4-2 victory and pair of 7-5 wins on April 1-2, 2021.
After its final three home games in 2024, BYU will visit Idaho State in Pocatello before heading to Lawrence for a three-game set at Kansas to conclude the regular season.