Baker Bats Come to Life in Perfect 4-0 Outing at Kansas City Tournament

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – No. 11 Baker softball racked up an incredible 47 runs across its four wins at the 2024 KC NAIA Invite on Sunday and Monday with three of them being run-rule victories to give the Wildcats a perfect 4-0 outing at the two-day tournament.

The Wildcats hit more home runs as a team (9) than total runs scored by their opponents (7) for the tournament as the red-hot BU offense notched double-digit runs in three of the four games.

Savannah Bray smacked a total of four home runs for the tournament with three of them coming on the first day of action, which resulted in her earning Heart Player of the Week honors.

BU 13, CC 5 (5 inn.)
Baker scored 12 runs in the final three innings with Bray recording the first multi-home run game for a Wildcat this year as BU triggered its first mercy rule of the tournament with a 13-5 victory over the Cougars in game one.

With Columbia leading, 3-1, Bray followed up a game-tying double by Madi Ball with a two-run shot to left field to put the Wildcats in front. Bray smoked another two-run bomb in her next trip to the plate in the bottom of the fourth before Mary Grace Hess added a three-run homer in the fifth where the Wildcats would eventually seal the game with Ball coming home on a wild pitch.

BU 16, BC 1 (5 inn.)
The Wildcats lineup stayed hot in the nightcap of day one with a 16-1 thrashing of in-state opponent Bethel with a nine-run second frame for BU blowing things open early in the game.

Bray hit her third home run of the day and Rilee Bell tallied four RBI with half of those coming on her first homer of the year. Riley Seymour sent a two-run shot over the fence in left in the top of the third to give the Wildcats their second straight game with three home runs.

With a 16-run cushion from her offense, starter Sydney Kill was able to cruise thru the Threshers lineup, tallying eight strikeouts in her five innings of one-run ball.

BU 5, SMWC 0
After recording her first collegiate perfect game against the Pomeroys in this tournament last year, Kira Baker whiffed nine hitters and gave up just two hits to earn her first shutout of the season on a 5-0 victory for BU.

The Wildcats offense picked up right where it left off on Sunday with a three-run opening frame courtesy of a two-run double from Ball and an RBI single from Riley Phillips. Hess clubbed her second home run of the tournament with a two-out rocket that put Baker in front, 5-0.

The lefty Baker would take care of things from there with St. Mary-Woods getting a runner past second just one time all game as she struck out three of the final four batters to seal the shutout win.

BU 11, CU 1 (6 inn.)
The Wildcats tallied a run in every inning with a five-run fifth securing their third run-rule victory of the tournament with an 11-1 win over Concordia in the finale.

Ball capped her impressive tournament run by collecting five RBI with her first homer of the season coming on a three-run jack in the top of the sixth. Bray followed Ball's home run with a solo shot to give the senior slugger her fourth of the tournament and get the Wildcats within striking distance of the mercy rule. Seymour's single a few batters later sealed the fourth straight win for the Wildcats.

Up next, Baker heads to the Missouri side of Kansas City to face Kansas Christian in a non-conference doubleheader set to start at 3 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 22 in Kansas City, Mo.

#BakerBuildsChampions