About the only surprising thing about Baylor’s TSSAA Division II-AA sub-state softball doubleheader Thursday at home was that the Lady Red Raiders actually trailed Ensworth at one point.
Baylor, which won the first game 10-0 in five innings, batted first in the second game but failed to score in the first inning before the Lady Tigers came in and got a run. As if that got their attention, the Lady Raiders sent 13 to bat and scored 10 runs in the next inning on the way to winning the second game in the best-of-three series 17-1 in three innings.
Baylor (22-3-1) advances to the state tournament in Murfreesboro, where it will begin play by taking on neighboring rival GPS at Starplex No. 3 at 6:30 p.m. EDT Tuesday. Last season the champion Bruisers interrupted the Lady Raiders’ attempt to win their fourth consecutive state title.
“We put that behind us,” Baylor coach Kelli Smith said. “This is a new team. It’s a new season. We have some new girls. We’ve got some kids playing new positions. These will be new games, new opponents.”
However, there are some returning starters, such as junior first baseman Crosby Huckabay, who can’t help but remember the way last season ended.